Manufacturing.Net Publishes Q&A with Chris Nickels, Amanda Collins About OSHA Walkaround Rule
Chris Nickels and Amanda Collins, Milwaukee-based members of the Quarles & Brady Labor & Employment Practice Group, participated in a Manufacturing.net Q&A about the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) recently published Walkaround Rule, which specifies that an employee representative is entitled to accompany compliance officers from the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) during workplace inspections.
Nickels, a partner, and Collins, an associate, addressed a range of topics related to the rule, including potential legal challenges, manufacturer concerns about the rule and steps employers should take to prepare to adhere to the rule.
An excerpt:
Because OSHA may inspect a worksite at any time without notice, we recommend that employers designate and train at least one employer representative to handle OSHA inspections. The designated representative should have a solid grasp on the rights and limitations of employee representatives.
If your business operates multiple shifts, consider ensuring a designated representative is always on site during business hours. This designated representative should have access to a maintained list of all areas that contain or could reveal trade secret information and be prepared to ask that the non-employee representative be excluded from those areas.
Employers may require third-party employee representatives to sign a reasonable confidentiality agreement, but only if the employer requires all visitors to sign such agreement. Therefore, consider requiring all visitors to sign a nondisclosure and/or confidentiality agreement if your company maintains trade secrets or confidential information that could be discoverable during an OSHA inspection.