Last May we first blogged about federal OSHA’s controversial Final Rule to “Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses.” The Final Rule requires, among other things, employers to specifically inform employees of their right to report work-related injuries and illnesses free from retaliation. This provision, referred to as the “anti-retaliation” rule, was originally scheduled to take effect on August 10, 2017. States with their own state-run occupational health and safety programs had six months to adopt matching “anti-retaliation” rules.
Before the federal anti-retaliation provisions went into effect several trade organizations and companies sought through federal court action to obtain a nationwide injunction preventing the rule from taking effect. Because of the court action, federal OSHA postponed the compliance deadline to Nov. 1 and then to Dec. 1. Finally, the court decided not to issue the injunction clearing the way for the rule to take effect on Dec. 1. States that delayed adopting matching “anti-retaliation” rules pending the litigation are now required to make these changes.
Oregon OSHA has already amended state law to reflect federal OSHA’s Final Rule changes, including the anti-retaliation provisions and also employees’ right to see their employer’s injury and illness logs. The Oregon OSHA rule is set to take effect May 1, 2017, but the state has already revised the mandatory Oregon OSHA posting to include the required “anti-retaliation” and access to records terminology. Oregon employers can meet their obligation to inform their employees of these protections by posting the updated Oregon OSHA notice. Compliance Poster Company includes the notice on the new Oregon All-On-One Poster and has developed a Oregon OSHA Peel ‘N Post to update existing posters.