Analysis of the Retail Industry

MISSION

OSHA's mission is to assure the safety and health of America's workers by setting and enforcing standards; providing training, outreach, and education; establishing partnerships; and encouraging continual improvement in workplace safety and health.

SERVICES OFFERED

OSHA and its state partners have approximately 2100 inspectors, plus complaint discrimination investigators, engineers, physicians, educators, standards writers, and other technical and support personnel spread over more than 200 offices throughout the country. This staff establishes protective standards, enforces those standards, and reaches out to employers and employees through technical assistance and consultation programs.

OSHA Facts – December 2004

Occupational Safety and Health Administration aims to ensure worker safety and health by working with employers and employees to create better working environments. Since its inception in 1971, OSHA has helped to cut workplace fatalities by more than 60 percent and occupational injury and illness rates by 40 percent.

In Fiscal Year 2005, OSHA had more than 2,220 employees, including 1,100 inspectors. The agency’s appropriation is $368.1

OSHA is focusing on three strategies:

1) Strong, fair and effective enforcement;

2) Outreach, education and compliance assistance; and

3) Partnerships and cooperative programs.

Strong, Fair, and Effective Enforcement

A strong, fair and effective enforcement program establishes the foundation for OSHA's efforts to protect the safety and health of the nation's workers. OSHA seeks to assist the majority of employers who want to do the right thing while focusing its enforcement resources on sites in more hazardous industries - especially those with high injury and illness rates.

Outreach, Education, and Compliance Assistance

Outreach, education and compliance assistance enable OSHA to play a vital role in preventing on-the-job injuries and illnesses. OSHA offers an extensive website at www.osha.gov that includes a special section devoted to small businesses as well as interactive e-tools to help employers and employees address specific hazards and prevent injuries.

The agency provides a variety of publications in print and online. In addition, workplace safety and health information or assistance for workers is available during business hours through OSHA's call center at a hotline and it remains open 24 hours a day for fatality and accident reporting during non-business hours.

OSHA strives to reach all employers and employees, including those who do not speak English as a first language. The agency maintains a Spanish webpage, and Spanish-speaking operators can be reached at the OSHA national call center during business hours. Various publications, training materials and videos are available in Spanish, and OSHA continues to issue new publications. Many regional and area offices also offer information in other languages such as Japanese, Korean and Polish.

Free workplace consultations are available in every state to small businesses that want on-site help establishing safety and health programs and identifying and correcting workplace hazards. In addition, OSHA has a network of more than 70 Compliance Assistance Specialists in local offices available to provide employers and employees with tailored information and training.

Cooperative Programs

OSHA's Alliance Program enables employers, labor unions, trade or professional groups, government agencies, and educational institutions that share an interest in workplace safety and health to collaborate with OSHA to prevent injuries and illnesses in the workplace. A signed formal agreement between OSHA and the organization provides goals addressing training and education, outreach and communication and promoting the national dialogue on workplace safety and health.

In the Strategic Partnership Program, OSHA enters into long-term cooperative relationships with groups of employers, employees, employee representatives and, at times, other stakeholders to improve workplace safety and health. These partnerships focus on safety and health programs and include enforcement and outreach and training components. Written agreements outline efforts to eliminate serious hazards and provide ways to measure the effectiveness of a safety and health program.

The Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program is designed to