Why we can't compete,,OHSA would have a cow if they saw that here.
Here's an example of how true that is. OSHA writes very very few of the regulations they enforce, if any. They adopt ANSI suggestions as rule, for the most part. The ANSI rules regarding welding cables or leads for Construction and Mining both allow ground cables or welding leads to be repaired if the insulation is damaged. However, general industry does NOT. The difference between "shall replace" and "shall repair or replace" is the only difference between them, but in general industry, it's "shall replace." The ANSI regulation governing this was adopted from 1967. New ANSI suggestions have been released. Every iteration has been corrected to say "shall replace or repair."
My workplace got dinged on this, because someone cracked the insulation on a MIG whip and maintenance repaired it to NEC code with the proper rubber tape.
After that I was forced to go through the entire shop and replace hundreds of feet of #2 copper because of cracks or scuffs in the ground cables. Let's not forget that our welders weld on unprotected steel parts, on unshielded iron tables, literally everything they touch is a conductor. Because it's such low voltage, there is no risk of shock. Why is 2,000 lbs of bare steel that a guy is touching less dangerous than a ground cable with a crack in the insulation? It's not.
I petitioned OSHA to adopt the 2011 or 2014 ANSI suggestion for general industry, which would allow us to repair these ground cables rather than replace. 6 months later I got a reply. It took an entire page to say it, but essentially "No, we won't change, because it would cost money."
You have to be kidding me. Because it would cost money? How much money do you think weld shops in general industry throw away each year on ground cables? Too much. Why any reasonable person would think it's OK for construction and mining to repair ground cables, when they slog them through the mud and water and God knows what else, but it's NOT ok to repair them in a clean dry manufacturing environment? It's asinine.
Don't even get me started on how they've essentially evolved into an extortion outfit with a federal mandate. Just the fact that you sit down and "negotiate" which fines you'll pay, and how much you'll pay, to avoid challenging the whole thing in court, smacks of paying thuggish mafia types for "insurance."
And let's not forget that the General Duty Clause has a part (A) and a part (B). If you can find me a single instance of a case where OSHA enforced part (B) I'll make you a knife for free. They conveniently neglect to even mention in any of their literature, their mission, their mandates, that the EMPLOYEE has as much responsibility to work according to safety policies as the EMPLOYER has to provide a safe working environment.
Instead, employee's can flagrantly violate all the rules of God and Man without a single worry that they might be held responsible for their actions. As far as OSHA is concerned, that's the employer's fault, in entirety, for not watching the employee every minute of every day and holding their hand like a child to make sure they look both ways before crossing the street, regardless of the circumstances.
OSHA is the shining example of bureaucracy gone bad. They exist solely to exist. They are a monument to the phrase, "The road to hell is paved with good intentions." They care nothing about worker safety, about corrective actions, about standards and regulations that lead to fewer accidents. They care solely about fine-inducing occurrences. Nothing else.
