Is Arbitration All It’s Cracked Up To Be?
In the late 1980s, early 1990s, alternative dispute resolution came on the scene and was all the rage as a means to effectively and...
OSHA’s Silica Rule is Here: Are You Ready?
On March 25, 2016, the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) published its long-awaited final rule (606 pgs) establishing a stand-alone standard governing occupational...
Misclassification of Workers Costs Employer in OSHA Inspection
When OSHA came to call at a Connecticut construction worksite, it did not end happily for the employer. Seven different violations of the OSH...
When Lawyers Use Safety Rules Against You
Safety is always important to a responsible contractor. Concrete work in particular presents hazards including exposure to caustic cement materials and the use of...
OSHA Proposes New Safety & Health Management Guidelines
OSHA has published new proposed guidelines for establishment of workplace occupational safety and health management programs (SHMP), with public comment accepted until February 22,...
Uncle Sam Wants YOU
The federal government is taking aim at occupational safety and health violations from a different perspective: criminal prosecution. On December 17, 2015, a joint...
OSHA in 2016: Not Exactly a Lame Duck!
As we roll into the final year of the Obama Administration, one might think that regulatory and other enforcement initiatives would slow down at...
You Gotta Fight… for Your Right… to Early Completion
In Gilchrist Constr. Co., LLC v. Louisiana Dep’t of Trans. and Dev., a Louisiana appellate court recently confirmed that a contractor was able to...
“Shoulda, Coulda, … OSHA-Style”
The Occupational Safety and Health Act defines what is needed for OSHA to prove a serious violation in court. The Act states: “a serious...
Don’t Borrow Trouble … or Scaffolds
A Georgia stucco contractor learned the hard way that borrowing another subcontractor’s defective scaffolds can result in some heavy OSHA penalties. In the July...