In this module
Objectives covered: LO 3.1.1, LO 3.1.2. By the end you will be able to:
- Explain why OSHA was created and what the OSH Act requires.
- Describe employer and worker rights and responsibilities.
- Explain how OSHA standards are organised and how inspections work.
1.1 Why OSHA exists
The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH Act) created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in the US Department of Labor. Its purpose is simple: every worker should go home safe and healthy at the end of every shift. OSHA sets and enforces standards, and provides training, outreach and help.
OSHA rules are US law, but they are used around the world as a benchmark. Multinational companies in Bangladesh (oil and gas, power, pharmaceuticals, RMG buyers) often write OSHA requirements into their own company standards and contracts.
1.2 How OSHA standards are organised
| Part | Covers |
|---|---|
| 29 CFR 1910 | General Industry: factories, warehouses, hospitals, power plants, offices. This course. |
| 29 CFR 1926 | Construction |
| 29 CFR 1915 to 1918 | Maritime: shipyards, marine terminals, longshoring |
| 29 CFR 1904 | Recording and reporting injuries and illnesses |
Where no specific standard exists, the General Duty Clause, Section 5(a)(1), requires employers to keep the workplace free from recognised hazards that cause or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm.
1.3 Rights and responsibilities
Workers have the right to
- Working conditions that do not pose a risk of serious harm.
- Training in a language and vocabulary they understand.
- Information about hazards, chemicals (SDS), injury records and exposure results.
- File a confidential complaint and request an inspection.
- Be protected from retaliation for using these rights (Section 11(c)).
Employers must
- Find and correct hazards, and follow OSHA standards.
- Provide training, PPE at no cost, and required medical exams.
- Keep injury and illness records, post the OSHA poster, and report serious events: a fatality within 8 hours; an in-patient hospitalisation, amputation or loss of an eye within 24 hours.
1.4 Inspections and citations
OSHA inspects without advance notice. Priorities are: imminent danger, fatalities and catastrophes, complaints and referrals, targeted high-hazard industries, and follow-ups. Citations are classed as willful, serious, other-than-serious, repeated or failure to abate, each with penalties.
- OSH Act 1970, Sections 5(a)(1), 5(a)(2) and 11(c).
- 29 CFR 1903: inspections, citations and penalties. 29 CFR 1904: recordkeeping.
- Bangladesh equivalent: the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments (DIFE) enforces the Bangladesh Labour Act 2006 and Labour Rules 2015.
OSHA has no legal power in Bangladesh, but its standards shape local practice. An international gas operator in Bangladesh, for example, applies OSHA-based standards for lockout, confined spaces and fall protection to all its contractors. DIFE inspectors enforce the Labour Act, and buyers' audits check against both.
Learning Check
Answer these two questions to check your understanding. You can try again as many times as you like.