Introduction to

OSHA

Directorate of Training and Education

OSHA Training Institute
Lesson Overview
Purpose:
To provide workers with introductory
information about OSHA
Topics:
1. Why is OSHA important to you?
2. What rights do you have under OSHA?
3. What responsibilities does your employer have
under OSHA?
4. What are OSHA standards?
5. How are OSHA inspections conducted?
6. Where can you go for help?

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Topic 1:
Why is OSHA Important to You?
4,405 workers were killed on the
OSHA Makes a
job in 2013 (3.2 per 100,000 full- Difference
time equivalent workers) Worker deaths
in America are
An average of nearly 12 workers downon
die every day average, from
about 38 worker
797 Hispanic or Latino workers deaths a day in
were killed from work-related 1970 to 12 a day
in 2013.
injuries in 2013 Worker injuries
Nearly 3.0 million serious and illnesses are
downfrom 10.9
workplace injuries and illnesses incidents per 100
were reported by private industry workers in 1972
employers in 2012 to 3.0 per 100 in
2012.

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History of OSHA
OSHA stands for the
Occupational Safety and
Health Administration, an
agency of the U.S.
Department of Labor
OSHAs responsibility is to
improve worker safety and
health protection
On December 29, 1970, President Nixon
signed the OSH Act
This Act created OSHA, the agency, which
formally came into being on April 28, 1971

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OSHAs Mission
The mission of OSHA is to assure safe and
healthful working conditions for working
men and women by setting and enforcing
standards and by providing training,
outreach, education and assistance.
Some of the things OSHA does to carry out

its mission are:

Developing job safety and health standards and
enforcing them through worksite inspections
Providing training programs to increase knowledge
about occupational safety and health

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Topic 2:
What Rights Do You Have Under
OSHA?
You have the right to:
A safe and healthful workplace
Know about hazardous chemicals
Report injury to employer
Complain or request hazard correction from
employer
Training
Hazard exposure and medical records
File a complaint with OSHA
Participate in an OSHA inspection
Be free from retaliation for exercising safety and
health rights

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Worker Rights
Handout #1:
OSHA Poster

Have you seen this poster at your place of

work?
Why was OSHA created?

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Your Right to

Worker Protection is Law: The Occupational

Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH Act)
OSHA was created to provide workers the
right to a safe and healthful workplace
It is the duty of the employers to provide
workplaces that are free of known dangers
that could harm their employees
This law also gives workers important rights
to participate in activities to ensure their
protection from job hazards

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Your Right to

Employers must have a

written, complete hazard
communication program
that includes information on:
Container labeling,
Safety Data Sheets (SDSs), and
Worker training. The Hazard Communication
Standard (HCS) requires
The training must include the chemical manufacturers,
distributors, or importers to
physical and health hazards of the provide Safety Data Sheets
chemicals and how workers can (SDSs) (formerly known as
Material Safety Data Sheets or
protect themselves MSDSs) to communicate the
hazards of hazardous chemical
products. As of June 1, 2015, the
HCS will require new SDSs to be
in a uniform format.

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Your Right to

OSHAs Recordkeeping rule

requires most employers with
more than 10 workers to keep
a log of injuries and illnesses
Workers have the right to

report an injury* and review

current log *It is against the
OSHA law to
Workers also have the right to retaliate or
discriminate
view the annually posted against a worker
summary of the injuries and for reporting an
injury or illness
illnesses (OSHA 300A)
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Your Right to

Workers may bring up safety and health

concerns in the workplace to their
employers without fear of discharge or
discrimination
OSHA rules protect workers who raise

concerns to their employer or OSHA about

unsafe or unhealthful conditions in the
workplace

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Your Right to

Workers have a right to get

training from employers on a
variety of health and safety
hazards and standards that
employers must follow
Some required training covers topics such as,
chemical hazards, equipment hazards, noise,
confined spaces, fall hazards in construction,
personal protective equipment, along with a
variety of other subjects
Training must be in a language and vocabulary
workers can understand

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Your Right to

1910.1020: right to examine & copy records

Examples of toxic substances and harmful

physical agents are:

Metals and dusts, such as, lead, cadmium, and
silica
Biological agents, such as bacteria, viruses, and
fungi
Physical stress, such as noise, heat, cold,
vibration, repetitive motion, and ionizing and non-
ionizing radiation

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Your Right to

Workers may file a confidential Note:

Often
complaint with OSHA if they believe a the best
violation of a safety or health and
standard, or an imminent danger fastest
way to
situation, exists in the workplace get a
Workers may request that their name hazard
correcte
not be revealed to the employer d is to
If a worker files a complaint, they have notify
your
the right to find out OSHAs action on supervis
the complaint and request a review if or or
employer
an inspection is not made .

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Your Right to

Employee representative can accompany

OSHA inspector
Workers can talk to the inspector privately
Workers may point out hazards, describe
injuries, illnesses or near misses that resulted
from those hazards and describe any concern
you have about a safety or health issue
Workers can find out about inspection results,
abatement measures and may object to
dates set for violation to be corrected

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Your Right to

Workers have the right to be free from

retaliation for exercising safety and health
rights
Workers have a right to seek safety and
health on the job without fear of punishment
This right is spelled out in Section 11(c) of
the OSH Act
Workers have 30 days to contact OSHA if
they feel they have been punished for
exercising their safety and health rights

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 Provide a workplace free from recognized hazards
and comply with OSHA standards
Provide training required by OSHA standards
Keep records of injuries and illnesses
Provide medical exams when required by OSHA
standards and provide workers access to their
exposure and medical records
Not discriminate against workers who exercise
their rights under the Act (Section 11(c))
Post OSHA citations and hazard correction notices
Provide and pay for most PPE

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Employer Responsibilities
(cont.)
REPORTING AND RECORDING CHECKLIST
Employers must:
Report each worker death to OSHA
Report each work-related hospitalization,
amputation, or loss of an eye
Maintain injury & illness records
Inform workers how to report an injury or
illness to the employer
Make records available to workers
Allow OSHA access to records
Post annual summary of injuries & illnesses

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Topic 4:
What are OSHA Standards?
OSHA standards are: Four Groups of
OSHA Standards
Rules that describe the

methods employers General Industry*

must use to protect Construction
employees from hazards Maritime
Designed to protect
Agriculture
workers from a wide
range of hazards *General Industry is the set that applies
to the largest number of workers and
worksites

Where there are no specific standards, employers

must comply with the General Duty Clause of the OSH
Act.
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OSHA Standards (cont.)

These standards also:

Limit the amount of hazardous chemicals,

substances, or noise that workers can be

exposed to
Require the use of certain safe work

practices and equipment

Require employers to monitor certain

hazards and keep records of workplace

injuries and illnesses

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Most Frequently Cited OSHA
Standards
OSHAs website provides information regarding the
most frequently cited standards
Click: Frequently Cited OSHA Standards
to view current data
Select number of employees in

establishment, select ALL or one of

the options listed
Federal or State Jurisdiction, select

Federal or, from the dropdown

menu, a specific state
NAICS, enter ALL for all Industry

groups, or enter a valid 2 to 6 digit

code for a specific Industry from the
NAICS Manual
Shown are search results for: All

sizes of establishments, in Federal

jurisdiction, with a Construction
NAICS code of 23
Common Most
Common Most Frequently
Frequently Cited
Cited Standards:
Standards:
Fall Protection;
Fall Protection; Hazard
Hazard Communication;
Communication; Scaffolding;
Scaffolding;
Respiratory Protection; Electrical; Powered Industrial
Respiratory Protection; Electrical; Powered Industrial
Trucks; Ladders
Trucks; Ladders 21
 The OSH Act authorizes OSHA compliance
safety and health officers (CSHOs) to
conduct workplace inspections at
reasonable times
OSHA conducts inspections without advance

notice, except in rare circumstances (e.g.

Imminent Danger)
In fact, anyone who tells an employer about

an OSHA inspection in advance can receive

fines and a jail term

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Different Types of OSHA
Inspections
Imminent danger
Fatality or hospitalizations
Worker
complaints/referrals
Targeted inspections
Local Emphasis Program
(LEP), National Emphasis
Program (NEP), particular
hazards or industries
Follow-up Inspections

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VIOLATION TYPE PENALTY

WILLFUL OSHA may propose penalties of up

A violation that the employer intentionally and knowingly to $70,000 for each willful violation,
commits or a violation that the employer commits with plain with a minimum penalty of $5,000 for
indifference to the law. each willful violation.

SERIOUS
There is a mandatory penalty for
A violation where there is substantial probability that death
serious violations which may be up to
or serious physical harm could result and that the employer
$7,000.
knew, or should have known, of the hazard.

OTHER-THAN-SERIOUS
OSHA may propose a penalty of up
A violation that has a direct relationship to safety and
to $7,000 for each other-than-serious
health, but probably would not cause death or serious
violation.
physical harm.
REPEATED OSHA may propose penalties of up
A violation that is the same or similar to a previous to $70,000 for each repeated
violation. violation.

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 Give an example of a reason why OSHA
would conduct an inspection at your
workplace

What are the types of OSHA violations?

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 Sources within the workplace/worksite
Sources outside the workplace/worksite
How to file an OSHA complaint

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 Employer or supervisor, co-workers and
union representatives
Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for information on

chemicals
Labels and warning signs
Employee orientation manuals or other

training materials
Work tasks and procedures instruction

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 OSHA website: http://www.osha.gov and
OSHA offices (you can call or write)
Compliance Assistance Specialists in the

area offices
National Institute for Occupational Safety

and Health (NIOSH) OSHAs sister agency

OSHA Training Institute Education Centers
Doctors, nurses, other health care providers
Public libraries
Other local, community-based resources

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How to Raise a Concern
Handout #7: Identifying
Safety and Health Problems
in the Workplace

Review handout to become more aware of

workplace hazards
Discuss if anyone has discovered safety

and/or health problems in the

workplace/site

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 Download the OSHA complaint form from OSHAs
website
File the complaint online
Workers can file a complaint
A worker representative can file a complaint
Telephone or visit local regional or area offices to
discuss your concerns
Complete the form be specific and include
appropriate details
OSHA determines if an inspection is necessary
Workers do not have to reveal their name

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 Handout #8a:
General Industry
Each group reviews the handout and

discusses the industry-specific scenario

Groups need to determine what information

would be important to include in their

complaint
Have the class discuss the groups results:

What was included in the complaint?

What was added to the complaint?

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 Handout #8b:
Construction
Each group reviews the handout and

discusses the industry-specific scenario

Groups need to determine what information

would be important to include in their

complaint
Have the class discuss the groups results:

What was included in the complaint?

What was added to the complaint?

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 Handout #8c:
Maritime Industry
Each group reviews the handout and

discusses the industry-specific scenario

Groups need to determine what information

would be important to include in their

complaint
Have the class discuss the groups results:

What was included in the complaint?

What was added to the complaint?

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 What are some resources inside the
workplace that will help you find
information on safety and health issues?

What are some resources outside the

workplace that will help you find
information on safety and health issues?

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This lesson covered:
The importance of OSHA, including the history

of safety and health regulation leading to the

creation of OSHA and OSHAs mission;
Worker rights under OSHA;

Employer responsibilities;

OSHA standards;

OSHA inspections; and

Safety and health resources, including how to

file a complaint.

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Thank You!