§659 Enforcement Procedures

Summary

After an inspection, the Secretary must mail the employer a notice by certified mail saying what penalty is proposed. The employer then has 15 working days to tell the Secretary they want to contest the citation or the penalty. If the employer does not respond in 15 working days and no employee or employee representative files a timely notice, the citation and proposed penalty become the final order of the Commission and cannot be reviewed by any court or agency. If the Secretary thinks the employer did not fix a violation in the time allowed, the Secretary must mail a notice of that failure and a proposed penalty, and the employer again has 15 working days to contest; if the employer does not contest, that notice and penalty become the Commission’s final order. The time to fix a violation does not start running while a good-faith employer review is pending until the Commission enters a final order. If the employer contests or an employee files a timely complaint that the time to fix is unreasonable, the Secretary must tell the Commission. The Commission will hold a hearing, decide the facts, and then affirm, change, or cancel the citation or penalty or order other relief. The Commission’s order becomes final 30 days after it is issued. If an employer shows they tried in good faith but could not finish abatement because of things beyond their control, the Secretary, after a hearing, can affirm or change the abatement terms. Affected employees or their representatives must be allowed to take part in these hearings.