Center for Public Integrity (01/11/2013) Chris Hamby

A new report from the Center for Progressive Reform says the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration should revise its policies to better protect temporary or contingent workers. The report indicates that contingent workers are popular in the farming, construction, warehousing, and hotel services sectors as a means of lowering health insurance and workers’ compensation costs, and that they often are assigned to the most hazardous jobs without being given the proper training or safety equipment. The report calls on OSHA to conduct “enforcement sweeps” of companies that use contingent workers. Steve Berchem, CSP, chief operating officer of ASA, says, “We have not had an opportunity to review the report, but worker safety is paramount to our members and the American Staffing Association is actively engaged in continual efforts to ensure safe working conditions for temporary and contract employees.”