The May revise, the state legislature’s response to the governor’s January state budget proposal, contains no changes to the Cal/OSHA program itself but provides additional funding for the agency’s quest to create a modern data system, both internally and for the regulated public. Where exactly that project, which was initiated in 2002, stands at this …
February 1st begins the three-month period during which employers must post their Cal/OSHA Form 300A summaries of workplace injuries and illnesses for 2024. The annual summary must be posted in a visible and easily accessible area at each worksite between February 1st and April 30th. Employers must post the form even if there were no …
After many years and a false start in 2022, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board has reintroduced an update to its requirements for employers’ first-aid kits. But, as has been pointed out before, something seemingly simple often can be anything but. That fact was underscored by many at the Board’s January public hearing on the proposal. “We …
The U.S. Senate has confirmed David Keeling as Assistant Secretary of Labor for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. It happened on a deadline. Keeling’s confirmation was one of a tranche of 107 nominations, approved 51-46 under a Senate resolution. Also confirmed was Wayne Palmer as head of the Mine Safety and Health Administration. Palmer …
The Trump administration proposed David Keeling as the nominee for Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, the Administrator of OSHA, in February 2025. Currently, the acting administrator is Amanda Wood Laihow, also a Trump appointee. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is a key agency within the U.S. Department of Labor. …
Cal/OSHA’s “SOAR” report for fiscal 2024, the State OSHA Annual Report, measures how the program did against its strategic plan. That plan, which was supposed to run until 2023, was extended through 2025, and the agency reports that it met some of its objectives, particularly outreach and education, and came close on others. SOAR is …
Fed-OSHA monitors Cal/OSHA (and all state plans) on how well their program is adhering to and meeting federal metrics on a two-year, biennial evaluation cycle. Since 2023, the Federal Annual Monitoring and Evaluation (FAME) report shows Cal/OSHA is improving. Among other things, the agency has improved its vacancy rate since the 2023 evaluation. And while …