OSHA monitors the State Laws to ensure the safety and health of workers. There are 22 State Plans that include private sector and state and local government employees. 7 State Plans that cover only state and local government workers.
The state plans must be as effective as OSHA standards to keep the workers safe and prevent workplace injuries.
How State Laws Can Be Beneficial For Employees and Employers:
Since the State Laws are OSHA-approved, they can act as a guideline for employees working in each state, as the laws are readily and locally available. Without taking the comprehensive course, merely by adhering to the State Laws, workers can gain knowledge.
State Laws provide simple and flexible methods of ensuring good compliance. Employers get a clear set of guidelines for implementing policies and procedures. The decision-making also becomes more simple. They can get the questions answered in no time because they only need to consider the state law as their primary resource. Since these laws are tailored and designed for each State, organizations can meet their workplace requirements.
OSHA evaluation of State Plans:
OSHA evaluates the performance of State Plans through the Federal Annual Monitoring Evaluation (FAME) process. The FAME report is used to conduct self-assessment by the State Plan. Based on the report, OSHA carries out an on-site evaluation to review all the relevant material and ensure the plan is being followed. After evaluation, a thorough discussion is held to examine the findings and recommendations.
This process ensures the following requirements:
- The State Plan should be effective to a certain degree. If not more effectively than OSHA. This suggests that the performance of the Safety Plans should be somewhat close to the standards of OSHA.
- Organizations should keep a proper record of the organization they have after the implementation of State Laws. Comparisons can be made to evaluate the level of compliance an organization has shown before and after the implementation of state laws. Report writing also determines if the desired goals have been achieved timely. Lastly, organizations can also identify their weaknesses to take action.
- Osha also ensures that the State Laws adhere to the mandated responsibilities under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 and other relevant regulations.
Steps in OSHA’s Approval Process for Establishing a State Plan:
States have to go through a rigorous process to gain approval from OSHA.
The first step is the Developmental Plan. States have to make sure that within three years, organizations will establish all the components required to be considered effective. The details are as follows:
- Appropriate legislation
- Regulations and procedures for standards-setting
- Enforcement
- Appeal of citations and penalties
- A sufficient number of qualified enforcement personnel.
Once the developmental steps are completed, the state can get certified. Getting a certification ensures that the state has the resources and requirements to support a healthy workplace environment for the employees. States become independent from the federal government after accreditation. According to the agreement, the state will be in charge of implementing the laws, and the federal government will not intervene.
States can then apply for a final approval after getting certified. They will have to provide evidence that the State is showing good compliance with the law and is functioning properly without the assistance of OSHA. This process can take a year! Workers can get OSHA online courses via OSHA Education School to prevent from workplace hazards.
After getting the final approval, States are responsible for their actions as OSHA takes a back seat. OSHA will not be liable for the State who reached the final approval. The state will now have to make sure that their employees are safeguarded.
OSHA Jurisdiction States:
The District of Columbia, all 50 states, and other U.S. territories are supervised by OSHA.
States that gained OSHA final approval look after the safety standards for private sector workers and state/local government employees (public sector). They are listed below:
- Alaska
- Arizona
- California
- Hawaii
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kentucky
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Nevada
- New Mexico
- North Carolina
- Oregon
- Puerto Rico
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- Wyoming
The following states have OSHA-approved State Plans. The laws only apply to the public sector, which involves state and local government employees.
- Connecticut
- Illinois
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- New Jersey
- New York
- Virgin Islands
OSHA has jurisdiction over 29 States in total. Some states have their own rules and regulations governing health and safety standards for workers. However, OSHA still controls federal workplaces, maritime jobs, and some Indian reservations.
Non OSHA States:
As mentioned above, OSHA has authority over 29 States as of 2023. It is expanding its jurisdiction to other states as well gradually. 21 States do not have their OSHA-approved state plans, and they are as follows:
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- Colorado
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Kansas
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- New Hampshire
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- Texas
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
OSHA extends its expertise to all the states without any discrimination, and its decisions are also merited. States that fall within the eligibility criteria receive OSHA-approved Laws.
There can be several reasons for the states, as mentioned earlier, that didn’t make it into the list of state plans that OSHA has approved.
- It is not an obligation for a State to apply for OSHA state laws. States submit their requests voluntarily. Hence, there is a possibility that these States did not apply for an OSHA-approved State Plan.
- Some states may be undergoing development and cannot afford to implement state plans as they have to meet a number of requirements to fulfill the OSHA criteria. It includes having a proficient team and enforcing safety and health standards that are at least as effective as OSHA’s standards.
- States want to sign up for OSHA courses like OSHA 30 Spanish in the future, which is why they haven’t requested OSHA-approved state laws yet.
Conclusion:
Federal regulations will benefit most workers regardless of whether they work in an “OSHA or non-OSHA” state.
Depending upon your State, you need a set of Laws. Some states have standard plans that are mostly the same as federal regulations, while others need state-specific training and compliance measures.
You can also enroll for OSHA or 30 courses for Construction and General Industry, as well as state-specific information for maximum efficiency and health benefits for your workers.
