On Aug. 30, OSHA issued a proposed rule on the Worker Walkaround Representative Designation Process, which would apply to all construction industry contractors facing OSHA inspections. The proposed rule would allow an employee to choose a third-party representative, such as an outside union representative or community activist, to accompany an OSHA inspector into nonunion facilities.

The proposal does nothing to promote workplace safety, inserts OSHA into labor-management disputes and contradicts existing OSHA regulations and the National Labor Relations Act.

In addition, the proposed rule fails to provide any safety expertise criteria for the selection of third-party representatives and raises serious concerns regarding legal responsibility for injuries to third-party representatives, as well as the potential for the participation of these individuals to distract OSHA inspectors from their primary goal of workplace safety. 

Take action today by submitting comments by 11:59 p.m. ET on Monday, Nov. 13, urging OSHA to withdraw this misguided proposed rule!