[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 46 (Thursday, April 23, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E651-E652]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


     INTRODUCTION OF POSTAL SERVICE SAFETY AND HEALTH PROMOTION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. JAMES C. GREENWOOD

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, April 23, 1998

  Mr. GREENWOOD. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing legislation to 
treat the U.S. Postal Service the same as any private employer under 
the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
  The fact that the Postal Service has not been covered by the 
Occupational Safety and Health Act in the same way as private 
employers--including private employers with whom the Postal Service 
directly competes for business--is apparently due to the fact that both 
the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the Postal Reorganization 
Act were being considered at the same time by Congress, in 1970. In any 
event, the Postal Service, although it is now ``an independent 
establishment of the Executive Branch of the Government of the United 
States'' is considered a ``federal agency'' for purposes of the 
Occupational Safety and Health Act.
  As a ``federal agency,'' under Section 19 of the Occupational Safety 
and Health Act, and Executive Order 12196, the Postal Service is 
supposed to comply with OSHA standards, but it is not subject to OSHA 
enforcement as are

[[Page E652]]

private employers. Instead, the Department of Labor is authorized under 
Executive Order 12196 to conduct inspections of agency workplaces 
``when the Secretary [of Labor] determines necessary if an agency does 
not have occupational safety and health committees; or in response to 
reports of unsafe or unhealthful working conditions, upon request of 
occupational safety and health committees . . .; or, in the case of a 
report of an imminent danger, when such a committee has not responded 
to an employee who has alleged to it that the agency has not adequately 
responded to a report.'' In such cases, the Department of Labor is 
required to follow up its inspection with a report to the head of the 
agency. In addition, under the executive order, the Secretary of Labor 
submits an annual report to the President on each federal agency's 
workplace safety and health performance. However, neither the 
Department of Labor nor the state agencies which enforce OSHA 
requirements in 23 states have the legal authority to require the 
Postal Service to comply with OSHA requirements, or to issue citations 
or penalties against the Postal Service for violations of OSHA 
requirements.
  As my colleagues may know, I have been working for some time on much 
needed reforms of the workers compensation system for federal 
employees, known as the Federal Employees Compensation Act, or FECA, 
which is also the workers compensation program which covers Postal 
Service employees. The present program is expensive, has not been 
updated for years, continues to be afflicted by cases of fraud and 
abuse, and in many cases discourages employees' return to work. 
Measured by either total compensation costs or numer of claims, Postal 
Service employees comprise one of the largest components of FECA.
  During a hearing held on the FECA program on March 24 by the 
Workforce Protections Subcommittee, a representative of the American 
Postal Workers Union claimed that ``[in] our experience, the federal 
government's workplace safety and health program remains inadequate and 
deficient, and this is where the greatest savings could and should be 
achieved in the costs associated with workers injured on the job in the 
line of duty.''
  While I certainly do not share the view that the only problem with 
the FECA program is the lack of effort by the Postal Service or federal 
agencies generally to seriously address workplace hazards in order to 
prevent workplace injuries, it does seem to me reasonable and 
appropriate to provide assurance that in addressing FECA we are not 
ignoring the issue of workplace safety. Nor does it seem unreasonable 
to me that the Postal Service, which increasing competes directly with 
private companies, should do so ``on a level playing field'' with 
regard to OSHA regulation and enforcement.
  So for both of these reasons I am introducing legislation to treat 
the Postal Service the same as private employers for purposes of the 
Occupational Safety and Health Act. Under the bill, the Postal Service 
would be subject to inspection, citation, and penalty by OSHA and 
approved state OSHA programs. I invite my colleagues to cosponsor this 
legislation, and I look forward to working with my colleagues in order 
to pass this legislation during this Congress.

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