Law and Ethics
Content
This domain tests the regulatory framework and professional conduct.
OSH Act. The general duty clause, Section 5(a)(1), requires a workplace free of recognized hazards causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm. To cite it, OSHA must show a hazard existed, the employer or industry recognized it, it was likely to cause serious harm, and a feasible means of abatement existed. Specific standards take precedence. Know inspection priorities (imminent danger, fatality or catastrophe, employee complaints, programmed, follow-up), citation and abatement processes, and appeals to the Review Commission.
Recordkeeping. Part 1904 requires recording fatalities, days away, restricted work, and medical treatment beyond first aid. The 300 log is updated within 7 days, the annual summary is posted February 1 through April 30, and records are kept 5 years.
Liability. Negligence requires duty, breach, causation, and damages. Workers' compensation is no-fault and generally the exclusive remedy against the employer. Product liability may rest on design, manufacturing, or warning defects.
Ethics. The BCSP code obliges you to hold safety paramount, comply with laws, avoid conflicts of interest, protect confidential information, and report violations. Certification obligations continue between recertification cycles; misrepresentation is a violation.
Traps. Citing the general duty clause when a specific standard applies; recording first aid as a recordable case; and assuming that common industry practice is a defense.
Worked example
An employee receives a prescription antibiotic for a cut. That is medical treatment beyond first aid, so the case is recordable - even though the injury seems trivial.