"Safe Workplaces, Stronger Partnerships: The Future of OSHA Compliance Assistance"

House Subcommittee on Workforce Protections

2025-07-16

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Source: Congress.gov

Summary

This meeting of the subcommittee on workforce protections explored OSHA's compliance assistance programs and public-private safety partnerships with the goal of protecting workers and ensuring safe working conditions [ 00:19:39-00:19:40 ] . Participants discussed ways to strengthen these federal programs, while also addressing concerns about recent deregulation and underfunding of worker protection agencies [ 00:20:44-00:20:53 ] . The discussion highlighted contrasting views on the effectiveness of voluntary compliance versus strict enforcement in achieving workplace safety goals.

Themes

Effectiveness of OSHA's Compliance Assistance Programs

OSHA's compliance assistance programs, such as the Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP), promote a proactive approach to safety by giving employers tools and guidance to prevent injuries and illnesses [ 00:19:56-00:19:59 ] . These programs, some in place for decades, offer services like no-cost on-site consultations for small and medium-sized businesses and recognize workplaces with exceptional safety practices [ 00:20:09-00:20:29 ] . VPP sites report an average injury and illness rate 53% below BLS industry averages, fostering a safety culture rooted in continuous improvement, employee involvement, and management commitment . Participants noted that VPP acts as an efficiency tool for OSHA, allowing the agency to leverage resources from Special Government Employees (SGEs) and focus enforcement efforts on "bad actors" . The proposed Michael Enzi Voluntary Protection Program Act (HR 2844) aims to codify VPP as a permanent program and dedicate a percentage of OSHA's budget to it, ensuring its long-term success . Such programs can also lead to financial savings for employers through reduced workers' compensation insurance and improved employee morale .

Concerns about Deregulation and Underfunding of Worker Protections

Numerous concerns were raised regarding recent actions by the Trump administration, described as an "aggressive assault on worker protections" . These include mass firings at agencies like the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), proposed budget cuts, and numerous deregulatory rulemakings that weaken child labor laws, lighting requirements on construction sites, and asbestos protections . The AFL-CIO highlighted that OSHA's budget decreased by 8% between 1991 and 2024, with a 35% decrease in enforcement staff, leading to a drastic reduction in inspection capacity . Critics argue these proposals create incentives for employers to "take the low road" by making it cheaper to violate safety laws, potentially resulting in more injuries, deaths, and less accountability . The firing of NIOSH staff is expected to hinder critical research in areas like mining safety, ergonomics, and warehouse safety, impacting workers in high-risk industries [ 00:57:20-00:57:44 ]

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[ 00:59:29-00:59:42 ]

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Role of Enforcement vs. Compliance Assistance

A central theme was the balance between voluntary compliance assistance and traditional enforcement mechanisms. While compliance assistance is acknowledged as beneficial, it is emphasized that it should not replace clear, actively enforced standards . Concerns were voiced that low maximum penalties for violations (e.g., $16,550 for a serious violation, even if a fatality occurs) and recent policy changes that reduce these penalties, diminish deterrence and make it "cheaper to break the law" . Furthermore, some voluntary programs, particularly VPP, were criticized for inspection exemptions and potential underreporting of injuries, which could undermine accountability and credibility . Proponents of VPP, however, clarified that VPP sites are not exempt from inspections for imminent dangers or whistleblower actions and are subject to rigorous annual self-evaluations and periodic audits . Democrats advocated for strengthening worker protections through legislation like the Protecting Americans Workers Act and the Heat Illness Prevention Act, emphasizing robust standards and effective enforcement [ 01:28:03-01:28:16 ]

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Tone of the Meeting

The meeting had a serious and highly polarized tone, reflecting deeply divided perspectives on workplace safety policies. One side presented a positive and proactive view of voluntary compliance programs, emphasizing their effectiveness in fostering a strong safety culture, reducing injury rates, and promoting collaboration between labor, management, and government [ 00:19:56-00:19:59 ] . Speakers highlighted the efficiency and cost-saving benefits of programs like VPP and the importance of codifying them . The other side expressed sharp criticism and alarm, condemning the Trump administration's actions as a systematic attack on worker protections [ 01:27:40-01:27:47 ]

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. They used strong language such as "aggressive assault" and "reckless decisions" to describe deregulation and budget cuts, arguing these would lead to increased deaths and injuries [ 01:28:01-01:28:01 ]

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. This side called for robust standards and effective enforcement, dismissing voluntary programs as insufficient substitutes [ 01:28:03-01:28:03 ]

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. The closing remarks further underscored this polarization, with one side praising current "critical reforms" and the other reiterating concerns about "more workers at risk" [ 01:28:17-01:28:25 ]

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Participants

Transcript

I don't feel it yet.  I don't feel it.
Good morning.  This subcommittee on workforce protections will come to order.  I note that a quorum is present.  Without objection, the chair is authorized to call a recess at any time.   Today's hearing will explore compliance assistance programs offered by OSHA, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and its state partners.  We'll consider ways to strengthen these federal programs and learn more about the public-private safety partnerships that OSHA's mission includes, with goals of protecting those who work hard every day to provide for their families and deserve to do so in safe working conditions.   Since its establishment in 1971, OSHA has developed enforcement efforts and robust compliance assistance programs.  These programs help protect the millions of Americans who work hard every day to provide for their families by giving employers the tools and guidance they need to prevent injuries and illness before they occur.   Instead of relying solely on inspections and investigations after a violation happens, compliance assistance programs encourage a proactive approach to safety, which is essential to any effective health and safety management system.   Many of these programs have been in place for almost as long as OSHA itself.  For example, this year marks the 50th anniversary of OSHA's on-site consultation program, which provides no-cost, confidential occupational safety and health services that are tailored for small and medium-sized businesses.   In 1982, OSHA approved the first site for its voluntary protection programs, which recognized workplaces with safety and health practices that go above and beyond legal requirements.   In addition to OSHA's many federal programs, there is a vast network of programs and initiatives conducted by states with their own OSHA approved state plans.  As we look ahead, it's clear that workplaces are changing rapidly.
New industries, emerging technologies, and evolving hazards required OSHA's compliance assistance programs to be more innovative, accessible, and adaptable than ever before.   Updating compliance assistance programs calls for a collaborative approach.  Strong partnerships among state agencies, nonprofit organizations, industry leaders, and other stakeholders will be vital.  We must combine enforcement efforts with educational opportunities for employers and workers who want to meet their compliance obligations if we're going to protect workers.   Importantly, certain federal programs, such as the VPP, are discretionary programs, meaning their effectiveness can change dramatically year over year, and employers engaged in these programs are under constant threat of losing this critical resource.  We will hear more about a solution that addresses this concern and codifies the program, allowing it to perform more consistently.   Today, we will also hear from individuals in their workplaces where these compliance assistance programs are used.  The witnesses will offer their perspective on how these programs have made their workplaces safer, and they will make recommendations about how these programs can be improved to ensure worker health and safety.  I look forward to today's hearings and today's witnesses discussing strategies to make OSHA's compliance assistance programs more effective and responsive to the needs of the workforce.   With that, I yield to the ranking member for her opening statement.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you to our witnesses for being here today.  Over the last six months, the Trump administration has embarked on an aggressive assault on worker protections.  And just in the past two weeks, Trump's Department of Labor has released five dozen deregulatory rulemakings, two-thirds of which focus on health and safety issues.   These proposals target core worker protections, including changes to child labor rules, removing a requirement as basic and essential as having adequate lighting on construction sites, and even weakening workers' protection against asbestos.   This spree of deregulation follows months of mass firing at the very agencies tasked with researching and investigating workplace conditions and a proposed budget that will reduce inspections and slash DOL's capacity to develop new safety standards.  The message is clear.  Workers' rights and protections are under attack.   Compliance assistance programs such as the voluntary protection program have their place, but they are no substitute for a clear standard that are actively and effectively enforced.  No job should ever be a death sentence.  Workers deserve to come home to their families at the end of the day alive, healthy, and whole.  Yet according to the AFL-CIO,   workplace hazards killed approximately 140,000 workers in 2023, including 5,283 workers from traumatic injuries and an estimated 135,000 from occupational diseases.  To protect workers from harm, Congress has passed landmark safety laws and established important agencies like OSHA, IMHA,
NIOSH and the Chemical Safety and Hazards Investigation Board.  When they are all allowed to do their jobs and are fully funded, these agencies save lives and prevent harm to workers.  But now the Trump administration is attempting to strip away safety regulations, dismantle critical agencies like NIOSH and CSP.   In doing so, they are threatening the lives of workers who rely on those safeguards and the resources these agencies provide.  In my own district, we're already feeling the consequences of these cuts.  The University of Minnesota's Midwest Center for Occupational Health and Safety is one of just 18 NIOSH-funded education and research centers in the nation.   It trains the next generation of workplace safety experts who will help protect our workers in high-risk industries.  Without NIOSH, the invaluable research and workforce development provided by that center and others like it across the country will be lost.   That means fewer trained medical and safety professionals, less research capacity on critical issues such as heat stress, decreased investment in innovative technologies that can prevent illness and injury.  The Trump administration's deregulatory agenda will result in more injuries, more deaths, more grieving families, and less accountability for employers who put their workers in harm's way.   Committee Democrats are committed to honoring these workers who have been harmed or killed on the job, not just with words, but with action to change the system.

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