Office report finds that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which is notorious for harassing private employers for dubious reasons, hasn’t been exactly diligent when it comes to federal agencies. Although it is supposedly required to review safety programs throughout the federal government every year, it hasn’t conducted evaluations for federal agencies since 2000.
The report should also cast doubt on whether OSHA evalu
ations would have made much difference. Although the federal workforce increased by 6% over the past decade, workers’ compensation costs remained steady. Claims involving traumatic injuries decreased from 1995 through 2004, as did claims for non-traumatic injuries. So benign neglect from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration led to reduced workplace injuries? Maybe they should apply the same policy to the private sector.
