OSHA has finalized changes reorganizing the agency’s regional operations and adding one new region.
The new office, based in Birmingham, AL services agency operations for Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, the Florida Panhandle, and its state.
Establishing the Birmingham area office sets the stage for OSHA’s growth in the Southeast,” said Regional Administrator Dorinda Hughes in an Oct. 1 press release. “Our diverse team is committed to providing fair worker safety and ensuring workers’ voices are heard without fear of retaliation.
“We appreciate the work done by both the Dallas and Atlanta regions and are committed to continuing the good work by building on current relationships and forging new ones in support of positive safety cultures for all workplaces.”
As OSHA first reported in May, the agency’s regions are no longer designated by number. Rather, each region is identified by its home office location.
For example, Region 6 is now known as the Dallas Region. It will assume agency operations in Texas, New Mexico, and Oklahoma. And, with the addition of the Birmingham office, the Atlanta Region will oversee OSHA activities in Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, as well as the rest of Florida not under the purview of the new office.
Regions 9 and 10 have merged into the San Francisco Region “to streamline operations and reduce operating expenses.” Seven of the eight states in those two regions are operating under OSHA State Plans.
“OSHA’s restructuring will bring the offices closer to many of the communities it serves and enhance the agency’s presence in the Southeast United States,” the release said. “The agency further expects the reorganization will also reduce response times to complaints, fatalities, imminent danger, and significant incidents. Stakeholders can continue to reach out to their current area offices for assistance.