Be Cognizant Of Close Coordination Between OSHA And The NLRB
Following recent formal announcements that OSHA and the NLRB will be cooperating more in the future, be wary of an uptick in cross-agency investigations. Earlier this year, OSHA announced that it would refer any untimely whistleblower complaints to the NLRB. Specifically, a worker has only 30 days under the Occupational Safety and Health Act to file a complaint with OSHA alleging OSHA violations, but the same deadline for alleging violations of the National Labor Relations Act is 180 days. OSHA’s recommended policy is to “advise all complainants who have filed, or attempted to file, an untimely [OSHA] Section 11(c) complaint to also contact the NLRB to inquire about filing a charge alleging unfair labor practices given the longer filing deadline. More recently, the NLRB announced that when its staff uncovers potential OSHA violations during an NLRB investigation, it will refer those issues directly to OSHA.
