“It’s terrifying for workers, because they’re really on their own,” said Debbie Berkowitz, a worker health and safety program director for the National Employment Law Project and a former chief of staff and policy advisor for OSHA.
Thousands of OSHA investigations quietly closed during COVID-19 pandemic
KANSAS CITY, Mo. —
Thousands of investigations into working conditions across the country during the COVID-19 pandemic are getting quietly closed by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, after complaints of working conditions by employees and the public.
What’s left unexplained is why those investigations are getting closed so quickly, how many on-site inspections OSHA has performed since March, and what penalties employers face if they fail to keep workers safe.
The findings come as OSHA has released weekly public information on open and closed investigations the agency has published since April. In mid-April, the agency updated guidelines to offer guidance on how to investigate complaints and inspect workplaces.
Source: Thousands of OSHA investigations already closed during COVID-19 pandemic