OSHA’s penalty push: Even more $100,000-plus fines than previously reported

As we reported last month, OSHA has been piling on penalties. At that time we cited a law firm study that found 27 recent cases where penalties exceeded $100,000.

Now OSHA has chimed in with its own stats, and they paint an even more vivid picture. OSHA says that from October 2009 to September 2010, OSHA issued citations in 164 cases where penalties reached $100,000 or more.

Of those cases, there were 20 in which OSHA deployed its egregious citation policy. Egregious citations are those considered so serious that OSHA assesses penalties for every instance where a violation occurs, rather than lumping all the instances into one penalty, as is done in non-egregious cases. The result of separate penalties can be so called “mega-fines” that are intended as a deterrent.

“This number of significant and egregious cases is more than OSHA issued during any similar period in the last decade,” OSHA said.

Egregious cases during this period include the BP Products North America oil refinery in Texas City, Texas; the Kleen Energy power plant in Middletown, Conn.; and the Cooperative Plus grain handling facility in Burlington, Wis.

In egregious cases, OSHA often follows up by inspecting other facilities owned by the same organization. That is what happened in the case of the U.S. Postal Service, where inspections around the country found serious electrical hazards and other hazards, OSHA said.

In light of the enforcement push, companies would be well-advised to review their safety programs and conduct mock OSHA inspections.

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