A revised directive from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration could have an impact on who is liable for workplace injuries at loading docks.
The clarification may have particular significance for the use of forklifts by motor carrier employees, according to American Trucking Associations.
Stuart Flatow, ATA’s director of occupational safety and health, said that the revised directive, issued Dec. 10, makes the host employer — in this case, a shipper or receiver — partly responsible for ensuring its employees’ safety even though someone else who is not an employee may come on site and create a hazard.
“Even though it’s not your employee, you may still be cited if you know the person is acting in an unsafe manner,” Flatow said.
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