The U.S. Department of Labor announced that its Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is inviting the public and workplace-safety stakeholders to share their comments on how the agency can best honor companies that make exceptional commitments to workplace safety and health and encourage others to follow.
OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) recognizes workplaces that demonstrate best practices in safety and health management and serve as industry models. Since its inception in 1982, the program has attracted a variety of organizations in many industries. However, that success has stretched OSHA resources and made it more difficult to ensure the quality of program applicants’ safety and health management systems.
By opening the program to public comments, OSHA seeks input from all perspectives to support its efforts to modernize and enhance the program. Among key issues up for discussion:
- Aligning the program more closely with recent occupational safety and health management practices and system standards;
- Ensuring that the program contributes to expanding the use and effectiveness of safety and health management systems;
- Debating the use of resources and tools such as “special government employees,” consensus standards, third-party auditors and other methods to expand the program’s capacity without compromising effectiveness and oversight; and
- Whether particular hazard categories need special attention in the VPP certification process.
Submit comments and attachments, identified by Docket No. OSHA-2022-0012, using the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal.
Deadline: April 14, 2023.