OSHA notified over 13,500 employers in April 2009 regarding their higher than average injury and illness rates. OSHA stated that the letter was an attempt to make the employers aware of their rates and to encourage them to work to lower the rates and improve their overall health and safety via:
hiring an outside safety and health consultant
talking with their insurance carrier, or
contacting the workers’ compensation agency in their state for advice
A copy of the letter can be found HERE.
The employers are those whose establishments are covered by Federal OSHA and reported the highest “Days Away from work, Restricted work or job Transfer injury and illness” (DART) rate to OSHA in a survey of 2007 injury and illness data. For every 100 full-time workers, the 13,500 employers had 5.0 or more injuries or illnesses which resulted in days away from work, restricted work or job transfer versus the national average is 2.1.
“Employers whose businesses have injury and illness rates this high need to take immediate steps to protect their workers,” said acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Jordan Barab. “Our goal is to make employers aware of their high injury and illness rates and to get them to eliminate hazards in their workplace. To help them in this regard, OSHA offers free assistance programs to help employers better protect the safety and health of their workers.”
Click HERE to download a copy of the list of employers receiving the letter.