OSHA and Worksite Safety
Goldberg Segalla’s OSHA and Worksite Safety Practice Group delivers critical representation and preventive counsel to employers in multiple industries across the country — including construction, manufacturing, energy, retail, hospitality, and health care. Led by an attorney who holds the rare distinction of also being a Certified Safety Professional (CSP), this national practice group strictly focuses on occupational safety and health law issues. The group regularly advises and represents employers as follows:
- Managing OSHA inspections for employers, regularly appearing on-site immediately after catastrophic accidents, including those involving multiple fatalities
- Representing employers throughout the OSHA enforcement process, including the initial inspection, issuance of citations, and subsequent analysis of defenses and strategy
- Litigating contested OSHA citations with Department of Labor attorneys before the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commissions (OSHRC)
- Negotiating with OSHA and Department of Labor attorneys for the withdrawal and/or settlement of citations
- Counseling employers on their rights and responsibilities under OSHA
- Analyzing and developing safety programs
- Conducting and assisting with company self-audits, including ensuring that the audits remain privileged and protected from disclosure
- Providing day-to-day OSHA counsel on the myriad OSHA issues employers face, including any changes or developments in occupational safety and health law
Experience Highlights
With Goldberg Segalla as counsel, compliance with OSHA and other safety standards need not be difficult nor a hindrance to productivity. With more than a dozen lawyers who have undergone OSHA 10-hour or 30-hour training, we work with clients to understand their business and operations, and develop practical systems and strategies that serve the dual purpose of promoting safety and minimizing exposure, while also preparing for inspections before they occur. We also undertake comprehensive reviews of a company’s safety program, offering risk-prevention counsel backed by our experiences litigating matters with Department of Labor attorneys.
Our OSHA and Worksite Safety team can assist with:
- Hazard identification and analysis
- Implementing company-wide compliance policies, risk-avoidance strategies, and an OSHA response plan in case inspectors arrive
- Complete review of a company’s safety program (including form accident report, incentive program, health and safety plan, training, injury recording, documentation, and more)
- Educating both supervisory and non-supervisory employees on applicable standards and rights and responsibilities in the event of an OSHA inspection
- Performing or assisting with self-audits
If OSHA does show up at a site or facility for any reason (including, for example, in response to a serious accident or fatality, or an employee complaint), our team provides counsel on the entire process and its aftermath. Our attorneys have extensive experience “on the front lines” at OSHA inspections and will work tirelessly to not only protect an employer’s rights, but also to manage the inspection strategically and effectively. We aim to understand your business and goals, and the potential impact a citation may have on your business. Our team has experience resolving citations in multiple ways to protect your business, including obtaining the withdrawal of citations and engaging in other creative strategies to minimize and/or eliminate the effect of an OSHA citation. Our attorneys have an in-depth understanding of the entire process, including the respective rights and responsibilities of all involved players (employers, employees, and OSHA) and many ways an OSHA enforcement action may be resolved. Our services include:
- Guidance through OSHA investigations, including procedural steps and advice on the company’s rights and responsibilities
- Investigating workplace accidents and employee claims
- Defending against citations and negotiating for the reduction/elimination of violations and penalties
- Representing clients before OSHRC and its administrative law judges
- Engaging in the entire OSHA enforcement/litigation process, including hearings and appeals
Our OSHA team’s superior value comes from its in-depth knowledge of safety and health compliance issues (and the safety profession as a whole) and the ability to aggressively litigate OSHA matters on behalf of employers across multiple industries. The team integrates seamlessly with Goldberg Segalla’s other practice areas, allowing us to provide 360-degree counsel or defense tailored to each client’s specific needs, to take an holistic approach to complex legal and business concerns, and to reduce legal spending in both the short and long term.
We work closely with our firm’s Workers’ Compensation and Employment and Labor Practice Groups to help clients address any worksite injury, occupational disease, whistleblower retaliation, or other claims or issues that may arise, delivering the cost-efficiencies of a coordinated defense. We also tap attorneys across our national footprint with previous experience as in-house counsel, executives, or board members in our clients’ industries.
In addition, we provide our clients with regular updates on new regulatory requirements, industry news, and practical strategies to eliminate and/or significantly reduce any potential exposure. Visit our OSHA: Legal Developments and Defense Strategies blog for the latest news, insights, and legal analysis regarding OSHA inspections, risk management strategies, and defenses.
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February 2019
February 8, 2019