Dirty Steel-Toe Boots, Episode 15: OSHAs Expansion of the Instance-by-Instance Policy
In this episode of Dirty Steel-Toe Boots, Phillip Russell is joined by John Surma, to discuss OSHA\u2019s January 26, 2023, press release announcing the agency\u2019s new instance-by-instance citation policy along with two related enforcement memoranda regarding the factors for determining whether instance-by-instance citations should be issued and penalty adjustments. Phillip and John (both of whom are members of Ogletree Deakins\u2019 Workplace Safety and Health Practice Group) discuss the implications of this move away from OSHA\u2019s previous policy whereby the agency had the discretion to group similar citations or exposures\u2014including significantly increased penalties multiplied by the number of instances cited. Our speakers also cover how often the agency will use this new practice and how these changes will affect the number of cases that will be contested due to the increased overall penalty exposure.