Recently released federal regulations will require e-scrap businesses and others in high-hazard industries to keep detailed logs of workplace-related injuries.
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has finalized a rule that requires processing companies to report injury details to OSHA on an annual basis. The federal agency will then make the information available to the public.
“Just as public disclosure of their kitchens’ sanitary conditions encourages restaurant owners to improve food safety, OSHA expects that public disclosure of work injury data will encourage employers to increase their efforts to prevent work-related injuries and illnesses,” the agency wrote in a press release.
Initiatives to improve worker safety have been pushed forward by many recycling groups, including the National Waste & Recycling Association, the Solid Waste Association of North America and the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries.
The new rules from OSHA will take effect Aug. 10, and companies will be required to report on workplace injuries starting next year.