Onsite consultation visit procedures

The consultant must prepare by learning about the employer’s operations, reviewing applicable codes and standards, and ensuring technical equipment and personal protective equipment are available and working. The consultant is required to become familiar with as many factors concerning the establishment's operation as possible and review all applicable codes and standards before the visit, and must assure necessary technical and personal protective equipment is available and functioning properly (1908.6(a)(1)).

Yes — if the consultant is prepared, a consultation can be done immediately during a promotional visit at the employer’s request. The rule allows that when a consultant conducts a promotional visit to encourage use of consultative services, the employer may request and receive a consultation without delay if the consultant is otherwise prepared to conduct it (1908.6(a)(2)).

An initial onsite consultative visit normally includes an opening conference, examination of relevant parts of the employer's safety and health program, a walkthrough of the workplace, and a closing conference. This structured sequence is the required format for initial visits so both employer and employees understand scope and findings (1908.6(b)).

Yes — the consultant has the right to confer privately with individual employees during the visit to identify and evaluate hazards and the employer’s safety program. The consultant may interview employees individually to judge the nature and extent of particular hazards within the scope of the employer’s request (1908.6(c)(1)).

An employee representative of affected employees must be offered the chance to accompany the consultant and the employer’s representative during the physical inspection. The consultant must afford an affected employees’ representative the opportunity to join the walkaround, and may also allow additional employee representatives if they will help the visit (1908.6(c)(2)(i)).

If no employee representative exists or cannot be identified, or if the representative declines, the consultant must still confer with a reasonable number of employees about safety and health matters. The consultant must make direct contact with employees to learn about hazards when an employee representative is not available (1908.6(c)(2)(ii)).

Yes — the consultant may deny the right to accompany the visit to any person whose conduct interferes with the orderly conduct of the visit. This authority allows the consultant to maintain an effective, safe inspection process (1908.6(c)(2)(iii)).

Yes — the consultant must explain the need to contact employees at the opening conference and obtain the employer's agreement to allow such contact before proceeding. The consultant must inform the employer and get consent to confer with individual employees during the visit (1908.6(c)).

The consultant must encourage a joint opening conference with employer and employee representatives, explain the relationship between consultation and OSHA enforcement and posting obligations, and at closing describe hazards found and other relevant safety issues. The opening conference should also cover the consultant's role and the employer’s responsibilities; the closing conference must communicate identified hazards and next steps (1908.6(d)(1), 1908.6(d)(2), 1908.6(d)(3)).

Yes — the employer may expand or reduce the scope at any time; the consultant should expand the scope if prepared, and must identify and advise on correction of hazards observed even if they fall outside the employer’s original request. If expansion requires extra expertise or preparation the consultant will refer the request to the consultation manager, but the consultant remains obligated to work with the employer to ensure correction of serious hazards identified (1908.6(e)(1), 1908.6(e)(2), 1908.6(e)(4)).

Yes — consultants may conduct sampling and testing as needed to confirm hazards, and they must provide advice describing possible solutions and general forms of correction and may provide descriptive materials and sources of further assistance. The consultant’s advice should include basic information about potential solutions and may include sampling, testing, and references to additional technical or engineering help (1908.6(e)(4), 1908.6(e)(5)).

The consultant will state whether a hazard is judged to be "serious" or "other-than-serious" and, for serious hazards, will help the employer develop a specific correction plan and allow a reasonable time to implement it. When the consultant determines a serious hazard exists they must assist in crafting a plan to correct it and afford the employer a reasonable correction period (1908.6(e)(6), 1908.6(e)(7)).

The employer must post the consultant's unedited List of Hazards in a prominent place where affected employees can see it for 3 working days or until hazards are corrected, whichever is later, and must notify affected employees when hazards are corrected. The employer must also provide a copy to the employee representative and make corrective-action information and other-than-serious hazards available at the worksite for review (1908.6(e)(8)).

The State must give the employer, upon request within 15 working days of receiving the consultant's report, a prompt opportunity for an informal discussion with the consultation manager about the correction period or other substantive findings. This provides a formal chance to seek clarification or an extension if needed (1908.6(e)(7)).

The employer must take immediate action to eliminate employee exposure to the imminent danger; if the employer fails to act, the consultant must immediately notify affected employees and the appropriate OSHA enforcement authority. Immediate elimination of exposure is required for hazards judged by the consultant to be imminent dangers (1908.6(f)(1)).

The employer must follow the consultant's correction plan and posting rules, may be required to submit reports or allow follow-up visits to show progress, can request an extension if they show good-faith efforts and interim protections, and must notify the consultation manager in writing when serious hazards are corrected (unless the consultant verifies corrections by observation). Failure to correct may trigger referral to OSHA enforcement (1908.6(f)(2), 1908.6(f)(3), 1908.6(f)(4), 1908.6(f)(5)).

The written report must restate the employer's request, describe the working conditions examined, evaluate the employer’s safety and health program within the request’s scope, identify specific hazards and their seriousness (with references to applicable standards or codes), and include suggested approaches to correction and additional sources of assistance where known. The report must be prepared for any visit that results in substantive findings or recommendations and sent to the employer (1908.6(g)(1)).

The State shall not disclose the consultant's written report except to the employer for whom it was prepared and as allowed under 1908.7(a)(3); the State must preserve confidentiality for trade secrets and keep identities of employers who requested consultation confidential, though it must provide consultation program information requested by OSHA. Reports are treated as confidential and disclosure is tightly limited to protect employer commercial information and the consultation program's effectiveness (1908.6(g)(2), 1908.6(h)).

Yes — the State may disclose information contained in the consultant's report to the extent required by 29 CFR 1910.1020 or other applicable OSHA standards or regulations. If another OSHA regulation (for example 1910.1020) requires disclosure, the State must comply (1908.6(g)(2)).

Not automatically — OSHA will not schedule a compliance inspection based on a posted List of Hazards unless the employer fails to meet obligations under paragraph (f) (for example, to correct serious hazards) or fails to provide interim protection for exposed employees. Posting the List alone does not trigger inspection unless the employer neglects required corrective or protective actions (1908.6(e)(8), 1908.6(f)).

If the employer fails to correct serious hazards within the established time frame (or extensions), the consultation manager must notify the appropriate OSHA enforcement authority and provide relevant information; OSHA enforcement will then decide whether further enforcement action is warranted. After corrections are made the employer must notify the consultation manager in writing unless the consultant verifies correction by observation (1908.6(f)(4), 1908.6(f)(5), 1908.7(a)).

Yes — consultants may provide advice and technical assistance both during and after the onsite visit, including descriptive materials on approaches and sources of additional assistance. The regulation explicitly allows post-visit technical support to help employers correct identified hazards (1908.6(e)(5)).

The consultant must advise the employer on obligations and responsibilities under applicable Federal or State law and implementing regulations. Consultants are required to explain what legal duties apply so employers understand their compliance obligations (1908.6(e)(2)).

The employer must make information on the consultant’s proposed corrective actions and any other-than-serious hazards available at the worksite for review by affected employees or their representative. This ensures employees can see how hazards will be corrected and what steps are planned (1908.6(e)(8)).

The State must send the written report to the employer for whom it was prepared; the timing and format of reports are set with approval by the Assistant Secretary. The report is prepared for visits with substantive findings and is sent to the employer, and disclosure beyond the employer is restricted (1908.6(g)(1), 1908.6(g)(2)).

Consultants must preserve the confidentiality of information obtained during a consultative visit that contains or could reveal the employer’s trade secrets. The regulation requires protecting proprietary commercial information gathered during the consultation (1908.6(h)(1)).