The cone silence. Perhaps you’ve heard about it. Since the Trump administration took over on January 20, very little news has come out of OSHA. This is no surprise, given the circumstances. Check out the agency’s org chart on its website. At press time, the assistant secretary (the head honcho) position is vacant. The chief of staff is vacant. Senior advisors are vacant. One of two deputy assistant secretaries is vacant. The other is occupied by agency careerist Dorothy Dougherty, who is minding the store and near retirement, one source tells ISHN.
She is being assisted by Tom Galassi, director of enforcement programs, another careerist, according to this source. Their charge from the administration is to keep the ship steady, no new initiatives or anything like that, according to the source, with close ties to the agency. Normally, long before this time, OSHA would have a politically-appointed deputy on board, such as Jordan Barab with the Obama administration in 2009, according to this source.