Signals from the House of Representatives continue to point toward a reintroduction of the Protecting America's Workers Act, the package of Occupational Safety and Health Act reforms introduced in the previous two sessions of Congress, according to a congressional aide.

On Feb. 26, an aide with the House Education and Labor Committee told a Washington, D.C., gathering of safety and health lawyers and practitioners, organized by the law firm Ogletree Deakins, that the bill's reforms—increasing penalties for violations, making felony charges available for certain worker safety violations, expanding whistleblower protections for workers, and extending federal workplace safety and health protections to public sector and government employees—rank as the committee's top legislative priority. The aide said there was “general agreement that there is a problem” but no consensus on how to rectify it.

The remarks echo those of Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.), chair of the House Education and Labor Subcommittee on Workforce Protections, who told BNA Jan. 28 that she would reintroduce the reform legislation this year (39 OSHR 93, 2/5/09).

Points under discussion are whether the legislation should be proposed in a single bill or as separate pieces of legislation; whether felony charges should be made available for OSHA violations; and whether any action should be taken on ergonomics legislation.