Why does MNOSHA need to come to my
site?
MNOSHA must verify the safety and health program described in your MNSTAR application is fully operational and addresses all potential hazards at the site.
Who come on a MNSTAR onsite visit?
The onsite team usually consists of a team leader, a safety specialist, an industrial hygienist and a back-up leader. All of these team members are acting in a non-enforcement mode.
When will they come?
A MNOSHA MNSTAR representative will call you to arrange a mutually convenient time.
How long will MNOSHA stay?
Visits usually last about four days, depending on the size of your facility and the complexity of your operations. Administrative support may be requested by the team.
Do I have to wait until the end of the review to find out my chances of being approved?
The team leader will discuss the day's accomplishments with your designated representatives at the end of each day. What remains to be done will also be discussed to give you an idea of how the review is going.
The recommendation of the team regarding approval of your site will be based on its comprehensive assessment of your operations in relation to the MNSTAR requirements. This cannot be done until the review is complete. The team makes a recommendation based on the information.
What will the team be doing while it is onsite?
The team performs a review that includes several steps:
Initial meeting
The team will conduct a brief introductory meeting with you and your key people. This meeting typically lasts an hour or less. Anyone who may be called upon to assist the team should attend. Employees who are accountable for meeting or maintaining MNSTAR requirements also should attend. The team leader will describe the MNSTAR approach and explain what the team expects to accomplish. You will have the opportunity to point out special accomplishments that may not be part of your application.
Document review
Records are examined to verify implementation of your safety and health program. This typically takes one or two days. A private area such as a conference room will be needed for the document review.
Prior to the onsite visit, the team leader will confer with you about materials the team will want to see. Collection of these materials beforehand will greatly facilitate the review.
Documents and programs typically requested during a MNSTAR onsite review, depending on size, include:
Any additional information that shows the quality of the site's safety and health program is also requested.
The OSHA log and First Report of Injury forms should be separated from other materials. This will help the review and recalculation of the injury rates.
While the site representative(s) will have primary responsibility for presenting and answering questions, corporate safety and health staff members and other site personnel may assist in liaison with the MNOSHA team.
Walkthrough
The review team specialists will walk through the pertinent areas of the facility to assure the program is fully operational. They also will assess the adequacy of the program to handle potential hazards. This typically takes one to two days.
The walkthrough is not an enforcement inspection, but if the team notes any hazards, you will be expected to correct the problems.
The team will have brief, informal interviews with randomly selected employees. These will take place near the employees' work stations to minimize any work interruption.
What will happen if the team sees an apparent violation of OSHA standards?
MNOSHA safety and health professionals will be looking for evidence that your program is creating and maintaining safe and healthful working conditions. Any hazards they may observe will serve as indicators that some aspect of your program may need improvement.
While they won't issue citations, safety and health professionals will not ignore hazards. They will work with you to determine how and when to correct any hazards they see. If corrections require more time than the onsite review allows, you will be asked to notify your MNOSHA MNSTAR coordinator when corrections are completed. Should all attempts at cooperative resolution fail, the MNSTAR team has a responsibility to recommend that enforcement action be taken.
Formal interviews
Formal confidential interviews will be requested with a small number of your employees and, where applicable, with contractor employees. These interviews will help to validate employee awareness of and participation in the overall safety and health program.
Each formal interview will last about 25 minutes and will be scheduled with the consent of management. A private space will be requested for these interviews. All questions asked will relate to the safety and health program.
Why does MNOSHA need to talk to employees?
MNOSHA talks with randomly selected workers (with management's permission) to gauge overall employee awareness of and involvement in the program, and to determine their understanding of what MNSTAR approval would mean. Your program will succeed only if everyone becomes involved and exercises responsibility. Talking to workers is the best way to determine their commitment. The impact of any negative comments by an employee will depend on the extent to which they are corroborated by other team findings and to the gravity of the problem they reflect.
In small businesses, where a safety and health program may be too informal for adequate documentation, interviews with workers, supervisors and managers are crucial evidence in establishing the effectiveness of the program.
Making workers a part of the onsite review emphasizes their importance in making the health and safety program work.
Draft report
The team may develop a rough draft of the pre-approval review report before it leaves the worksite. This may require a room to work in and other assistance as needed. Writing the draft report usually takes about a day. You will have an opportunity to review and discuss the written report before it is made final.
Closing meeting
Before leaving, the team will have a closing meeting to discuss its findings and recommendations. If prepared, the draft report also will be presented.
If the team finds you do not meet the requirements of the program you applied for, it may suggest another program.
If the team thinks additional work needs to be done before approval into MNSTAR, it may make recommendations and allow a reasonable period of time -- up to 90 days -- for the work to be completed.
What if I chose not to do what the team deems necessary to meet MNSTAR requirements?
Because you volunteered for this program, MNOSHA knows you have a great deal of faith in what the MNSTAR program stands for. We try to make the review process as convenient as possible, but should you decide against what is necessary to meet the MNSTAR requirements, you have the option of withdrawing your application rather than having it denied.
If you choose to withdraw or you are not recommended for approval, you still must correct any hazards the team identifies. Also, MNOSHA will return your application and discard all notes except for one complete set. This set is retained for one year in case you have further questions. After one year, it is discarded in its entirety. While these documents are in our possession, they are only internal working documents with confidentiality protected.
We've been recommended! What's next?
The report is sent to the commissioner of the Department of Labor and Industry for approval.
The commissioner sends a copy of the final report and a letter to the site manager (or other appropriate official) announcing MNOSHA's approval of your site for participation in the MNSTAR program.
MNOSHA encourages approved worksites to have a ceremony where a certificate and flag will be presented. When available, a Department of Labor and Industry official can make the presentation.
What if I still have questions?
Call Workplace Safety Consultation at (651) 284-5060 or write to:
Department of Labor and Industry
Workplace Safety Consultation
443 Lafayette Road N.
St. Paul, MN 55155-4317
About DLI
Filing a complaint
2012 Workers' Compensation Summit