OSHA -- 2017



Texo ABC/AGC, Inc. v. Perez   (N.D. Tex.)

Challenging OSHA's injury and illness rule

The NAM filed a lawsuit on Friday, July 8, 2016, to challenge the Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) workplace injury and illness New Rule. The NAM’s complaint challenges the New Rule’s prohibitions and limits on employer safety incentive programs and drug testing programs.

By encouraging all employees, including supervisors, to improve workplace safety, incident-based safety incentive programs jump start a change in culture that results in a prompt and sustained decrease in accident frequency and severity. Without these incident-based safety incentive programs, instituting a culture of safety in the workplace is much more slow and difficult and seldom leads to the same dramatic reductions in serious accidents.

On July 12, 2016, the NAM filed a preliminary injunction motion seeking to prohibit OSHA from implementing the New Rule, which will otherwise take effect on August 10, 2016, causing irreparable harm to many thousands of employers across the country. The New Rule irreparably harms employers and employees by making their workplaces less safe and increasing the likelihood of workplace injuries and fatalities. OSHA’s main goal is to eliminate or minimize the frequency and severity of workplace injuries, illnesses and deaths--this misguided New Rule does not accomplish that goal.

On 8/19/16, the government filed its opposition to our motion for preliminary injunction, claiming that there is no irreparable harm in limiting employment programs designed to protect worker safety. Their motion further argues that the balance of hardships and public interest both counsel in favor of allowing OSHA to ban injury-based incentive programs and post-injury drug testing. The government's arguments against preliminary injunction lack common sense and would only serve to increase worker injuries.

On 9/2/16, the NAM filed a reply to the government's opposition. Our reply argued that OSHA's claim of unlimited Congressional authority is both dangerous and wrong. OSHA fails to justify the "anti-safety" provisions of the New Rule, which is ripe for review and remains arbitrary and capricious. Contrary to OSHA's opposition, the criteria for a preliminary injunction are met, and manufacturers and the public will be irreparably harmed if the New Rule is implemented.

On 9/27/16, the NAM filed a response to the government's objections to the scope of relief requested, and, on 11/1/16, the NAM filed a supplemental brief in support of the nationwide scope of preliminary injunction.

On 11/28/16, the judge unfortunately denied our preliminary injunction motion without reaching the merits. The government then moved to dismiss. We also filed an amended complaint on 2/8/17, which caused the judge to dismiss the government's motion to dismiss as moot. OSHA has proposed delaying the compliance date to 12/1/17. On 6/30/17, in response to an OSHA motion for an indefinite stay of proceedings, the judge issued an unusual order “administratively closing” the case.


Related Documents:
NAM response to stay  (March 31, 2017)
NAM amended complaint  (February 8, 2017)
NAM motion to dismiss  (January 18, 2017)
NAM supplemental brief  (November 1, 2016)
NAM response to objection  (September 27, 2016)
NAM preliminary injunction  (July 12, 2016)
NAM preliminary injunction memorandum  (July 12, 2016)
NAM complaint  (July 8, 2016)