News & Analysis as of July 24, 2025

Employer Liability Issues

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The Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) is a United States federal agency established in 1970 by the Occupational Health and Safety Act. OSHA is part of the Department of Labor and is charged with assuring healthy, safe, working environments. OSHA sets and enforces safety standards and policies. Examples of OSHA's duties include setting limits on workers' exposure to hazardous substances, ensuring workers have access to safety information and protective equipment, and providing employers and workers proper training to prevent dangerous conditions. less -

Trump Budget Plan Proposes Big Cuts to OSHA, Lowering Head Count and Limiting Enforcement Capabilities

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on 6/13/2025

The Trump Administration’s fiscal year 2026 budget proposal includes big cuts for OSHA. The Fiscal Year 2026 Congressional Budget Justification is available...more

Nominee for OSHA Chief David Keeling Testifies Before Senate Committee, Outlines Workplace Safety Priorities and Workplace...

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on 6/11/2025

On Thursday, June 5, 2025, OSHA Nominee David Keeling testified that he plans to adopt a more cooperative, proactive approach and pursue a new workplace violence regulation....more

Workplace Law Update: 12 Essential Items on Your May To-Do List

Fisher Phillips on 5/6/2024

It’s hard to keep up with all the recent changes to labor and employment law, especially since the law always seems to evolve at a rapid pace. In order to ensure you stay on top of the latest changes and have an action plan...more

OSHA Releases a New Process Safety Management “Enforcement Manual”

Conn Maciel Carey LLP on 2/19/2024

For a relatively quiet 2023, 2024 is starting off with a bang. While we are keeping our eyes and ears open on these and any other relevant developments, we wanted to provide a summary of the key highlights from Fed OSHA’s new...more

OSHA Announces Aggressive Plan to Address Workplace Safety in 2023: 6 Tips for Employers

Fisher Phillips on 1/31/2023

Federal workplace safety officials just issued a press release announcing new enforcement guidance to make its penalties more effective in, as they describe it, “stopping employers from repeatedly exposing workers to...more

OSHA Announces Significant Expansion of ‘Instance-by-Instance’ Citation Policy

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,... on 1/30/2023

Late on January 26, 2023, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a press release concerning a significant change in long-standing policy related to instance-by-instance issuance of citations that will...more

OSHA COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard placed on “hold”

Hogan Lovells on 4/8/2021

On April 6, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Marty Walsh placed a “hold” on the implementation of a potential U.S. Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA) COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), which would set...more

OSHA Launches New Workplace Safety Initiative and Updated Enforcement Guidance Regarding COVID-19

Proskauer - Law and the Workplace on 3/17/2021

As we previously reported, on January 21, 2021, President Biden issued an executive order aimed at increasing COVID-19 workplace safety measures at the federal level. In response to President Biden’s directive, OSHA announced...more

OSHA Launches National Emphasis Program to Protect High-Risk Workers from COVID-19 or Retaliation from COVID-19 Complaints

Burr & Forman on 3/16/2021

On March 12, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) launched a National Emphasis Program (“NEP”) to focus its COVID-19 enforcement efforts. The NEP will remain in effect for up to one year from its...more

OSHA Launches National Emphasis Program and Revises Enforcement Procedures Related to COVID-19

Stinson LLP on 3/16/2021

As mandated in President Biden's January 21 Executive Order on Protecting Worker Health and Safety, the Department of Labor (DOL) on March 12 issued the latest piece of the puzzle with a National Emphasis Program –...more

Does Trump’s COVID-19 Case Need To Be Reported To OSHA? What Employers Can Learn From President’s Illness

Fisher Phillips on 10/12/2020

President Donald Trump’s recent hospitalization at the Walter Reed Medical Center has captured the American public’s attention, especially given the potential implications with the election less than a month away. But for...more

COVID-19: Working Wise: Navigating Your Business Through a Shifting Enforcement Landscape: Practical Advice in the Time of...

K&L Gates LLP on 7/29/2020

In this podcast, Nicole Stockey, Megan Moore, and Melanie Stratton Lopez discuss potential government enforcement actions employers need to consider when returning to work, with a focus on OSHA’s enforcement guidance....more

UPDATED OSHA Considerations for Recording COVID-19 Illnesses

Spilman Thomas & Battle, PLLC on 6/8/2020

Even though OSHA has advised that no specific standard covers the novel coronavirus, human resource and safety personnel must be mindful of the generally-applicable standards that might apply. OSHA has issued several...more

Top Three Takeaways from OSHA Chief’s Testimony Regarding OSHA Enforcement During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Proskauer - Law and the Workplace on 6/2/2020

Amid growing criticism of the agency’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, OSHA’s Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Loren E. Sweatt (“Sweatt”), testified before the House Education and Labor Committee’s Workforce...more

OSHA COVID-19 Guidance Walks Back Prior Agency Positions

Morgan Lewis on 6/1/2020

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued an Updated Interim Enforcement Response Plan on May 19 for enforcing OSHA’s requirements with respect to coronavirus (COVID-19) and a Revised Enforcement...more

As Agencies Issue Updated Coronavirus Guidance, Existing Policies Should Be Evaluated and Updated

Stinson LLP on 5/29/2020

The CDC, OSHA and other local, state and federal agencies continue to rapidly issue and modify guidance related to COVID-19. As states are in various phases of reopening, employers must continue to keep a watchful eye and...more

OSHA Issues Updated Interim Enforcement Response Plan for Coronavirus Disease

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on 5/29/2020

Seyfarth Synopsis: The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has adopted an Updated Interim Enforcement Response Plan for Coronavirus Disease (ERP). Now, as states begin reopening their economies, the...more

OSHA Will Increase In-Person Inspections As Part Of Revised COVID-19 Enforcement Plan

Fisher Phillips on 5/26/2020

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently announced that OSHA area offices will begin to increase in-person inspections in some parts of the country as the agency released a revised response plan on how it...more

OSHA Issues Updated COVID-19 Interim Enforcement Response Plan

Littler on 5/26/2020

On May 19, 2020, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued an Updated Interim Enforcement Response Plan for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) (the Updated Plan), providing new guidance to all OSHA...more

Is OSHA knocking at your door more often? Here’s why.

Bricker Graydon LLP on 5/21/2020

The U.S. Department of Labor’s workplace safety office is stepping up its in-person inspections in areas where COVID-19 infections have decreased. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued new...more

OSHA Rescinds and Revises Guidance for Enforcement and COVID-19 Recording

McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC on 5/21/2020

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) is taking steps to resume pre-COVID-19 inspection and response procedures. On May 19, 2020, OSHA released two enforcement guidance documents that lay out OSHA’s...more

Summary of OSHA COVID-19 Compliance Guidance

Jackson Walker on 4/22/2020

How do I comply with OSHA requirements if an employee is diagnosed with COVID-19? To resolve confusion caused by the pandemic, OSHA recently issued several enforcement guidances. Among these are guidances on recording cases...more

COVID-19/OSHA: Interim Enforcement Response Plan

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard,... on 4/22/2020

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) issued an April 13th guidance memorandum titled...more

OSHA’s New COVID-19 Inspection Plan: What Employers Should Expect

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,... on 4/22/2020

On April 13, 2020, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued its Interim Enforcement Response Plan for Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), which provides a blueprint for the agency’s Area...more

#WorkforceWednesday: Labor Market Imbalance, Return to Work, OSHA Enforcement Guidance - Employment Law This Week®

Epstein Becker & Green on 4/22/2020

Welcome to #WorkforceWednesday. Here’s the week’s top workforce management and employment law news: The COVID-19 Labor Market Imbalance (video below) The COVID-19 pandemic has created a sudden imbalance in the labor market....more

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