BOWIE, Md. (May 18, 2016) — The Tire Industry Association (TIA) has reiterated its opposition to a new final rule from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration intended to motivate employers to prevent workplace injuries and illnesses.
Implementation of the final rule, which OSHA issued in the May 12 Federal Register, includes the agency posting workplace illness and injury data from individual employers on its website.
“Our new reporting requirements will nudge employers to prevent worker injuries and illnesses to demonstrate to investors, job seekers, customers and the public that they operate safe and well-managed facilities,” said OSHA Administrator David Michaels in a press release.
TIA sent a docket submission to OSHA in March 2014 opposing the proposed rule that became the final standard. In the May 16, 2016, issue of TIA's Weekly Legislative Update, the association made it clear that it still objects to the rule.
Public access to raw injury and illness data is TIA's primary objection to the rule, according to the May 16 issue.
“There is a great risk of misuse of such highly sensitive data by both competitors and other adversaries,” it said. “Since it would be in such a raw form and subject to distortion, this data will be of questionable value in consumer decision-making.”
The OSHA workplace injury information rule goes into effect Aug. 10.