Investing in the Protection of Employees

in

As an employer, you’re faced with plenty of responsibilities, but none even come close to the obligation you have to keep your workers safe. Each year, millions of people are killed on worksites — often for highly preventable reasons — and this has to stop.

It’s your responsibility to provide a safe worksite for your team, provide all necessary training, and constantly inspect the premises to make sure every last detail is up to code. The Department of Labor (DOL) is also stepping in, proposing a budget to increase funding for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), to offer even more protections.

5 DOL Budget Proposals to Make Worksites Safer

This year’s DOL budget proposal includes a request for an additional $42.2 million in OSHA funding and permission to add 100 new employees to the Agency. If granted, the additional resources will be used to create and enhance a host of programs to help keep your team safe.

  • 10 New Compliance Assistance Specialist Positions. At a total cost of $1.5 million, restoring 10 previously eliminated compliance assistance specialist positions would assist with both employer and worker outreach initiatives.
  • On-site Consultation Projects. Intended to help small-and mid-sized employers hire and train staff to comply with OSHA’s rapid response investigations and other types of safety training, a total of $2 million has been requested to introduce on-site consultation projects.
  • Executive Order 13650. Designed to increase safety and security at chemical facilities, $5.15 million has been requested to put Executive Order 13650 into action. In total, $2.45 million would be used to improve standards — such as the Process Safety Management Standard — and $2.7 million would fund the hiring of compliance officers.
  • Rapid Response Investigation Protocols. The 2014 updates to the Recordkeeping Standard resulted in an additional workload, so $6.7 million has been proposed to fund the execution of rapid response protocols needed to better support it.
  • Mine Safety and Health Administration. Looking ahead, the 2017 budget also includes provisions to fund the Mine Safety and Health Administration, an Agency created to offer better protections to U.S. mineworkers and their families. Proposed backing includes $397.37 million in funding and the hiring of 2,277 full-time employees.

Visit the MAC Incorporated blog for more information on OSHA standards. Our niche-based recruiting and staffing firm specializes in the placement of engineering, maintenance, and operations management professionals. Contact us today for more information.