| Q. |
Is there a charge for the consultation visit? |
| A. |
No, the consultation program is free to qualifying Missouri small business employers. These are employers who have less than 250 employees at a facility and have a total of less than 500 in the company at all locations. |
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| Q. |
Who should sign the Consultation Application for Service? |
| A. |
The required signature is a contract with Missouri Consultation agreeing to correct all Serious hazards identified by the consultant. Therefore, the person signing the request must have a position of senior management authority insuring the corrections can be made. An example would be the Owner, President, Production Manager, etc. |
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| Q. |
When will I receive my consultation visit? |
| A. |
You will receive a letter acknowledging our receipt of your application. It will inform you that we have placed your facility on a consultant's backlog. You will be contacted by the consultant based on a priority of expected hazards in your industrial type. We prioritize by the smallest facility with the highest level of hazards expected. You can expect a visit to be scheduled between 2 to 6 months depending on your backlog priority and your location in the state. The consultant will not come to your facility until you have been contacted and agree to the visit date. |
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| Q. |
What is an imminent danger condition, a serious or an other-than-serious hazard?
- Imminent Danger Condition means any conditions or practices in any place of employment which are such that a danger exists which could reasonably be expected to cause death or serious physical harm immediately or before the imminence of such danger can be eliminated through the enforcement procedures.
- A serious hazard is a hazard that is likely to cause serious injury, illness or death and would be cited as a standards violation by Federal OSHA.
- Other-than-serious hazards are not likely to cause serious injury or illness. These hazards usually deal with incomplete or missing required written regulations or policies.
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| Q. |
How much time to I have to correct Imminent Danger Conditions and hazards? |
| A. |
Imminent Danger Conditions and hazards (these are very rare to find) must be corrected immediately or we are required to refer you to OSHA enforcement. We are proud that there has never been an OSHA compliance referral necessary in the 25 year history of the Missouri On-Site Safety and Health Consultation Program. |
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| Q. |
How much time to I have to correct Serious hazards? |
| A. |
Generally, you will have at least 2 weeks to correct Serious hazards. The consultant and the employer will mutually agree to a reasonable timeframe to correct the Serious hazards identified. This timeframe will depend on how hazardous the Serious hazard is and what correction is needed to abate it. |
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| Q. |
What if I am unable to correct one of the Serious hazards in the agreed upon timeframe because of some complication? |
| A. |
This is usually not a problem. You will need to contact the consultation project manager prior to the end of the timeframe and then submit written justification for the delay, describe the interim protection being provided to the employees, and request a new reasonable timeframe to correct the Serious hazard. |
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| Q. |
Do I have to correct all hazards identified or implement all recommendations suggested by the consultant? |
| A. |
No, you only have to agree to correct Imminent Danger Conditions and Serious hazards identified by the consultant. |
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| Q. |
Will OSHA know I have used your service and that I may have a consultation visit in progress? |
| A. |
No, by federal law, OSHA enforcement can not request any information about any consultation visit from our office. If an OSHA compliance officer asks you if you have utilized the Consultation Program, it will be up to you if you want to volunteer that information. (You must release any exposure monitoring records provided to you by us to OSHA, if requested.) If you choose to tell OSHA enforcement that you are involved in a consultation visit in progress they will ask to see the List of Hazards that you have posted for your employees and make sure that the correction due dates for the Serious hazards identified during the consultation are not already past. However, if OSHA enforcement is at your facility to investigate imminent dangers, fatality/catastrophe (a serious accident that has hospitalized 3 or more of your employees) or to investigate an employee complaint the consultation visit in progress will be terminated. |
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| Q. |
Are we more likely to have an OSHA inspection after we have used your service than if we had not used your service at all? |
| A. |
No, by federal law, OSHA has no information about our visits nor do they know where we are scheduled to visit. You have the same chance of experiencing an OSHA visit whether you utilize our service or not. |
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| Q. |
What if I disagree with the opinion of the consultant involving a suggested Serious hazard? |
| A. |
This is normally not a concern since the consultant must adhere strictly to the OSHA regulations and field manuals in their work. They will be using the same information that an OSHA compliance officer would use in determining the seriousness of a hazard. However, you always have the option of contacting the Consultation Program Manager in situations involving concerns about Serious hazards. |
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| Q. |
What if I refuse to correct a Serious hazard that has been identified by the consultant? |
| A. |
By signing the Consultation Application for Service, you have agreed to correct all Serious Hazards identified by the consultant in a reasonable timeframe. If you refuse to correct a Serious hazard that could cause Serious harm or death to an employee, the consultant is required to notify the Consultation Program Manager of your refusal. The Program Manager will attempt to assist you in understanding the consequences of your refusal to correct the Serious hazards, including possible referral to OSHA compliance for an immediate visit. We are proud that there has never been an OSHA compliance referral necessary in the 25 year history of the Missouri On-Site Safety and Health Consultation Program. |
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| Q. |
Do I have to post the List of Hazards that came with my official report? |
| A. |
Yes, The you must post the List of Hazards either electronically or in a location where it is readily observed by all affected employees for three days or until the hazards identified on the list are corrected, whichever is longer. |
