The Angelica Textile case had been kicking around OSHA
for almost 10 years before it was decided by the Occupational
Safety and Health Review Commission on June 24 by a 2-1 vote with
Commissioner James Sullivan,1 the newest member of the
Commission, casting the deciding vote. The case provides guidance
on how to avoid stiff penalties for repeat violations while
emphasizing the proactive steps employers can take to keep their
employees safe from recognized hazards.
Before this case was decided, OSHA asserted that in order to
meet the "substantial similarity" standard to prove a
repeat citation, all it had to show was that the same type of
equipment or the same process or the same regulation was involved
in the current case and a prior violation at any other company
facility. OSHRC now says that evidence of substantial similarity
can be rebutted if the employer demonstrates "disparate
conditions and hazards associated with these violations of the same
standard." A
