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Labor and Personnel Do OSHA rules apply to public entities?
When exactly do Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations apply to the public sector? For many, they don’t.
The text of 29 CFR 1910.2(c) states: “employer means a person engaged in a business affecting commerce who has employees, but does not include the United States or any State or political subdivision of a State.”
Municipalities, as political subdivisions of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, clearly do not fit the above definition of “employer,” but there are a few items to consider before tossing the OSHA standards aside.
Massachusetts-specific requirements
Massachusetts is one of the 26 states that do not have a state OSHA plan.
This does not mean, however, that anything goes when it comes to worker safety. Municipal and county employee health and safety is covered in a general manner under Chapter 149, Section 6, of the Massachusetts General Laws, as well as under the Massachusetts-specific “Right-to-Know” law (454 CMR 21.00), an adaptation of the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard outlined in OSHA regulations.
It is the policy of the Massachusetts Division of Occupational Safety that public-sector employees follow the OSHA standards as a minimum in the absence of specific standards. Compliance with the OSHA standards, in most cases, will ensure compliance with the intent of Chapter 149, Section 6.
For example, municipalities that have had experience with the Division of Occupational Safety regarding confined spaces are aware that the agency refers to federal regulations (29 CFR 1910.146) when addressing these issues. OSHA standards represent the minimum standard of care for safety.
States with state OSHA plans can enact more rigid requirements, but can never allow standards that do not address the most basic safety requirements, as outlined by OSHA. In essence, Massachusetts leans on the federal standards when it comes to recognizing minimal safety requirements and then enforces those standards through the Division of Occupational Safety.
Inspections or investigations that uncover a lack of compliance with OSHA standards will cite them as Chapter 149 violations. In general there are no fines or penalties associated with the inspections as long as the most serious hazards are corrected in a reasonable period of time.
As part of the report to the municipality, the DOS will typically include recommendations and required corrective actions. A model written program, developed from the OSHA standards, and technical information needed to correct the hazards, usually accompany this report.
OSHA 300 logs
Private-sector employers can attest to the burdensome recordkeeping and posting requirements related to workplace injuries. Because of this administrative burden, OSHA changed the record-keeping format from OSHA 200 to OSHA 300.
Again, municipalities are not considered “employers” under OSHA and therefore are not required to maintain OSHA 300 logs each year. There are exceptions, however.
First is a look at the phrase “engaging in a business affecting commerce,” which applies to enterprise operations. For instance, public school culinary programs that charge “customers” when providing outside catering services, above the operating costs for that specific project, may need to comply with record-keeping and posting requirements, but only for those employees directly working for the operation.
There are also specific requests from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics that require compliance. Entities that are typically exempt from keeping injury and illness records may be informed in writing that the bureau will be collecting injury and illness information from them for the coming year.
Each year the Bureau of Labor and Statistics sends survey forms to randomly selected employers and uses that information to compile national occupational and injury statistics. If a municipality or otherwise-exempt employer receives a survey, it must complete the survey promptly and return it to the bureau.
As part of this process the BLS will request that the employer maintain an OSHA 300 log and comply with posting requirements – for that year only. This is not optional, so familiarity with OSHA 300 logs is important. After the logs are completed and posted, the municipality’s obligation is complete, that is, until the next time the Bureau of Labor and Statistics randomly selects it for this purpose.
Bob Marinelli, MIIA’s Member Services Risk Control Manager, can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
Labor and Personnel Do OSHA rules apply to public entities?
Do OSHA rules apply to public entities?
When exactly do Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations apply to the public sector? For many, they don’t.
The text of 29 CFR 1910.2(c) states: “employer means a person engaged in a business affecting commerce who has employees, but does not include the United States or any State or political subdivision of a State.”
Municipalities, as political subdivisions of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, clearly do not fit the above definition of “employer,” but there are a few items to consider before tossing the OSHA standards aside.
Massachusetts-specific requirements
Massachusetts is one of the 26 states that do not have a state OSHA plan.
This does not mean, however, that anything goes when it comes to worker safety. Municipal and county employee health and safety is covered in a general manner under Chapter 149, Section 6, of the Massachusetts General Laws, as well as under the Massachusetts-specific “Right-to-Know” law (454 CMR 21.00), an adaptation of the OSHA Hazard Communication Standard outlined in OSHA regulations.
It is the policy of the Massachusetts Division of Occupational Safety that public-sector employees follow the OSHA standards as a minimum in the absence of specific standards. Compliance with the OSHA standards, in most cases, will ensure compliance with the intent of Chapter 149, Section 6.
For example, municipalities that have had experience with the Division of Occupational Safety regarding confined spaces are aware that the agency refers to federal regulations (29 CFR 1910.146) when addressing these issues. OSHA standards represent the minimum standard of care for safety.
States with state OSHA plans can enact more rigid requirements, but can never allow standards that do not address the most basic safety requirements, as outlined by OSHA. In essence, Massachusetts leans on the federal standards when it comes to recognizing minimal safety requirements and then enforces those standards through the Division of Occupational Safety.
Inspections or investigations that uncover a lack of compliance with OSHA standards will cite them as Chapter 149 violations. In general there are no fines or penalties associated with the inspections as long as the most serious hazards are corrected in a reasonable period of time.
As part of the report to the municipality, the DOS will typically include recommendations and required corrective actions. A model written program, developed from the OSHA standards, and technical information needed to correct the hazards, usually accompany this report.
OSHA 300 logs
Private-sector employers can attest to the burdensome recordkeeping and posting requirements related to workplace injuries. Because of this administrative burden, OSHA changed the record-keeping format from OSHA 200 to OSHA 300.
Again, municipalities are not considered “employers” under OSHA and therefore are not required to maintain OSHA 300 logs each year. There are exceptions, however.
First is a look at the phrase “engaging in a business affecting commerce,” which applies to enterprise operations. For instance, public school culinary programs that charge “customers” when providing outside catering services, above the operating costs for that specific project, may need to comply with record-keeping and posting requirements, but only for those employees directly working for the operation.
There are also specific requests from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics that require compliance. Entities that are typically exempt from keeping injury and illness records may be informed in writing that the bureau will be collecting injury and illness information from them for the coming year.
Each year the Bureau of Labor and Statistics sends survey forms to randomly selected employers and uses that information to compile national occupational and injury statistics. If a municipality or otherwise-exempt employer receives a survey, it must complete the survey promptly and return it to the bureau.
As part of this process the BLS will request that the employer maintain an OSHA 300 log and comply with posting requirements – for that year only. This is not optional, so familiarity with OSHA 300 logs is important. After the logs are completed and posted, the municipality’s obligation is complete, that is, until the next time the Bureau of Labor and Statistics randomly selects it for this purpose.
Bob Marinelli, MIIA’s Member Services Risk Control Manager, can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
