Construction Employers and OSHA Violations: Willful Violations, Civil and Criminal Penalties

Description

The consequences to the construction industry stemming from worker safety violations are not limited to civil monetary penalties and specific hazard abatement requirements levied by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Violations can lead to criminal liability under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act).

Construction counsel must advise clients on what constitutes a criminal penalty when any employer willfully violates an OSHA standard and an employee dies as a result. OSHA's issuance of a "willful" citation following an employee fatality is not sufficient to establish criminal liability because willfulness must be proven "beyond a reasonable doubt" in the criminal proceedings, along with other necessary elements. If proven, the employer may be fined and/or face imprisonment.

Counsel should guide clients in reviewing and revising operations and safety manuals to ensure they are up-to-date with current protocols and advise clients to address known or obvious workplace hazards and employee safety complaints and concerns. Counsel must train company management on handling OSHA inspections and investigations before an OSHA investigation and involving counsel if OSHA arrives for an inspection or investigation.

Listen as our expert construction panel discusses the state of current OSHA inspections and investigations and how the contractual relationships between the various project members, including prime contractors, subcontractors, construction managers, and professional consultants, can allocate or even shift primary responsibility from one party to another.