OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) is the U.S. Department of Labor agency that sets and enforces workplace safety and health standards, provides training and outreach, and enforces whistleblower protections to ensure workers have safe, healthful conditions and can report violations without retaliation.
The Clean Air Act regulates air pollutant emissions to protect public health and the environment; the Solid Waste Disposal Act (including RCRA) governs safe handling, treatment and disposal of solid and hazardous wastes; and the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) regulates chemical substances and mixtures, including controls on certain toxic materials like asbestos.
It means OSHA found the firings happened because the workers made ‘‘protected’’ complaints about asbestos safety—complaints covered by federal environmental/health laws—and those complaints triggered unlawful employer retaliation; protected complaints are reports or refusals to work that the statutes shield from adverse actions.
Reinstatement means the workers must be given their former jobs (or equivalent positions). Back wages compensate lost pay and benefits from the firing date to relief payment and typically include interest; compensatory damages cover non‑economic harms (e.g., emotional distress); punitive damages punish particularly egregious conduct. OSHA/DOL calculates these using payroll records, benefit valuations, interest formulas, and applicable statutory caps and precedents; exact amounts depend on case facts and evidentiary proofs.
A worker can file a whistleblower complaint with OSHA online, by phone, or at a local OSHA office (no special form required). While OSHA investigates, employees are protected from retaliation under the relevant whistleblower statutes and may obtain remedies (reinstatement, back pay, damages) if retaliation is found; confidentiality and time limits (statute‑specific) apply, so complain promptly.
Yes. Employers can contest OSHA’s findings and orders. Typical appeal routes include requesting a hearing before the Department of Labor’s Office of Administrative Law Judges and then appeal to the DOL Administrative Review Board; judicial review in federal court may follow. Specific procedures and deadlines are set in the whistleblower statutes and DOL rules.