E&W Blog

In his opening statement, Chairman Kevin Kiley (R-CA) teed off on OSHA’s failure to fulfill its mission “to ensure the nation’s workers have safe and healthy workplaces.” He described, in detail, the declining state of worker wellbeing under the Biden administration.

“Unfortunately, OSHA has veered from this mission. It has taken its eye off the ball when it comes to protecting worker safety, instead focusing on advancing political goals that could not win support through the democratic channels of our government. The result has been a set of harmful and ill-considered policies that have compromised our system of checks and balances and weakened our economic strength while at the same time depriving workers of important protections,” said Rep. Kiley.

When OSHA comes before the Committee to clamor for a 17 percent budget bump (while the rest of America’s budgets have been cut under Biden’s real wage drops), you would think it has a defensible record, but no.

Instead, OSHA is requesting $738.7 million to push the administration’s radical agenda, which was quickly identified and picked apart by Republican Committee members.

Out of the gate, Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL) laid into agency chief Doug Parker for OSHA’s massive pandemic power grab. Regarding OSHA’s 2021 vaccine mandate, Rep. Miller asked plainly, “What I want to know is if you believe that OSHA actually has the power to force 84 million Americans to do that?”

“Well, the Supreme Court ruled on that matter,” he replied.

Sure, except Rep. Miller came prepared with receipts. She pushed further, quoting a comment Mr. Parker made to Reuters in 2022: “The ruling was unfortunate, but it’s not stopping us from pressing employers to take adaptive measures to keep things in place.”

Seriously? It is the brazen logic of unelected bureaucrats to do something illegal, get told by the highest Court it is illegal, and then use mob-like pressure tactics to keep doing it anyway. That’s unconscionable.

Then, full Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC) steered the conversation to OSHA’s latest rulemaking. The proposed Big Labor walkaround rule would allow union representatives, even if it is a non-union worksite, to accompany OSHA inspectors on jobsite inspections.

She asked, albeit tongue-in-cheek, “What sense does it make for OSHA to allow individuals who know nothing about workplace safety to accompany inspectors at a jobsite?”

Additionally, Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-WI) questioned Mr. Parker on another of OSHA’s anti-business rules. He asked, “How much do you think the proposed heat standard would hurt small businesses in this country?”

While Mr. Parker admitted he did not know, what is certain is that the federal government should not be mandating a one-size-fits-all heat standard that hampers workers and small businesses without regard for the unique climates across the country.

Finally, an exchange with Rep. Tim Walberg (R-MI) highlighted the human reality of small businesses overregulated and denied flexibility by OSHA standards. He told the story of a friend and constituent who tragically died attempting to repair a roof at his small farm and the thousands of dollars of fines levied against his grieving wife for not reporting the accident to Michigan OSHA in the required eight-hour window.