Why I Invited OSHA Into My Operation — On Purpose

When most people hear OSHA, they picture inspections, citations and fines.

So voluntarily inviting them into your workplace might sound a little like inviting the IRS over to help with your taxes.

But that’s exactly what I did.

During my years leading operations in Washington State, I worked with DOSH, Washington’s OSHA program, through its consultation services. It became one of the better tools I used to strengthen safety culture, improve compliance and run a better operation.

And this isn’t just a Washington program. OSHA’s On-Site Consultation Program is available nationwide, primarily for small and medium-sized businesses. It’s no-cost, confidential and separate from enforcement. Consultants don’t issue citations or penalties.

They’re there to help.

A Fresh Set of Eyes

Every workplace suffers from familiarity.

Walk past something long enough and eventually you stop seeing it.

“We’ve always done it that way.”

Those six words should make every leader nervous.

A consultant gave us a fresh set of trained eyes—not only for physical hazards, but for the compliance pieces easily overlooked.

Are required postings current? Written programs up to date? Forklift certifications documented? Training records complete? Are we following today’s regulation or the one somebody remembers from ten years ago?

Sometimes the problem is hanging off a storage rack. Sometimes it’s hiding in a filing cabinet.

If the consultant found something, I didn’t consider that a failed audit.

We found something we could fix.

That’s a win.

Safety Isn’t the Safety Manager’s Job

Working side-by-side with DOSH also gave me another vehicle to drive safety culture.

Employees saw management voluntarily bringing safety professionals into the operation, asking questions and acting on what we learned.

That sends a stronger message than another SAFETY FIRST poster in the break room.

Safety belongs to the janitor who notices a spill, the forklift operator who finds damaged equipment, the supervisor who sees an unsafe practice and the manager who makes sure it gets corrected.

It goes all the way to the president or owner.

From the janitor to the president, everyone owns a piece of safety.

Leadership’s job is creating a culture where people understand that responsibility and aren’t afraid to say, “This doesn’t look right.”

They Found Something. Now What?

You fix it.

Consultants can identify hazards, review compliance issues and help clarify requirements. When serious hazards are identified, reasonable correction periods can be established.

But there’s a catch:

If you invite them in, be prepared to follow through.

I liked that accountability.

Identify it. Understand it. Assign it. Correct it. Document it. Close it.

That’s not bureaucracy.

That’s good management.

Compliant Doesn’t Always Mean Expensive

Don’t confuse expensive with compliant.

Take trailer movement at a loading dock.

An automated dock-lock or trailer-restraint system can be an excellent solution—and cost thousands of dollars.

Depending on the operation and applicable requirements, properly placed wheel chocks combined with a written procedure, training and consistent use is the other solution.

The objective is controlling the hazard, not buying the fanciest equipment in the catalog.

Sometimes compliance requires investment. Sometimes it doesn’t.

That’s another benefit of having a knowledgeable consultant beside you.

Ask questions.

Good Safety Shows Up in the Numbers

My primary objective was preventing injuries, but good safety also makes good business sense.

Through our broader safety and claims-management efforts in Washington, I was able to bring our workers’ compensation L&I experience factor down to 0.50.

DOSH consultation didn’t accomplish that alone.

It took training, employee involvement, hazard identification, documentation, claims management, corrective action and consistent leadership.

But working side-by-side with DOSH was an important part of the safety culture that helped us get there.

Good safety is good business.

One More Benefit

Consultation programs may also provide protection from certain programmed OSHA inspections. Benefits vary by state.

In Washington, qualifying fixed-industry worksites completing a comprehensive DOSH consultation can receive a 12-month exemption from scheduled enforcement inspections in the same discipline.

That’s not immunity. Complaints, imminent danger and serious incidents can still trigger enforcement.

Check with your state’s consultation program to see what additional benefits are available.

Would I Invite Them Back?

Absolutely.

I never viewed DOSH consultation as inviting the enemy into my operation.

I viewed them as another resource to make the organization better.

They helped us identify hazards, review documentation and understand compliance requirements. More importantly, working side-by-side gave me another way to strengthen our safety culture.

OSHA compliance matters.

But compliance should be the minimum—not the goal.

The goal is a workplace where everyone, from the janitor to the president, takes ownership of safety.

And everyone goes home safely.

Before You Invite Them In…

Every workplace is different, so a generic OSHA checklist can only take you so far.

Instead, I put together a free AI-powered OSHA Consultation Starter Review. Copy the prompt into your preferred AI assistant and it will walk you through your operation one question at a time, helping identify areas worth reviewing before you request an OSHA On-Site Consultation.

It looks at things like physical hazards, required programs and documentation, postings, training, equipment, recordkeeping, and state-specific requirements—based on your answers, not a one-size-fits-all checklist.