The clash involves responsibility for hazmat oversight by the Department of Transportation vis-à-vis the Labor Department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Business reads the legislation to say that OSHA should supervise only a small section of the law, the "subsection," which has to do mostly with training. Labor reads the same law to say that the DOT cannot preempt OSHA from protecting workers who handle hazardous material, including equipping them with protective gear.This debate is illustrative of a problem in the OSHA act which gives government agencies the authority to manage their own health and safety if they simply claim that jurisdiction -- no matter how effective their programs are.
NOTE: Confined Space is back after a short 10-year break and can now be found at: Confined Space.
WHAT IS THIS?
Workplace issues, Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA), Workplace Safety, Public Health, Environment and Political Information that everyone should know.
What happens inside the Beltway matters outside the Beltway.
That's why they try to keep it secret.
Wednesday, July 07, 2004
Who Do You Trust? OSHA or DOT?
Interesting Washington Post column on the fight over whether OSHA or the Department of Transportation should have over handling hazardous materials.