Solis discusses upcoming safety rules with House committee

Washington – Safety rules being pursued by the Department of Labor are designed to help make worksites safer and are not intended to place undue burdens on businesses or provide a means to fine employers, Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis assured House members March 21.

In response to concerns that OSHA’s Injury and Illness Prevention Program Standard would be “one size fits all,” Solis told members of the Education and the Workforce Committee the regulation to require employers to institute a program was still in the drafting stage, but the agency is seeking input from small and large businesses.

Solis also said a DOL Wage and Hour Division’s proposed youth agriculture safety rule (.pdf file) would stem the disproportionate number of injuries and deaths among children on farms by prohibiting some youth from performing certain job tasks, but would not apply to youth working for their parents on family farms.

The comments were made during a hearing on DOL’s budget request for fiscal year 2013.

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