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800 Introduction to Construction Safety Management
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Employee Right to Communicate

OSHA requires employers to make sure employees are able to voice safety and health concerns without fear of reprisal. Think about it: would a perception of reprisal for voicing a safety concern benefit the company? No way!

More specifically, no person will discharge or in any manner discriminate against any employee because the employee has:

  1. filed any complaint or instituted or caused to be instituted any proceeding under or related to the OSHAct
  2. testified or is about to testify in any such proceeding
  3. has exercised any right afforded by the OSHAct on behalf of himself or others

Prior to or during an OSHA inspection of a workplace, any employee or representative (usually a union person) may notify an OSHA Compliance Safety and Health Officer, formally (in writing) or informally verbally), of any violation of the Act which they have reason to believe exists in such workplace.

Knowledge Check Choose the best answer for the question.

3-7. You are the safety manager of a large manufacturing company. You learn that a supervisor is planning to discharge an employee who complained to OSHA. What should you tell the supervisor?