Occupational Health and Safety. Specifically Case Study

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It seems like a simple step that would make the job safer and more effective at the same time.

The bill would obviously benefit employees, who could look forward to a safer work environment, and it would result in more streamlined reporting for OSHA staff. Employers could benefit too, because they would get a broader picture of their operations by including contractors and other employees on the site. They could get a much better idea of how safe their operations really are, and what improvements they need to make them even safer for all their employees. It would seem that employers might oppose the bill, because it would create more record keeping for them, and it might skew their safety records until the number of cases caught up with the increased number of reported incidents. Counting subcontractors and temporary employees in their accident reports could cause their insurance rates to rise, too, and that would be unfair, since they would be paying for people who were not on their payroll at all.

Ultimately, this bill seems relatively harmless, and even sensible, but it could create a nightmare for employers who use large amounts of subcontractors or temporary workers.
Including them in their health and safety numbers could make it seem as if there are far more accidents or health issues at a job site, and that could lead to many problems for the employer. It would probably convince some employers to stop using these types of workers, rather than reporting their incidents, and that would be bad in today's troubled economy. Perhaps that is why the bill has been in committee for so long, they do not want to burden employers with an additional safety issue right now.

References

Greene, Gene. To direct the Secretary of Labor to revise regulations concerning the recording and reporting of occupational injuries and illnesses under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. Retrieved 16 Feb. 2011 from the THOMAS Web site: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z-c111:H.R.242:......

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