Occupational Safety and Health Law

Abstract

In 1970, Congress passed the Occupational Safety and Health Act (“OSH Act”) which established a national system for workplace safety and health standards development, standards enforcement and consultative assistance under the administrative implementation of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The OSH Act imposes duties on employers to comply with OSHA's safety and health standards under a system of civil and criminal sanctions, and provides for a number of employee inspection participation and anti-discrimination rights. The OSH Act also established the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to conduct research that would inform OSHA about emerging workplace safety and health risks. The chapter provides an overview of the major provisions of the OSH Act as they have been administratively implemented by OSHA and judicially interpreted by the courts in the years since its enactment with an emphasis on OSHA's health standards that are used in the practice of industrial hygiene. Keywords: standard; permissible exposure limit (PEL); judicial review; inspection; warrant; violation; citation; civil penalty; criminal penalty; Review Commission; NIOSH; state plan