November 26, 2003—US Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao released the Department of Labor’s annual enforcement statistics on November 18, showing that the Department’s innovative and effective approach to protecting workers is yielding record-breaking results. Chao noted that American workers are safer and are receiving more back wages, including overtime pay, than in the past.
Chao emphasized that the Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was able to better protect workers by targeting enforcement at companies that are repeat offenders, and by providing well-intentioned employers with compliance assistance tools, programs, and partnerships to enable them to better protect workers.
Chao said the numbers show the clear positive results of the Department’s new approach:
- OSHA cited employers for 83,760 violations in FY 03, a nearly 8% increase;
- Nearly 60,000 of those violations were considered serious, an 11% increase over FY 02; and
- The most recent data available show the rates of workplace injuries and fatalities fell to the lowest point ever in 2002.
“We never forget that behind every enforcement statistic and legal action is a person who needs our help,” Chao said. “That’s why I’m pleased to make these announcements today. They are an indication of how seriously this Administration takes its commitment to protect the safety and security of America’s workers.”
The newly released data also show that total back wages including overtime collected by the Department’s Wage and Hour division for workers in FY 2003 increased by 21% over the previous year, representing an 11-year high. The number of workers receiving back wages jumped from 263,593 workers to 342,358, a nearly 30% increase in one year.
In addition, workers’ benefits, such as pension plans, 401(k)s and health insurance, are more secure according to Chao. The Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) reported that it had record monetary results of more than $1.4 billion in civil and criminal cases, and participant benefit recoveries in FY 03 saw a nearly 60% increase over the previous year. In addition, EBSA’s Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program (VFCP), which encourages self-correction of benefit violations, saw a 300% increase in applications in FY 03 and more than $8 million in restored assets to employee plans.
