ABC, TEXO and a coalition of stakeholders filed suit against the anti-retaliation provisions of OSHA’s final rule on Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses on July 8. The suit immediately challenges provisions that will limit post-accident drug testing and safety programs that contribute to construction jobsite safety. In addition, ABC filed an emergency motion for preliminary injunction on July 12 seeking to delay those provisions from implementation.

**On July 13th OSHA announced it was delaying enforcement of the anti-retaliation provisions in the electronic injury reporting and anti-retaliation final rule until November 1, 2016. **

“Associated Builders and Contractors is committed to working with our members and OSHA to create safe construction work environments,” said ABC Vice President of Health, Safety, Environment and Workforce Development Greg Sizemore. “But it’s inconceivable to those of us who study how to improve safety performance that OSHA would want to limit drug and alcohol testing as part of the investigation after an accident or near-miss incident. Root cause analysis is key to developing procedures that prevent future incidents, so we need to know whether drugs or alcohol were a factor.”

“We also object to OSHA’s attempt to restrict or eliminate programs that recognize workers for helping to establish a high-performance safety culture. This part of the rule could well prevent employers from recognizing safety accomplishments,” said Sizemore.

ABC has been an active participant throughout the electronic injury reporting and anti-retaliation rulemaking process. ABC has:

• participated in a January 2014 public meeting held by OSHA to explain its concerns with the proposed rule as a member of the Coalition for Workplace Safety (CWS);
• submitted comments in March 2014 along with more than 900 member companies asking OSHA to withdraw the rule as proposed; and
• submitted comments in October 2014 along with other members of the CWS.

The suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. Additional plaintiffs include American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers, Atlantic Precast Concrete Inc., Great American Insurance Company, National Association of Manufacturers, Owen Steel Company and Oxford Property Management LLC.