What is OSHA?

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Labor that creates and enforces standards to protect workers. It has the authority to enact workplace safety regulations and inspect jobsites to ensure compliance.

Under OSHA law, the right to a safe workplace is a basic human right. Employers are required to follow all OSHA standards and provide a safe and healthful workplace for all workers.

How Did OSHA Form?

In 1970, Congress considered annual figures such as these:

• Job related accidents accounted for more than 14,000 worker deaths.
• Nearly 2 1/2 million workers were disabled.
• Ten times as many person-days were lost from job-related disabilities as from strikes.
• Estimated new cases of occupational diseases totaled 300,000

In terms of lost production and wages, medical, expenses and disability compensation, the burden on the nation's commerce was staggering. Human cost was beyond calculations. Therefore, the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1979 (the Act) was passed by a bipartisan Congress "...to assure so far as possible every working man and woman in the Nation safe and healthful working conditions and to preserve our human resources."

What Does OSHA Stand For?

Under the Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration was created within the Department of Labor.

Simply stated, OSHA is the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and is responsible for worker safety and health protection.

Since its inception in 1970, OSHA has drastically reduced the work-fatality rate, reduced the overall injury and illness rates in industries where OSHA has concentrated its attention, virtually eliminated brown lung disease in the textile industry and significantly reduced trenching and excavation fatalities.

OSHA is administered through the Department of Labor (DOL). The DOL regulates and enforces hundreds of federal laws. These mandates and the regulations that implement them cover many workplace activities for public and private-sector employees across the country.

Who Does OSHA Cover?

OSHA determines which standards apply to your workplace and requires you to follow these standards and requirements.

All employees and their employers under Federal Government authority are covered by OSHA. Coverage is provided either directly by federal OSHA or through state programs. OSHA does not cover the self-employed or immediate members of farm families that do not employ outside workers.

OSHA offers an extensive Web site at osha.gov that includes sections devoted to training, state programs, small businesses, construction, as well as interactive eTools to help employers and employees.

OSHA also offers training programs for employers and employees to get hazard recognition. Some states currently mandate training.