OSHA Requirements Guide for Employers

What Does OSHA Require From Employers?

If you have ever visited OSHA’s website, you know there is so much information posted regarding the different safety and health requirements employers must follow in order to keep their employees safe on the job. We are going to breakdown the key rules and regulations starting with the top 3 basic duties for employers.

Three Key Elements:

  1. Compliance with OSHA laws.
  2. Provide a workplace free from serious recognized hazards.
  3. Examine workplace conditions to ensure compliance.

The foundation of a successful safety program is compliance with OSHA laws. Part of the LSCI approach is to stress the importance of creating a good safety culture at your workplace.

Why Comply With OSHA’s Regulations?

  1. Ethical: Employers should feel a moral obligation to keep their employees safe on the job. “We don’t want anyone to get hurt, do we?”
  2. Legal: The obvious reason for employers to comply with OSHA regulations is because it’s the law. “We want to comply with the law, don’t we?”
  3. Business:  It costs less to be pro-active vs. reactive. “We want to minimize expenses and maximize profits, right?”

If you’re a safety professional trying to convince upper management of the benefits of investing in a safety program, check out our Business Case for Safety e-book or call one of our consultants at 888-403-6026.

OSHA’s General Duty Clause

Every employer should be familiar with OSHA’s General Duty Clause because it really is all encompassing. OSHA can issue a citation for any safety hazard under the General Duty Clause even if it is not specifically spelled out somewhere else in the regulations. It requires employers to protect employees from any safety hazard they may encounter, including those that aren’t specifically listed in OSHA’s regulations.

(a) Each employer —

(1) shall furnish to each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees;

(2) shall comply with occupational safety and health standards promulgated under this Act.

(b) Each employee shall comply with occupational safety and health standards and all rules, regulations, and orders issued pursuant to this Act which are applicable to his own actions and conduct.

  • Comply with OSHA’s standards.

  • Post the free OSHA workplace poster and encourage employees to read it.

  • Provide a workplace free from serious recognized hazards.

  • Conduct hazard assessments.

  • Maintain up to date written safety and health programs including procedures.

  • Employers must provide safety training in a language and vocabulary workers can understand.

  • Provide access to Safety Data Sheets (SDS) when employees use hazardous chemicals.

  • Train employees on what chemicals they are exposed to.

  • Use and maintain safe tools and equipment.

  • Provide warnings of potential hazards including signs.

  • Report all work-related fatalities within 8 hours to OSHA.

  • Employers with more than 10 employees must keep records of work-related injuries and illnesses.

  • Post the recordkeeping 300A form from February 1 to April 30 each year in a prominent location at your workplace.

  • Submit electronic injury and illness records if your workplace is required.

  • Provide access to employee medical records and exposure records to employees or their authorized representatives.

  • Do not discriminate against employees who exercise their rights under the Act. See OSHA’s “Whistleblower Protection” webpage.

  • Post OSHA citations at or near the work area involved. Each citation must remain posted until the violation has been corrected, or for three working days, whichever is longer. Post abatement verification documents or tags.

  • Correct cited violations by the deadline set in the OSHA citation and submit required abatement verification documentation.

A successful safety program needs to be nurtured.

Top 10 Reasons to Partner With an Award Winning OSHA Consulting Firm

OSHA compliance does not need to be confusing or take up every moment of your day. The advantages of having a third party safety consulting company by your side include:

  1. Professional consultants with various certifications and qualifications that know OSHA’s rules and regulations.
  2. Have a hazard assessment conducted without having any citations issued.
  3. Get a safety and health training delivered on just the topics you need.
  4. It is cheaper than hiring a full time safety person or can provide assistance to an overloaded safety manager.
  5. Shows your employees that you truly care about their safety and well-being which will boost morale!
  6. Gives you the peace of mind knowing you have experienced support available and shows OSHA that you are operating in good faith.
  7. Issues safety and health news alerts and OSHA regulation changes.
  8. Helps create a safer workplace for your employees and builds a safety culture.
  9. Will help to prevents or reduce accidents, injuries and potential OSHA citations.
  10. OSHA can offer employers a “good faith” discount for hiring a safety company.

First, strive to meet OSHA’s requirements. Then, work to maintain them. Next, go beyond the safety standards!

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$69,058 in Penalties to Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. for Endangering Employees

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued seven serious citations against Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. for exposing its employees to burn, hazardous energy, amputation, and caught-in safety hazards. The company faces proposed penalties of $69,058.

OSHA investigators inspected Goodyear’s Social Circle facility in August 2017, and found that the company failed to provide effective personal protective equipment to employees exposed to burn hazards; did not provide procedures for controlling hazardous energy during equipment maintenance operations; and exposed employees to burns from heated tire treads, and caught-in hazards from unguarded machines.

“Our inspection found multiple safety deficiencies that put employees at risk of serious injury or death,” said OSHA Area Office Director William Fulcher, in Atlanta. “Potential workplace hazards must be assessed and eliminated to ensure employees are afforded a safe work environment.”

The company has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees.

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Top 10 Items You Need for ISN Compliance

Contractor pre-qualification programs give companies a way to limit the liability risks that onsite contractors can bring. If you want to work for clients who use these programs, you must pay the cost to be a member and then take the time and effort to enter your company information into the system. At first glance, ISNetworld setup can be a daunting task. To help get you prepared, we present the Top 10 items you’ll need to gather for ISNetworld compliance.

  1. General Company Information

You will need to know basic information about your company such as date established, structure, addresses and contacts, special codes and numbers (NAICS, Tax ID, DUNS – SAM, etc.), number of employees, financial and project references and more.

  1. Safety Policies and Procedures

You will be asked a number of questions about your safety policies. How is your safety program set up, how is it built and who’s responsible?  What’s the management structure and is company leadership involved?  Are hourly employees involved and do you have full-time safety personnel?  What training do supervisors get? Do you do audits, who does them and how often?

Also included are questions about safety meetings, training, documentation, observations, stop work policies, hazard reporting, policies for new hires, incident investigation and communication.

  1. Written Safety Programs

If you’re following OSHA compliance, you should already have written safety programs for the hazards your employees can be exposed to. Depending on the services you say you provide, ISNetworld and your client will generate a list of the individual written safety programs that you need. There will be specific elements that you’ll be required to incorporate into your written programs, so it’s likely you’ll need to update your programs. Be very mindful what your revised program commits your company to. If it’s written in your program that your company will do something, you need to do it. If not, you could expose yourself to fines from OSHA for not following your own plan.

ISNetworld will ask you every 3 years to revalidate these programs to ensure they are still current.

  1. Training Programs

For many of the written programs, you’ll be asked to upload corresponding training sign-ins and information from those classes, so you may need to conduct additional training on a variety of topics. Be prepared to answer questions related to what kind of training you provide to new hires and routine employees, how often and how they are documented.

  1. Regulatory Data

You will need to track OSHA injury and illness data on a quarterly basis. This information is required to be input both quarterly and annually. You’ll also need 3 years of historical data. In ISNetworld you are graded on your 3-year average safety numbers and how they compare to industry standards. Thus, if you have a bad year, your grades may suffer for 3 years.

If you have commercial vehicles, you may need to enter DOT numbers and annual stats for number of drivers, miles driven, number of units, owner operators and violations. You’ll also need to enter in information about your company vehicle/driver programs and policies.

  1. Insurance

Individual insurance certificates will need to be uploaded for each client, and each will have specific requirements.  Be mindful of what the insurance requirements are for each client and know ahead of time what policies you have and what that covers.  Sometimes clients will require specialized policies or varying levels of coverage for certain items that can end up costing thousands of dollars if you agree to that.  However, sometimes these things can be negotiated down, depending on what you’re going to do onsite.  It just depends on the client and the situation.

Check with your insurance company to see if they’re a member of ISNetworld. If so, you can assign them to your account and they can upload certificates and deal with the nuances and negotiations for you. You will also need to enter 3 years of experience modification rate data and upload those documents as well.

  1. Employee and Contractor Data

Some clients will require you to track the number of hours that you and/or your subcontractors spent on the site each month.  These reports are required at the beginning of the month and are often required per site location.  Among the data you may need to report (depending on client requirements) will be hours spent onsite, number of employees onsite, number of miles driven, number of incidents (accidents, fires, spills), subcontractor hours, subcontractor numbers, subcontractor travel data, etc.  Some companies need to keep track of this information for PSM purposes and some like to keep track of contactor activities onsite.

  1.  Human Resources-Type Information

You’ll be asked to input your drug and alcohol policies and procedures.  Some owner clients will require you to have individual employees tested for drugs and alcohol through one of their approved vendors who shares the data directly with the program so that they can see if employees are in a green “OK” status or a red status.  They may also require background checks for each employee who will come onsite as well.   You may also need to provide employee personal information separately to your client to comply with Department of Homeland Security checks as well.  Pandemic preparedness programs are required from many clients, so what are your procedures and policies with that?  Thus, you may need to pull in some of your HR department to help you accomplish some of these requirements and get some answers.

  1. Other Procedures — Sustainability and Cyber Security

Within the past year we’ve seen questions pop up in ISNetworld and throughout multiple programs about our corporate sustainability and social responsibility programs.  One program (not ISNetworld) required us to write a separate written policy statement against human trafficking and a written policy on our stance on child and forced labor.  ISNetworld has also started getting into cyber security policies. There is an extensive questionnaire regarding computer systems and cyber security measures.  Several owner clients required us to develop a written cyber security program.  So besides HR personnel, you may need to bring in your IT people and anyone responsible for sustainability programs.

  1. Individual Training

More and more clients are requiring individuals to do the facility-specific safety orientation training ahead of time before ever stepping onsite.  Thus, if you have a specific project that you’re getting ready for, you may need to know exactly who is going to be involved in the project so that you can assign this training to them.  This would include subcontractor employees too.  Some clients will let you do the training all at once in a group, but more and more are requiring individuals to be given separate logins so that they can complete the training themselves.  So you may need to eventually gather email addresses for individuals who may not have a company email address and budget for time for those employees to take that training.

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Labor Law Changes in 2018

2018 is just around the corner and with it changes in labor laws in many states, now is the time for employers, business owners, & HR compliance professionals to educate themselves on upcoming labor law changes that take effect 1/1/2018. Below we have a list of the different states and which laws that are changing.

The most expected update to occur is state minimum wage rates. Since the Federal Minimum Wage hasn’t changed since 2009, most states have issued their own minimum wage laws to match the cost of living in their areas. Many highly populated states increase their minimum wage rates the first of every New Year. Minimum Wage posters are one of the required posters that come included in the All-In-One 2018 Labor law Poster which also includes OSHA, Paid Sick Leave, Discrimination, Workers’ Compensation and all additional mandatory posters applicable to your state.

Alaska: Minimum Wage
Arizona:  Earned Paid Sick Time(new posting) & Minimum Wage
California: Transgender Rights in the Workplace(new posting)
Colorado: Minimum Wage
Connecticut: Pregnancy Discrimination & Accommodation(new posting) & Discrimination
District of Columbia: Minimum Wage
Florida: Minimum Wage
Louisiana: Earned Income Credit
Maine: Minimum Wage
Massachusetts: Pregnant Workers Fairness Act
Michigan:  Discrimination Posting & Minimum Wage
Minnesota: Minimum Wage
Missouri: Minimum Wage
Montana: Minimum Wage
Nevada: Domestic Violence Victims (new posting)
New Jersey: Minimum Wage
New York: Minimum Wage & Paid Family Leave(new posting)
Ohio: Minimum Wage
Oregon: Minimum Wage
Rhode Island: Minimum Wage
South Dakota: Minimum Wage
Vermont: Pregnancy Accomodation
Washington: Minimum Wage & Paid Sick Leave

With all these changes means that new Labor Law posters are required in the work place. Make sure to contact 1 Stop Compliance today to order your new updated Labor Law posters!

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I Received an ISNetworld Letter! Now What?

I received an ISNetworld Letter! This suddenly lands in your mailbox: “We are pleased to announce (COMPANY) has recently established a business relationship with ISNetworld® to further enhance our contractor/supplier management program. As a result of this action, contractors/suppliers and their subcontractors performing services for (COMPANY YOU WANT TO KEEP WORKING FOR) are required to become subscribers to ISNetworld®.”  Everyone receives this ISNetworld® Letter if you are being requested to join because of a client. We know there can be many questions as to why you received this letter and what happens from here. After receiving your ISNetworld® Letter we are here to help you through the process of getting ISNetworld® compliant!

Companies and contractors both pay to secure an account with a third-party auditor, such asISNetworld®, PICS® , PEC Premier® , BROWZ, ComplyWorks®, Veriforce, Textura, and others. After establishing an account, the client uploads requirements specific to their companies, projects, and job sites to ensure the prospective contractors post detailed qualifications of their company and employees. If a contractor wants to work for an owner, they must ensure they meet all of the needs of the owner.

Throughout the process, the third-party auditor inspects and validates the documentation uploaded. Common types of documentation and requirements include safety programs, training programs, insurance information, workers’ compensation information, incident statistics, financial stability, and past performance.

Bringing any third party auditor account to a 100% score can be a daunting and time-consuming task.  However, we know this requires time, money, and close attention. But the benefits of properly utilizing a third party auditor more than outweigh the cons!

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What are RAVS®?


RAVS stands for the Review and Verification Services section of your account. Here, you upload your safety program. Generally, most accounts can have anywhere from 16-40 programs that need to be custom written and submitted for review.

Contractors often assume that RAVS® and safety programs serve the same function in the ISN® compliance process, but in reality they are distinctly different. In the same way that Cliff Notes provide a summary of a book, RAVS provide a brief overview of the content that is contained in a contractor’s safety program.

ISNetworld® requires RAVS® to be submitted as part of the ISN® compliance process, but without a compliant safety program, contractors are still at risk. 1 Stop Compliance can provide RAVS® for contractors based on their safety programs, but is not held liable for the content of contractors’ own safety programs. It is the responsibility of contractors to ensure their safety programs meet industry standards for compliance, and that their employees adhere to the practices outlined in those programs. If you are unsure whether or not your safety program is up to par, Blakeman & Associates can review and suggest revisions or create an entirely new safety program specifically for your company.

Unfortunately, some third-party data providers do not clarify the difference between RAVS® and safety programs and the importance of having them both, which can lead to a misunderstanding of liability.

Learn more about ISNetworld® Compliance

Ready to start the ISNetworld® Compliance Process? Fill out the form below and we will contact you to get you started!

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Contractor’s Guide To ISNetworld® Compliance

GETTING STARTED

About ISNetworld®

ISNetworld® is a data management company that offers verification services for large companies who contract with numerous suppliers. By contracting with ISNetworld®, these companies outsource the review and verification of safety, insurance and other requirements.

How it works:

  • If you are a supplier to one of these companies, called “owner-clients”, you will have to pay a fee to join ISNetworld®
  • You submit your safety programs, insurance policies, and other requested documentation.
  • ISNetworld® issues you a Dashboard Grade

The Dashboard Grade is critical to your continuing to be eligible to perform work for your owner-client, and ISNetworld® Compliance is what keeps your grade high. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you will be able to maintain a high Dashboard Grade.

Your Company Information

The first step to tackling ISNetworld® compliance, once you have your account set up, is to gather your company information. It is very helpful to have the following documents at your finger tips before you begin.

  • Your OSHA 300 and 300A forms for the last 3 years
  • Experience Modification (“EMR”) letters from your workers’ compensation insurance company for the last 3 years
  • Employee hours worked, including overtime, for each of the last 3 years
  • Average number of employees for each of the last 3 years
  • Your NAICS number (Tip: It is critical that you get this right because the safety requirements that apply to you are determined in large part by your NAICS number)
  • Your insurance certificates
  • Your written safety programs
  • Training documentation for your employees, both formal and informal

Once you have gathered all of these documents, you are ready to tackle the next step, the Management Safety Questionnaire.

THE QUESTIONNAIRE

 

Tips for Filling Out the Questionnaire

This is a very important part of the ISNetworld® compliance process, because how you answer the questions will determine what requirements will apply to you. There are 2 types, the general questionnaire which is applicable to all companies and a second questionnaire that is specific to each owner-client.

  • Block out 4-8 hours to complete this process. It takes some time to go through all of the questions and you do not want to rush and make mistakes
  • The questionnaire will ask specific questions about your company’s safety policies
  • Be truthful and accurate in your responses
  • Tip: Make sure the information you enter into the questionnaire matches the documentation you are submitting. Otherwise it will be kicked back.

The questionnaire must be submitted initially when you first join ISNetworld®, and you must update it every quarter.

INSURANCE VERIFICATION

Tips for the Insurance review process

One of the areas of ISNetworld® compliance that causes a lot of headaches for our clients is the insurance verification process,. Each owner-client has specific liability insurance requirements, and you will be notified of them after you enroll in ISNetworld® and complete your preliminary questionnaire.

The insurance verification process is very strict and you should carefully review your certificates of insurance before submitting them to ISNetworld®. Common reasons for rejected certificates of insurance include:

  • Company names were misspelled due to to typographical errors, or were truncated
  • Company address was not listed correctly on the certificate
  • The name of the contractor on the registration with ISNetworld® did not exactly match the name on the insurance certificate
  • The insurance questionnaire was not answered correctly
  • Requirement to notify owner-operator of policy cancellation was not expressly stated on the certificate of insurance
  • Missing policy types
  • Inadequate policy limits
  • Language of waiver of subrogation did not exactly match the requirements

Your insurance agent should be able to work with you to make sure all of this information is accurately reflected in the certificate of insurance. ISNetworld® allows insurance agents to log in directly to the site and with your permission, upload insurance certificates on your behalf. This can be a great way to expedite the process.

 

EMR & OSHA 300 INFORMATION

Reporting Requirements

EMR (Experience Modification Letters) – These letters are issued annually by your workers’ compensation insurance agent. The main thing to watch out for when submitting these into ISNetworld® is to make sure you are inputting them in the appropriate drop box for the previous 3 years. This is the most common reason EMRs are rejected. ISNetworld® usually reviews these within a week of submittal.

OSHA 300 Forms – These are straightforward to submit, assuming you have them. The biggest obstacle our clients run into with respect to this requirement is that they have not met this requirement on an annual basis and need to go back and file them for prior years. Accuracy and completeness is key here. ISNetworld® will reject any forms with missing information or any forms that are not consistent with the information entered into the MSQ.

SAFETY PROGRAM VERIFICATION

Best Practices

When working with our clients on their ISNetworld® Compliance, we find that many of them have problems with their safety programs. Many contractors purchase cookie cutter safety plans online just to be able to submit them to ISNetworld® but the plans are never actually properly customized to reflect their actual operations or even implemented. This practice, while it may help you pass your initial review with ISNetworld®, is not a good idea for the success of your company in the long run.

  • Figure out the safety requirements that are imposed by the owner operator you are seeking to get qualified with and compare your existing safety programs against the requirements. You are basically doing an internal audit to make sure your programs meet all of the requirements.
  • Make a list of the areas where you have gaps and determine what corrective actions are needed to ensure ISNetworld® Compliance. It is important not to misrepresent training records or documents just to get through this step.
  • Determine what safety programs are missing or need to be amended to comply with ISNetworld® requirements. Or if you have the necessary programs, make sure you document the implementation of these plans.
  • Make sure the safety programs you develop for submittal to ISNetworld® accurately reflect your company’s operations and address the relevant hazards. A cookie cutter plan downloaded from the internet can be a good starting point but will need to be carefully reviewed and customized to fit your company.
  • Make sure you actually implement the safety programs you submit to ISNetworld®. A safety program that is just on paper does not do you or your employees any good, and could end up hurting your company. You may be audited by the companies you do business with and they will need to see evidence that any required safety programs or training were actually implemented by your company.

If you are strapped for time and need help making all of this happen, you may want to hire a safety consultant to assist you with this process. Many safety consulting firms offer turn-key safety management services and can support you on a monthly basis to make sure your company has the right safety programs to comply with ISNetworld® and that these safety programs are actually implemented so your employees stay safe.

TRAINING VERIFICATION

Depending on the type of work your company does, your owner-client may impose training requirements for your employees. You will need comply with these requirements and upload documentation to verify that the training took place. ISNetworld® will verify your training records to make sure they meet the owner-client requirements as part of the training verification process. Acceptable training records must include the following information:

  • Date of training
  • Signature of employees who attended
  • Subject matter or type of training
  • Signature of trainer Training records are usually reviewed within a week of submittal

OTHER REQUIREMENTS

Be prepared to meet additional requirements from the owner-clients from time to time. Examples of these may include:

  • Site tracker requirements
  • Site identification cards
  • Other signed contractor documents
  • Contractor orientation is commonly required by owner-client before employee can enter on jobsite.

These generally don’t affect your Dashboard Grade that much, but it is important that you complete them.

ONGOING MONITORING OF YOUR ACCOUNT

Getting set up properly and getting a good rating up front isn’t enough. Your account needs to be monitored at least monthly to make sure that there are no issues affecting your grade, such as new OSHA citations.

GETTING HELP

Choosing a Safety Consultant

If you find that keeping up with ISNetworld® is simply too much for your limited office staff, you may want to consider seeking outside help from a consultant. A qualified safety professional can take over this task for you, and keep you in compliance with ISNetworld® and all other applicable safety laws and regulations.

If you are looking for help with ISNetworld® compliance, a quick google search will yield the names of numerous companies offering downloadable safety programs and monitoring services to assist you. But how do you know if these companies are qualified to help you with both ISNetworld® and OSHA safety requirements? And how do you choose one among the many choices?

Here are some tips and red flags to look out for:

  • Avoid ISNetworld® consultants who only provide cookie cutter, downloadable safety programs and no real safety advice. Although a cheap downloadable program may solve your ISNetworld® compliance problem in the short run, it is not enough. A professional safety consultant will provide customized safety plans that fit your company’s operations and will advise you on implementation so that the ultimate goal of a clean safety record for your company is achieved. If you are audited, the cookie cutter plan that was never implemented will not be sufficient to keep your company in compliance, so it’s best to do it right the first time.
  • Check your consultant’s professional safety credentials and certifications. A certification indicates that your consultant meets the highest standards for professionals in the safety industry. Two of the most highly regarded certifications in the safety industry are the ASP (Associate Safety Professional) and the CSP (Certified Safety Professional). An individual with an ASP certification has met an experience requirement, an academic requirement, and has passed the first of two examinations leading to the CSP credential, the Associate Safety Professional (ASP) examination. The CSP certification marks individuals who have met educational and experience standards and passed rigorous examinations validated against the practice of hundreds of safety professionals. For more information on these safety certifications, see the website for the Board of Certified Safety Professionals.
  • Make sure you understand the scope of the services to be provided. There are many levels of ISNetworld® consulting available in the market place. Some companies just provide data maintenance and document processing services, which means that they simply take care of drafting cookie-cutter safety programs and uploading them into ISNetworld® for you. Monitoring of your information is usually available for a quarterly or annual fee. Other companies will offer enhanced safety services on a monthly or quarterly basis (for example, safety meetings, OSHA representation, and accident investigations), and some will offer turn-key, full service safety management services for your company. Make sure you understand what you are getting when you sign on with your consultant, and that they are qualified to provide the level of support your company needs.
  • Check your potential consultant’s references and reputation. Referrals from your industry peers are a great source of names of potential consultants, as well as local safety organizations, such as your local chapter of the American Association of Safety Engineers. If you are unsure, don’t hesitate to ask for client names and references. Your ISNetworld® compliance grade directly impacts your company’s bottom line, so make sure the consultant you are hiring is competent.
  • Remember that safety management is about more than just your ISNetworld® compliance. A good safety consultant can help you understand and comply with OSHA requirements, improve your safety record, and maintain your company’s reputation as a safe company to do business with and work for.

Letting a qualified safety professional handle  your ISNetworld® compliance can help free up your time to focus on what you do best.

Ready to start the ISNetworld® Compliance Process?

Fill out the form below and we will contact you to get you started!

Call Us Now at 844-532-6090 or Request a Free Evaluation

Request More Information About ISNetworld® Compliance Below

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6 Things You Should Know Before Hiring A Safety Consultant

In today’s marketplace, there is no shortage of “consultants” willing to share their advice for a fee.  But when it comes to your worker’s safety, there are a few things you should know about him or her before you write them a check.

  1. Academic Qualifications – Academic qualifications are important and, as a result, degree programs in safety have become more prevalent in the last decade.  But just because your prospective consultant has a degree in safety doesn’t mean they are a good fit for your company. Of greater relevance is “real-world” experience and results. Look for consultants who have both education and experience.
  2. Professional Organizations & Memberships – This is another potentially confusing area for the average business owner / decision-maker. While some organizations and professional safety designations such as ASSE and CSP are highly reputable and require documented credentials for membership, many are latecomers with questionable standards.  Look for certifications that don’t just require the candidate to sit through a class or pay an application fee to receive a credential.
  3. On-the-Job Experience – Look for evidence that the consultant has previously dealt with problems similar to yours through their previous work history. A capable safety consultant can easily transition among many different industries in applying sound principles of safety management.  Does their experience indicate satisfactory knowledge of both the technical aspects of safety management as well as the “human” factors?
  4. Clients & References– Who are their clients? Are they known to you? Are they established companies? Don’t hesitate to ask for contact names and phone numbers for current (and former) clients. Avoid placing undue weight on any single recommendation. Seek a balanced, overall assessment of the previous work. A great indicator of a valuable safety consultant is when a former employer becomes a current client.
  5. Will they solve your problem? – Certainly, there are never any guarantees. In fact, one should be extremely wary of the safety consultant who “guarantees” that his work will produce a given dollar result.  Explain your problem thoroughly and listen closely to the answers. Do the answers appear to match your needs? Do they speak plain English or do they frequently fall into jargon? If you can’t understand what they’re saying, what good is their advice? Anyone can recite passages from OSHA Standards. The true skill is in understanding and applying them to a client’s individual circumstances.  A competent consultant will explain safety requirements in everyday language and be able to clearly communicate the ways that compliance can benefit your business.
  6. Finally, Insurance – The professional safety consultant cares enough about his business (and the client’s) to protect it with, at a minimum, $1,000,000 of professional liability and $1,000,000 of general liability coverage. He will willingly produce certificates of insurance as evidence of this.  Please note that legitimate certificates are sent directly from the insurance carrier to the client, NOT provided by the consultant. Anyone with a copy machine and a bottle of “white-out” can phony-up certificates of insurance.
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OSHA and ISEA Partner to Protect Workers’ Safety and Health

OSHA and the International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA) today signed an alliance to provide members, employers, and employees with information on how to properly select, use, maintain, and store personal protective and safety equipment.

During the two-year agreement, participants will also share information on developments in national consensus standards for personal protective and safety equipment.

ISEA is a non-profit trade association for protective equipment and technology that helps employees work safely in hazardous environments. The association has partnered with OSHA to share information on Agency campaigns, such as the National Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in ConstructionHeat Illness Prevention, and Safe + Sound Week. ISEA also donated personal protective equipment for workers and volunteers during cleanup efforts following hurricanes in Texas and Puerto Rico.

Through its Alliance Program, OSHA fosters collaborative relationships with groups committed to worker safety and health, such as trade and professional organizations, unions, consulates, faith- and community-based organizations, businesses, and educational institutions, to prevent workplace fatalities, injuries, and illnesses. Alliance partners help OSHA reach targeted audiences, such as employers and workers in high-hazard industries, and give them better access to workplace safety and health tools and information.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA’s role is to ensure these conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance.

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Consequences of Failure To Manage OSHA & Environmental

Failure To Manage OSHA & Environmental Compliance Could Destroy Your Business

Many people will read the title of this video (Non Compliance Could Destroy Your Business) and think “that’s ridiculous, how could non-compliance possibly destroy a business?”  If you’re one of these people, and especially if you’re a small business owner, then maybe you should think again…..

As I explained in part 1 of this 3 part video series which explores the major compliance risks facing small businesses, most small companies who are impacted by EHS regulations really struggle to manage them due to the lack of expertise, time, money and resources that is so prevalent with small companies.

Most small business owners are aware of this challenge, but what many don’t understand are the significant risks and liabilities that that this situation can create not only for their business, but sometimes for them personally if something goes wrong.

These risks and liabilities are major and can include regulatory fines and penalties, from agencies like OSHA, EPA and TCEQ, that can run into the $tens or even $hundreds of thousands of dollars (for example, did you know that the average OSHA inspection results in a $30 – $80,000 fine?), and sometimes civil and even criminal liabilities for the business owner if it can be proven that the owner was negligent in managing their environmental, health and safety compliance requirements.  Criminal negligence can result in civil judgements that can run into the $millions of dollars and even jail time.

It’s not hard to imagine how these situations could potentially destroy a business……

The other major thing that many business owners don’t understand is that these kinds of situations happen every single day across the country, when employees get seriously injured or even killed on the job, or when regulators show up in the lobby unannounced.

Unfortunately throughout my career I’ve witnessed these kinds of devastating scenarios playout with associates who I’ve known personally.  I saw a client go to jail for failing to manage hazardous waste management regulations, another face a multi-million civil lawsuit after a subcontractor was killed, and many face huge regulatory fines and penalties.

My point is that these situations are more common than you think, and could happen to you tomorrow if your company is out of compliance and you put your head in the sand and keep putting-off action.

The good news is that the situation is far from hopeless, and there are simple steps that you can take today to get back on track and on the road towards compliance.  Checkout this video to learn more about these risks and more importantly, what steps you can take today to manage and reduce them.  Push the play button before it’s too late!

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