Safety News Bulletin: Cal/OSHA Employer Responsibilities

1. The California Supreme Court in Bendix Forest Products Corporation v. Division of Occupational Safety and Health (1979), 25 Cal. 3d 465, held that an employer is required to pay for personal protective equipment (PPE) if the law requires the employer to provide the PPE. You can find this court decision by searching"Published Opinions" on the California Courts website.

• Use color codes, posters, labels, or signs to warn employees of potential hazards.
• Establish or update operating procedures and communicate them so employees follow safety and health requirements.
• Provide medical examinations and training when required by Cal/OSHA standards.
• Immediately report any work-related death or serious injury or accident (within 8 hours of knowledge of the accident), as required by section 342(a), Title 8, California Code of Regulations (T8CCR). Serious injury or illness is defined in section 330(h), T8CCR.
• For employers with 11 or more employees, keep records of work-related injuries and illnesses on the log 300, transfer the totals to the log 300A, and post the log 300A from February 1 through April 30 of the following year.
• Post, at a prominent location within the workplace, the Cal/OSHA poster informing employees of their rights and responsibilities.
• If required to keep one, provide employees, former employees and their representatives access to the Log and Summary of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses, Cal/OSHA Form 300,at a reasonable time and in a reasonable manner.
• Provide access to employee medical records and exposure records to employees or their authorized representatives.
• Provide the Cal/OSHA enforcement personnel with names of authorized employee representatives who may be asked to accompany enforcement personnel during an inspection.
• Do not discriminate against employees who exercise their rights under the California OSH Act.
• Post Cal/OSHA citations at or near the work area involved. Each citation must remain posted until the violation has been corrected, or for three working days, whichever is longer. Post abatement verification documents or tags.
• Correct cited violations by the deadline set in the Cal/OSHA citation and submit required abatement verification documentation.