By Eric J. Conn, Kate M. McMahon, and Beeta B. Lashkari

OSHA is sure not letting the regulated community ease into the new year.  Indeed, right as we were shutting down for the holidays, OSHA slid a little gift under the tree in the form of yet another proposed regulation.  Specifically, on December 21, 2023, OSHA revealed a pre-publication proposed “Emergency Response” Rule, which it will publish any day now.  The rulemaking is designed to update OSHA’s existing “Fire Brigades” standard and to expand safety and health requirements related to emergency responders – both public and private.

We are writing to gauge your organization’s interest in participating in a coalition of employers and trade associations to work on this OSHA rulemaking.

Background About OSHA’s Emergency Response Rulemaking

So you would not have to, we have poured through the 600+ page pre-publication Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) package.  Per OSHA, the soon-to-be-proposed “Emergency Response” Rule will update safety and health protections in line with national consensus standards for a broad range of workers exposed to hazards that arise during and after fires and other emergencies.  Particularly, the standard will apply to Workplace Emergency Response Employers (“WERE”), a term that applies to private employers engaged in industries such as manufacturing, processing, and warehousing that have, or establish, a Workplace Emergency Response Team (“WERT”).  OSHA explains that employees on the WERT are those who, either as a primary or collateral duty of their regular daily work assignments, respond to emergency incidents to provide services such as firefighting, emergency medical service, and technical search and rescue.  Continue reading →