OSHA looks to expand voluntary safety assessment program

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is taking steps to expand a voluntary safety program it says will provide employers more guidance on developing workplace practices that could improve an employer’s standing when it comes to inspections.

The expansion could help many employers improve safety, provided they have the necessary resources and commitment, experts say.

The U.S. Department of Labor announced in July that it wants employers to “voluntarily assess and improve their compliance” with federal labor laws. The department said OSHA would be expanding the Voluntary Protection Programs, aimed at urging employers to “undergo regular self-evaluations and avoid routine inspections” while reducing the likelihood of formal investigation or litigation.

The announcement comes as OSHA legal experts continue to say the future of the agency’s enforcement, more aggressive under the previous presidential administration, has been hard to predict under President Donald Trump.

It is “not surprising” that the Trump administration is “focusing more on compliance than enforcement, and adjustments to the VPP is another example of that renewed focus,” said John Ho, New York-based co-chair of the OSHA Workplace Safety Practice at law firm Cozen O’Connor.

VPP is “about empowering employers to build strong safety cultures on their own terms,” according to an OSHA spokeswoman. Some of the latest efforts involve more outreach, especially to smaller employers; expanding the requirements to participate in VPP from four to seven “elements”; and creating a new level of distinction called “VPP Elite” for employer work sites that have maintained VPP status for more than 15 years, the spokeswoman wrote in an email, which did not include specifics. Under the current program, the VPP framework includes four key elements: management leadership and employee involvement, worksite analysis, hazard prevention and control, and safety and health training.

The cost to participate is “generally free,” according to OSHA, but could require expenses related to implementing safety program changes and training. As part of the expansion, OSHA is also expanding access to its Site Consultation Program, which offers no-cost and confidential safety and health services to small and medium-sized businesses, the spokeswoman wrote.

Mr. Ho called the VPP “the safety and health gold standard for businesses,” for which an employer must qualify to participate and that can be a hurdle for smaller employers.

VPP “involves a comprehensive process including inviting OSHA to your facility for review of practices and policies,” he said. “Given the time that it takes to go through the application process and since you are also inviting OSHA to inspect your facility numerous times, it is not something that every employer will have the resources or wherewithal to do.”

According to 2021 data, the most recent available, workplaces that participated in VPP saw on average 54% to 57% reductions in safety incidents compared with similar employers. The data covered 1,232 non-construction participants representing more than 349,000 employees.

“The benefit of VPP is internal accountability,” said Andrew Brought, a Kansas City, Missouri-based attorney with law firm Spencer Fane, which represents employers.

“For those companies that embrace safety culture, OSHA is likely to be more pragmatic in their compliance assistance approach,” Mr. Brought said. “But if the VPP enrollment is a facade or a vestige of prior leadership or ownership interests, which no longer remain, companies should carefully consider the type of scrutiny and oversight that will be applied.”