The US Department of Labor (DOL) announced a final rule clarifying the rights of employees to authorize a representative to accompany an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) compliance officer during an inspection of their workplace will be published in the Federal Register on April 1. The Occupational Safety and Health Act gives the employer and employees the right to authorize a representative to accompany OSHA officials during a workplace inspection. The final rule clarifies that, consistent with the law, workers may authorize another employee to serve as their representative or select a non-employee. For a non-employee representative to accompany the compliance officer in a workplace, they must be reasonably necessary to conduct an effective and thorough inspection.
Consistent with OSHA’s historic practice, the rule clarifies that a non-employee representative may be reasonably necessary based upon skills, knowledge, or experience. This experience may include knowledge or experience with hazards or conditions in the workplace or similar workplaces, or language or communication skills to ensure an effective and thorough inspection. These revisions better align OSHA’s regulation with the OSH Act and enable the agency to conduct more effective inspections. OSHA regulations require no specific qualifications for employer representatives or for employee representatives who are employed by the employer.
