OSHA recently announced that it will wait until December 1, 2016 to start enforcing its new anti-retaliation rules, which were created to protect employees involved in work-related accidents. This is the second time OSHA has agreed to delay enforcement of the new rule, which was announced in May 2016.
The new rule should provide additional protection to employees who suffer work-related injuries. According the OSHA, the rule is intended to prevent retaliation against workers who file injury claims and lawsuits and encourage the accurate reporting of work-related injuries.
The rule requires employers to create “reasonable procedures” for employees to report work-related injuries, and it forbids companies from disciplining employees simply because they report a work-related injury.
For example, suppose an employee strains his back but does not immediately report the injury because he’s not experiencing pain. Under this new rule, if the employee begins to experience back pain the next day and proceeds to report the injury to his employer, it would be illegal retaliation if the employer disciplines the employee for failing to report his injury “immediately” pursuant to their company’s policies.
Additionally, the rule expressly prohibits employers from drug testing or threatening to drug test employees simply because they report a work-related injury.
For example, OSHA states that employers’ drug testing policies should limit post-incident drug tests to specific situations where there is a reasonable basis to conclude drugs or alcohol likely contributed to the incident rather than employing a blanket-policy requiring a drug test any time work-related injury occurred. Such a blanket-policy may discourage workers from reporting injuries.
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