Darrell Whitman says he was fired for blowing the whistle on his employer because he was worried about public health and safety. The irony: Whitman investigated cases for OSHA's Whistleblower Protection Program. Whitman said the agency is hurting the very people it's supposed to protect—workers who are fired for reporting health and safety issues that can harm the public.
http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Federal-Whistleblower-Investigator-Fired-After-Blowing-the-Whistle-on-His-Own-Agency-332240782.html
I grew up working in kitchens. OSHA was the one agency you did not upset. They were like the mafia.
Quote from: The Boo Man... on October 15, 2015, 09:42:45 PM
I grew up working in kitchens. OSHA was the one agency you did not upset. They were like the mafia.
It was the same for me as a wharehouseman, the threat of OSHA showing up was akin to a tax audit, you knew if they showed up for anything, you were out of a job.
Quote from: Solar on October 16, 2015, 06:16:42 AM
It was the same for me as a wharehouseman, the threat of OSHA showing up was akin to a tax audit, you knew if they showed up for anything, you were out of a job.
The oil industry sweats bullets at the sight of OSHA!
They ARE the mafia. So is the EPA!
The feds are the real domestic terrorists, not conservatives or Christians. :angry:
Quote from: Solar on October 16, 2015, 06:16:42 AM
It was the same for me as a wharehouseman, the threat of OSHA showing up was akin to a tax audit, you knew if they showed up for anything, you were out of a job.
Yup, landed a job a couple of months after the initial OSHA visit/fine. $70k worth, and it landed us on their "target program".
Because their budget was being CUT, they decided the "self-fund" through stricter enforcement and penalties. 3 days in the OSHA offices for "remedial training" and threatening, "if we ever catch you not following these guidelines, you'll be begging for mercy...", kind of talk. Fine the facility, and every staff member remotely associated to the violation.
The Target program consisted of 3 circles, like a target, the inner circle was 60 of the worst offenders, next was 60 of the casual offenders, next outermost ring was potential offenders. In violation or not, they told us, "the inner circle of 60 would get surprise visits, court orders if necessary...", next 60 would get a brief warning, next 60 would be investigated, warned and visited to check for potential violations. If your company got moved into the innermost circle, it was not going to be pleasant - best to lawyer up, they were using the shot-gun approach, and everyone was going to pay. The Safety Committee was destined to be penalized.
"Your fines are going to fund our department...", scares the hell out of business owners.
Quote from: Hoofer on October 16, 2015, 09:17:14 AM
Yup, landed a job a couple of months after the initial OSHA visit/fine. $70k worth, and it landed us on their "target program". Because their budget was being CUT, they decided the "self-fund" through stricter enforcement and penalties. 3 days in the OSHA offices for "remedial training" and threatening, "if we ever catch you not following these guidelines, you'll be begging for mercy...", kind of talk. Fine the facility, and every staff member remotely associated to the violation.
The Target program consisted of 3 circles, like a target, the inner circle was 60 of the worst offenders, next was 60 of the casual offenders, next outermost ring was potential offenders. In violation or not, they told us, "the inner circle of 60 would get surprise visits, court orders if necessary...", next 60 would get a brief warning, next 60 would be investigated, warned and visited to check for potential violations. If your company got moved into the innermost circle, it was not going to be pleasant - best to lawyer up, they were using the shot-gun approach, and everyone was going to pay. The Safety Committee was destined to be penalized. "Your fines are going to fund our department...", scares the hell out of business owners.
Yep, and it worked....