Established in 1970, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is a regulatory agency created to oversee U.S. workplaces and ensure American employees have safe, healthy working conditions. Today, OSHA and its roughly 1,850 inspectors perform almost 35,000 inspections annually and issue citations to companies that violate its standards.
Construction companies, in particular, commit more OSHA violations than companies in many other industries. For this reason, you shouldn’t be too surprised if your construction company receives an OSHA citation in the aftermath of an OSHA inspection.
You should, however, know that you don’t have to simply accept a citation from OSHA and the penalties that come with it. Instead, you can go through the process of contesting the OSHA citation.
Find out what should happen after your construction company receives an OSHA citation below.
Begin by Reading Through an OSHA Citation
Even though it isn’t uncommon for construction companies to receive citations from OSHA, there might still be some shock associated with finding a citation waiting for you one day. This could cause you to overlook what’s included at first glance.
Before deciding what to do next, sit down with an OSHA citation and read through every word. This will shed light on:
- Why your construction company is receiving a citation from OSHA
- What penalties your construction company may face for violating OSHA safety standards
- When you will need to contest a citation from OSHA to avoid missing the deadline
Consider Contesting an OSHA Citation
Unfortunately, OSHA doesn’t give companies much time to respond to citations. You’ll only have 15 business days to decide whether to accept or contest a citation.
Generally speaking, it’s always a good idea for construction companies to consider contesting OSHA citations. If nothing else, doing it gives you more time to investigate your options for dealing with a citation.
Whatever you do, don’t put off responding to a citation until it’s too late. OSHA doesn’t typically offer exceptions to deadlines, so if you wait too long to contest a citation, you may forfeit your right to do so.
Hire an OSHA Defense Attorney
If you’d like to contest an OSHA citation, start searching for an OSHA defense attorney with construction experience. They should have extensive experience representing construction companies in these types of cases. Since you won’t have much time to contest a citation, it will help to have a lawyer on your side who can better explain the ins and outs of launching legal defenses against OSHA and its inspectors.
An OSHA defense lawyer can also break down your options when responding to a citation from OSHA. For example, you can seek to have a citation from OSHA eliminated if you don’t believe your construction company committed any safety violations. You can also consider taking other steps, such as:
- Reducing the fines associated with a citation from OSHA
- Changing OSHA’s proposed violation abatement date
- Negotiating a settlement during an informal conference
Many construction companies successfully negotiate settlements after committing OSHA violations with help from the right legal representation. It’s an option worth considering since it could lessen the impact an OSHA citation has on your construction company.
Contest an OSHA Citation in Court
If an OSHA defense lawyer can’t work out a settlement or if you aren’t interested in settling with OSHA in the first place, you can contest a citation in court by going through a very specific legal process. This is how it works:
- Your construction company files a notice of intent to contest an OSHA violation.
- Your local OSHA office sends your notice to the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
- The OSHRC assigns your case to an administrative law judge.
- An OSHRC hearing takes place before the judge in the case renders a ruling.
- You either accept a judge’s ruling or appeal it and take your case to a federal appellate court.
You might even have the chance to take your case to the U.S. Supreme Court if you’re still unhappy with the outcome after appearing in federal appellate court. The vast majority of OSHA-related cases don’t make it this far, but it may be an option depending on the circumstances surrounding your original citation.
Call Us When Your Construction Company Needs OSHA Defense Services
Receiving an OSHA citation can negatively affect your construction company in many ways. Allow an OSHA defense attorney from Anderson Jones, PLLC to provide you with a free case evaluation and lay out your legal options. Contact us at 919-277-2541 today.