Study Shows OSHA Safety Testing Helps Both Workers and Firms ...

May 18th, 2012 by Eric Dinnocenzo

Corporate interests sing a common refrain whenever the subject of safety testing and regulations in the workplace comes up: It costs too much and stifles business!

They also add that it kills jobs, which of course is not their concern, but which is effective Orwellian messaging to get the public on their side.

A recent study of the efficacy of OSHA testing challenges this position, concluding that it not only prevents worker injuries on the job but also entails little cost to business.

Researchers looked at 409 companies that had workplace safety inspections and 409 that did not (all of the companies were located in California). They concluded that inspections improved workplace safety and did not adversely affect company profits. In fact, inspections reduced injury claims by 9.4 percent and cut workers? compensation costs by 26 percent.

Business interests countered that the study focused on firms in high-risk industries, and was not accurate because it did not consider the costs of OSHA inspections to less dangerous industries.

In New York City, we have seen castastrophic construction accidents occur, such as crane collapses on the east side, that likely could have been prevented with adequate safety inspections. Hopefully, the misleading slogan that regulation is bad will lose its force and there can be more protection for workers to prevent injuries in the future.

Posted in Workplace Safety

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