Feds question OSHA record-keeping

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The U.S. workplace-safety agency fails to routinely interview workers to verify injury and illness data supplied by companies, raising questions about the accuracy of the information, federal investigators have found.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s audits of a sample of company records often occur years after incidents are recorded and after affected workers have left their jobs, according to auditors for the Government Accountability Office.

Audits are necessary as employers may not record injuries or illnesses because they are afraid of increasing their workers’ compensation costs or jeopardizing their chances of winning contract bids for new work, the GAO said in a report set for release today.

The GAO, the investigative agency of Congress, conducted its year-long investigation of OSHA’s record-keeping after reports last year of poor working conditions in the poultry industry, where thousands of workers are hurt each year as they cut and package meat. Democrats in Congress requested the investigation.

The agency should improve its record-keeping, conduct more timely audits and require inspectors to interview workers, the GAO said.
OSHA will comply with the recommendations, the agency’s acting director, Jordan Barab, said in a response included in the report.

-- Bloomberg News