Robin Anderson Calls for Increased Transparency

While Robin is the only candidate to offer specifics on how she would better enforce the law, this is the first new policy proposal for the Department of Labor and the Commissioner's office from any candidate this election cycle.

Robin has proposed a change in how the Department of Labor makes inspection reports available. Currently you have to go to Osha.gov and use the internal system that is available. While this system is good, it does not do enough to inform the public.

Robin Anderson Calls for Increased Transparency in DOL’s Posting of Reports on Workplace Safety Violations

Proposes that information on workplace violations be as accessible as reports on restaurant sanitation violations

April 3, 2008

Raleigh – Today Commissioner of Labor candidate Robin Anderson called for increased transparency in the Department of Labor’s posting of reports on workplace safety violations found by OSHA in North Carolina. Under North Carolina, the Commissioner of Labor is responsible for overseeing enforcement of OSHA laws within the state. Anderson proposed expanding the online database of complaints.

“The people of North Carolina deserve to know if the factories and plants that process the food they buy are mistreating employees or putting them in unsafe working conditions. The recent investigations into the House of Raeford prove that more openness and accountability is needed.”

The Charlotte Observer noted that it took Freedom of Information Act requests to learn details of several deadly accidents, including a chlorine leak that killed a man in 2003. “This kind of safety information should be readily available to the public.”

Currently records of inspections conducted by OSHA are electronically available online at the national OSHA database. However, these records do little to provide even basic information for the public on worker safety. Anderson has proposed an independent statewide database of OSHA violations that would be as accessible and user-friendly as reports on restaurant sanitation inspections, with details made available for the public.

“We need new leadership in the Commissioner’s Office. Working families in North Carolina deserve a Commissioner who will fight to protect them, and they deserve a Commissioner who is committed to a fully open and transparent government.”

Robin Anderson is a candidate for North Carolina Labor Commissioner. She has 18 years of experience as an attorney, focused on protecting working families. She is also the first female Chair of the State Personnel Commission, where she has shaped workplace policy for the almost 100,000 state employees of North Carolina.

For those of you looking for a little bit more context, take a look at OSHA's inspection search. By the way, unlike other states, I cant even find a link to this on Berry's website. As an example of what this looks like when it is open and transparent, go here.

We can do much better!

Robin Anderson for Labor
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