Auto Detailing News

OSHA
NEWS
Strictly Business
Announcing new rules, regulations & business opportunities from OSHA, the SBA & the DOL
OSHA inspections on the rise
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational
Safety and Health Administration’s
(OSHA) fiscal year (FY) 2019
final statistics show a significant increase
in the number of inspections and a record
amount of compliance assistance
to further the mission of ensuring that
employers provide workplaces free of
hazards.
According to an official statement,
OSHA’s enforcement activities reflect the
Department’s continued focus on worker
safety. Federal OSHA conducted 33,401
inspections—more inspections than the
previous three years –addressing violations
related to trenching, falls, chemical
exposure, silica and other hazards.
In FY19, OSHA provided a record
1,392,611 workers with training on safety
and health requirements through the
Agency’s various education programs,
including the OSHA Training Institute
Education Centers, Outreach Training
Program and Susan Harwood Training
Grant Program. OSHA’s compliance
assistance programs have helped small
businesses address safety and health
hazards in their workplaces. In FY19,
OSHA’s no-cost On-Site Consultation
Program identified 137,885 workplace
hazards and protected 3.2 million workers
from potential harm.
“OSHA’s efforts – rulemaking, enforcement,
compliance assistance and
training – are tools to accomplish our
mission of safety and health for every
worker,” Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary
of Labor for Occupational Safety
and Health Loren Sweatt said in a statement.
“I am proud of the diligent, hard
work of all OSHA personnel who contributed
to a memorable year of protecting
our nation’s workers.”
Under the Occupational Safety and
Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible
for providing safe and healthful
workplaces for their employees. OSHA’s
role is to help ensure these conditions
for America’s working men and women
by setting and enforcing standards, and
providing training, education and assistance.
For more information, visit www.
osha.gov.
What is the
evaluation/selection criteria?
In evaluating the nomination packages,
the judges will look at the following criteria:
Staying power — a substantiated history
as an established business; including
but not limited to expansion, exporting,
addition of territories, or growth
in square footage occupied.
Growth in number of employees —
Increases over the three years must be
in excess of growth in Gross Domestic
Product as determined by the Bureau
of Economic Analysis (www.bea.gov).
Increase in sales, net profit, and net
worth for the three prior calendar
years, that is, 2016, 2017 and 2018.
Response to adversity — examples of
problems faced in the nominee’s business
and the methods used to solve
them.
Contributions to community-oriented
projects — evidence of the use of
his/her personal time and resources
towards community-oriented projects.
To learn more about Small Business Week,
or to submit a nomination, visit sba.gov.
Penalty levels go up due to inflation
Below are the maximum penalty amounts, with the annual adjustment
for inflation, that may be assessed after Jan. 15 .
■ Type of Violation
Serious
Other-Than-Serious Posting Requirements
Failure to Abate
Willful or Repeated
State Plan States
States that operate their own Occupational
Safety and Health Plans are
required to adopt maximum penalty
levels that are at least as effective as
Federal OSHA’s.
■ Penalty
$13,494 per violation
$13,494 per day beyond the abatement date
$134,937 per violation
OSHA also has compliance assistance
specialists in most of their 85 Area Offices
across the nation who provide robust
outreach and education programs
for employers and workers.
SBA modifies method for calculating
annual revenues for small businesses
The U.S. Small Business Administration
(SBA) published in the Federal
Register a final rule to modify its method
for calculating annual revenues used
to prescribe size standards for small
businesses. The final rule became effective
January 6 .
The SBA changed its regulations on
the calculation of annual revenues from a
three-year averaging period to a five-year
averaging period, outside of the SBA
Business Loan and Disaster Loan Programs,
according to an official statement.
The change in the averaging period for
calculating annual average revenues
from three years to five years may result
in firms regaining or retaining their small
business status. To assist small businesses
with this change, the SBA is providing
a two-year transition period while firms
subject to the change may choose either a
three-year averaging period or a five-year
averaging period.
This final rule implements the Small
Business Runway Extension Act of 2018,
Public Law No.115-324, which changed
the requirements for proposed size standards
prescribed by an agency without
separate statutory authority to issue size
standards. The intent of the law was to
allow small business government contractors
more time to prepare for the
transition to the full and open market after
they exceed the size standard.
While the law changed the averaging
period for calculating annual revenues
of businesses in services industries from
three years to five years, the law did not
address the averaging period for calculating
the size of other businesses. To promote
consistency, the SBA is adopting a
five-year averaging period for all of the
SBA’s and other agencies’ revenue-based
size standards, regardless of whether the
industry is for services.
As noted above, this change will not
apply to the SBA Business Loan and Disaster
Loan Programs. The SBA will seek
comment, through a separate rulemaking,
on the appropriate averaging period
for the SBA Business Loan and Disaster
Loan Programs.
VOL. 5, NO. 1 • SPRING 2020 | AUTO DETAILING NEWS | 9