OSHA Counseling and Advocacy

    •  
Counseling employers regarding OSHA regulations and defending against agency enforcement actions.

Overview

Employers must navigate an increasingly complex set of workplace safety and health regulations, policies, and guidance from the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), as well as state agencies. DWT's highly experienced and skilled occupational safety and health law team advises, counsels, and represents employers in all sectors, ranging from high-risk industries to office-environment businesses and everything in-between.

Our clients include national, regional, and local businesses in warehousing, healthcare, construction, airlines, aerospace, logistics, oil refining, food processing, technology, retail, and hospitality, among others.

How We Help Employers

With our deep expertise and extensive experience with federal OSHA, as well as its state agency counterparts (such as Cal/OSHA, Washington DOSH, OrOSHA, and the dozens of other state occupational safety and health regulatory agencies), our team assists employers daily with the following.

Analytical Capabilities

Our team employs analytical tools and techniques which allow clients to better recognize any correlations in rates of incidence in compliance areas, facilities, or regions that are performing especially well.
Our team is deeply familiar with OSHA and state-plan regulations and tracks the latest legal developments. Clients trust our team to identify potential risks and help ensure that policies and procedures comply with legal obligations and provide a safe work environment.
When our clients receive citations, from regulatory or other-than-serious violations to workplace fatalities, they turn to our team to conduct administrative hearings and negotiations in both federal and state-plan jurisdictions.
When workplace incidents occur, our team will be your trusted advisors in developing an appropriate incident response and addressing worker and media relations concerns. Clients trust our experienced and knowledgeable team to help navigate myriad reporting and recordkeeping obligations.
Should a complaint arise, our attorneys efficiently coordinate responses to multiple government agencies and know how to guide responses to minimize the risk of citation or inspection.
When workplace incidents do occur, our team will be your trusted advisors in developing an appropriate incident response and addressing worker and media relations concerns.
We have resolved numerous safety citation and whistleblower charges on conditions favorable to clients, including complete dismissals. With the increase of worker awareness of OSHA retaliation charges due to the pandemic, our team stands ready to help employers insulate themselves and defend against allegations.
Example of charts and graphs

National Scope

Our team has advised employers regarding OSHA compliance in every state in the union. Whether a client's jurisdiction enforces federal OSHA standards or unique state-plan regulatory schemes, we are prepared to help clients in both emergency and routine circumstances.

Industry Experience

Our team has broad and significant depth of experience in a wide range of industries, ranging from helping clients develop appropriate safety programs and documentation to defending clients against the most serious, catastrophic accidents and accusations.

Logistics/Supply-Chain

Hazards associated with warehousing and transportation work can include powered industrial trucks, ergonomics, the selection and proper use of appropriate personal protective equipment, machine guarding, hazardous substances, and more. Our team has helped warehousing, logistics, and transportation companies in responding to or defending against hundreds of complaints and citations, identifying potential hazards, and mitigating liability.

Big-Box Retailers

Employees of big-box retailers are susceptible injuries sustained from lifting or moving heavy loads, accidents, the use of powered industrial trucks, and exposure to hazardous substances, among others. Our team knows the issues that cause pain points for employers and have handled matters ranging from "general" to "serious" violations to workplace fatalities, workplace safety audits, and advice and counsel during unannounced OSHA inspections.

Construction

Construction and its related activities is a highly dangerous industry, with employees regularly exposed to hazards such as toxic building materials, falls from roofs or scaffolding, or injuries sustained by hazardous machinery or equipment. We help firms in the construction industry understand and identify their legal safety obligations, and identify and reduce potential areas of risk before they create liability. We have guided construction clients through every form of OSHA interaction, from misplaced, minor citations to catastrophic accidents.

Manufacturers

The use of heavy machinery, conveyor belts, and other equipment significantly increases productivity and manufacturing output. It also creates safety risks related to machine guarding, lock-out/tag-out obligations and safety procedures, the selection and use of appropriate personal protective equipment, electrical exposure, and other potential hazards. We work with employers across all forms of manufacturing, from food production to metal fabrication, in ensuring compliance with applicable safety standards and defending against misplaced citations.

Food and Beverage Producers

Restaurateurs know that few things can impede service like problems with health or safety. Lack of proper training, exposure to hazardous cleaning chemicals, slip and falls, and failure to keep and maintain appropriate records and safety plans can cause significant and serious disruption during critical meal services. We advise clients regarding operations and help them respond to complaints and citations to help ensure that restaurants can focus on doing what they do best.

Healthcare

We assist healthcare providers of all sizes – from nationally known to small clinics – in understanding and preventing injuries that are prevalent in their industry, such as exposure to hazardous substances and bloodborne pathogens, injuries resulting from moving or assisting patients, and violence in the workplace. We know the workplace hazards facing healthcare workers and can help healthcare providers quickly identify and manage these risks, and respond when complaints, investigations, and citations arise.

Technology Companies and Office Environments

OSHA rules and regulations, including various record keeping requirements and enforcement mechanisms, are equally applicable to the office workspace. Employees in the technology and office sectors can be susceptible to hazards ranging from common musculoskeletal disorders to electrical and similar hazards. Medical fees, scrutiny, decreased morale, and lost productivity resulting from these types of injuries can be extremely costly.