OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ACT OF 1970 29 U.S.C. 651-678, 84 Stat. 1590 (1970) Summary and Description PURPOSE OF THE LAW The declared Congressional purpose and policy of this Act is "to assure so far as possible every working man and woman in the Nation safe and healthful working conditions and to preserve our human resources." COVERAGE The law applies to every employer engaged in a business affecting commerce who has employees. It applies in all 50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, Wake Island, the Outer Continental Shelf Lands, Johnston Island, and the Canal Zone. Federal, State and local government employees are specifically excluded from coverage, but may be covered by equally effective require ments. In addition, the Act specifically provides that its terms shall not apply to working conditions protected under other Federal occupational safety and health laws (such as those under the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act; and under the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, including State agreements under that Act). DUTIES OF EMPLOYERS AND EMPLOYEES Each employer under the Act has the general duty to furnish each of his employees employment and places of employment, free from recognized hazards causing, or likely to cause, death or serious physical harm; and the employer has the specific duty of complying with safety and health standards promulgated under the Act. Each employee has the duty to comply with these safety and health standards, and all rules, regulations, and orders issued pursuant to the Act which are applicable to his own actions and conduct. ADMINISTRATION Administration and enforcement of the Act are vested primarily in the Secretary of Labor and in a new agency, the Occupational Safety (689) and Health Review Commission, a quasi-judicial board of three members appointed by the President. Research and related functions are vested in the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare whose functions will, for the most part, be carried out by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health established within HEW. The Secretary of Labor is responsible for both promulgating and enforcing job safety and health standards. Occupational safety and health inspections are made by inspectors located in offices established in many communities throughout the country. OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH STANDARDS In general, job safety and health standards consist of rules for avoidance of hazards which have been proven by research and experience to be harmful to personal safety and health. They constitute an extensive compilation of wisdom which sometimes applies to all employees. An example of this would be fire protection standards. A great many standards, however, apply only to workers while engaged in specific types of work, such as handling compressed gas. It is the obligation of all employers and employees to familiarize themselves with those standards which apply to them and to observe them at all times. The Secretary of Labor is authorized, until April 28, 1973, to promulgate as occupational safety and health standards any existing Federal standards (such as those applying to Federal contractors under the Walsh-Healey Act) or any national consensus standards (such as those issued by the National Fire Protection Association), without complying with the rule-making requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act. In addition, the Secretary of Labor may, upon the basis of information submitted by the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, advisory committees and others, revise, modify or revoke existing standards as well as promulgate new ones. The promulgation of standards under this section of the Act must be done under the procedures set forth in the section itself, including various time limitations, and also under the procedures of the Administrative Procedure Act. Any person adversely affected by a standard issued by the Secretary may challenge its validity by petitioning the U.S. Court of Appeals within 60 days after its promulgation. Unless otherwise ordered by the Court, filing such a petition does not operate as a stay of the standard. Also, the Act provides for the establishment of emergency temporary standards, effective immediately upon publication in the Federal Register, where it is found that employees are exposed to grave danger. The Act also contains provision for standards which may require: • That no employee dealing with toxic materials or harmful physical agents will suffer material impairment of health or functional capacity, even if such employee has regular exposure to the hazard dealt with by such standard for the period of his working life. • Development and prescription of labels or other appropriate forms of warning so that employees are made aware of all hazards to which they are exposed. Prescription of suitable protective equipment. • Monitoring or measuring employee exposure to hazards as may be necessary for the protection of employees. Prescription of the type and frequency of medical examinations or other tests for employees exposed to health hazards. At the request of an employee, the examination or test results shall be furnished to his physician. The Secretary of Labor, after a hearing on an employer application therefor, is authorized to grant temporary variances from standards to give the employer sufficient time to come into compliance if he can show a need for certain time-extension and has a protective plan of action. Variances may be granted without time limits if the Secretary finds that an employer is using safety measures which are as safe as those required in a standard. Affected employees must be given notice of each such application and an opportunity for hearing. COMPLAINTS OF VIOLATIONS Any employees (or representative thereof) who believe that a violation of a job safety or health standard exists which threatens physical harm, or that an imminent danger exists, may request an inspection by sending a signed written notice to the Department of Labor. Such a notice shall set forth with reasonable particularity the grounds for the notice and a copy shall be provided the employer or his agent. The names of the complainants need not, however, be furnished to the employer. If the Secretary finds no reasonable grounds for the complaint and a citation is not issued, he is required to notify the complainants in writing of his determinations or final disposition of the matter. The Secretary is also required to set up procedures for informal review in a case where a citation is not issued. ENFORCEMENT In enforcing the standards, Labor Department safety inspectors may enter without delay, and at any reasonable times, any establishment covered by the Act to inspect the premises and all pertinent conditions, structures, machines, apparatus, devices, equipment, and materials therein, and to question privately any employer, owner, operator, agent, or employee. The Act permits the employer and a representative authorized by his employees to accompany the inspector during the physical inspection of any workplace for the purpose of aiding such inspection. The Secretary of Labor also has power, in making inspections and investigations to require the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of evidence under oath. The Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare is also authorized to make inspections and question employers and employees in order to carry out those functions assigned to HEW under the Act. Where an investigation reveals a violation, the employer is issued a written citation describing the specific nature of the violation. All citations shall fix a reasonable time for abatement of the violation, and each citation (or copies thereof) issued by the Department of Labor must be prominently posted at or near each place where a violation referred to in the citation occurred. Notices, in lieu of citations, may be issued |