Workplace Health and Safety Regulations: Employer Duties and Employee Responsibilities

Occupational health and safety (OHS) regulations establish a shared responsibility framework, with primary legal duty on employers.

Employer Obligations (General Duty + Specific Standards)

• Hazard identification and control: Hierarchy—elimination, substitution, engineering, administrative, PPE.
• Safe workplace maintenance: Ventilation, lighting, temperature, sanitation, structural integrity.
• Equipment safety: Guarding, preventive maintenance, lockout/tagout (LOTO), inspection records.
• PPE program: Hazard assessment → selection → fit testing → training → enforcement → replacement.
• Training and competency: Language-appropriate, task-specific, documented, refreshed.
• Emergency preparedness: EAP, fire prevention, spill response, evacuation drills, first aid/CPR/AED.
• Medical surveillance: Exposure monitoring (noise, chemicals, radiation); fitness-for-duty exams.
• Recordkeeping: OSHA 300 Log, 300A Summary, 301 Incident Reports; 5-year retention.
• Reporting: Fatality (8 hrs), inpatient hospitalization/amputation/eye loss (24 hrs).
• Whistleblower protection: No retaliation for safety complaints.

Employee Responsibilities

• Follow safe work procedures and use required PPE.
• Report hazards, near misses, injuries immediately.
• Participate in training and drills.
• Not interfere with safety devices or endanger others.
• Exercise reasonable care for own and coworkers' safety.

Jurisdictional Variation

• Federal OSHA: 29 CFR 1910/1926; covers private sector in 29 states.
• State Plans (22): Must be "at least as effective"; cover public employees; may have stricter standards (e.g., Cal/OSHA heat illness, workplace violence).
• International: EU Framework Directive 89/391, UK HASAWA 1974, Canada CLC Part II, Australia WHS Act.

Compliance is not optional—it prevents harm, reduces costs, and fulfills legal and moral obligations.