{"id":13745,"date":"2026-04-21T07:18:44","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T11:18:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jordanbarab.com\/confinedspace\/?p=13745"},"modified":"2026-04-15T15:38:54","modified_gmt":"2026-04-15T19:38:54","slug":"the-sad-decline-in-cal-oshas-worker-protection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jordanbarab.com\/confinedspace\/2026\/04\/21\/the-sad-decline-in-cal-oshas-worker-protection\/","title":{"rendered":"The sad decline in Cal\/OSHA\u2019s worker protection"},"content":{"rendered":"

O<\/span>f the 21 states (and Puerto Rico) who run their own OSHA programs, CalOSHA is often held up as the model that other states should imitate because the state has several important standards that federal OSHA and few states have: heat, ergonomics, airborne infectious diseases and workplace violence to name just a few,<\/p>\n

While many employers will comply with OSHA standards because they\u2019re the law and they care about their employees\u2019 health and safety, far too many others only comply because they\u2019re afraid of being penalized if found to be out of compliance. \u00a0And for those, standards are only as good as the state\u2019s ability to enforce them.<\/p>\n

And that\u2019s where CalOSHA runs into problems.<\/p>\n

Former CalOSHA inspector and Special Assistant to the Chief of Cal\/OSHA Garrett Brown describes below the problems that CalOSHA enforcement is experiencing and the toll that takes on working people in the state.<\/p>\n

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T<\/span>he 2025 California State Audit of Cal\/OSHA contained a shocking and deeply disappointing revelation: the state worker protection agency investigated only 17% of worker complaints in fiscal year 2023-24.<\/p>\n

Overall, Cal\/OSHA conducts on-site inspections less than half the time for all types of enforcement activity.\u00a0 Instead of site visits, Cal\/OSHA merely sends a letter to employers so that they can \u201cself-inspect\u201d and report their conclusions back to Cal\/OSHA.\u00a0 These \u201cletter investigations\u201d now account for 60% of Cal\/OSHA enforcement actions.<\/p>\n

The current under-50% on-site inspections contrasts sharply with Cal\/OSHA\u2019s activity thirty years ago when 75% of enforcement actions were actual visits to work sites by Cal\/OSHA inspectors.<\/p>\n

The net result of this drop-off of genuine enforcement actions \u2013 primarily caused by crippling inspector vacancies, chronic understaffing, and failure to effectively utilize all available financial resources \u2013 has meant that worker protections in California are weaker than ever.\u00a0 As documented by a constant stream of news media reports, both old and new regulations cannot be effectively enforced, and worker populations like immigrants in agriculture, artificial stone manufacturers, and numerous other industries are especially vulnerable.<\/p>\n

State Audit Findings<\/strong><\/h2>\n

In July 2025, the California State Auditor issued its Report 2024-115 summarizing the audit of five years of Cal\/OSHA enforcement activity.\u00a0 For the last year of the study \u2013 state fiscal year 2023-24 — from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024 \u2013 the State Auditors reported the following activity by Cal\/OSHA in response to worker complaints and employer reports of serious injuries and fatalities:<\/p>\n