OSHA: Severe penalties possible for upstream drilling & well-servicing firms
In February OSHA announced that employers engaged in crude petroleum and natural gas extraction, drilling and related support activities are engaged in “high hazard” activities and will be subject to OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
The program has been in effect since 2010, when it replaced the prior Enhanced Enforcement Program. When the program started, OSHA placed its national emphasis on the “high-hazard” industries that involved fall hazards and hazards from amputations; combustible dust, crystalline silica; excavation and/or trenching; lead; and shipbreaking. OSHA concentrates the majority of its resources to inspecting employers from “high-hazard” industries.