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42 Pallet C e nt ral • No vem be r-D e cem be r 2 0 25 T he Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) prioritizes its inspection and enforcement resources, but an issue that always will receive some type of response from the agency is employee complaints. ere are two types of complaints that OSHA responds to, and they are quite different in their process and management. e first is workplace hazard complaints, which involve allegations of actively unsafe or unhealthful conditions from an employee, temporary worker, or contractor. If a situation referred to OSHA is described as involving an "imminent danger," these will be the top priority (aside from actual fatal accidents). During the federal government shutdown, OSHA furloughed 75% of its personnel and suspended regular inspections including those under its National Emphasis Programs. What work continued? Investigations of severe accidents, imminent danger allegations, and worker complaints! Hazard complaints are triaged by whether the complainant is a current employee and gives OSHA their name. OSHA will keep the informant's name confidential, but it assigns lower priority to anonymous complaints and to those from former workers (including the recently terminated, who may have some animus toward the employer). Depending on the level of hazard alleged, OSHA often will send a letter to the employer notifying them of the complaint and giving them a period of time—often 5 calendar days—to respond. OSHA expects that the employer will do its due diligence in investigating the allegation of unsafe conditions and that it will let OSHA know how it has responded to the issues. If the employer fails to respond, a visit is almost certain. If the employer's response is incomplete, OSHA may follow up by phone or send an inspector to take a look. Enforcement visits triggered by hazard complaints are considered "unprogrammed" inspections as they occur regardless of the employer's history of violations or injuries/illnesses. However, they may be limited in scope to the area where the hazard allegedly is located or to the piece(s) of equipment involved. Even though a complaint may be limited to one type of machinery— such as a dismantler—anything else that the OSHA inspector sees in "plain view" is fair game for further inquiry. So seeing unsafe forklift operation, poor warehousing conditions, or even noting high noise levels can result in an expanded visit. Similarly, OSHA will speak with workers and ask if they have any concerns about health or safety conditions. is can lead to broadening the scope of the inspection. While management representatives have the right to have counsel present before speaking to OSHA, rank-and-file hourly workers will be interviewed by OSHA privately, although they have the right to decline. OSHA also has subpoena power, pre-citation, which can be used to follow up on document requests that are ignored or to get statements from reluctant witnesses. ey can also subpoena documents and testimony from third OSHA BY ADELE L. ABRAMS, ESQ., ASP, CMSP A TALE OF TWO (OSHA) COMPLAINTS

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