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Temporary workers in the manufacturing sector

Posted on June 3rd, 2014 Read time: 1 minutes

The Institute for Supply Management has released its monthly report on business growth. The current Purchasing Managers Index has risen to 55.4, which indicates expansion is happening in the manufacturing industry at a faster pace than it was in April, when the reading was 54.9 percent. The number was recently corrected after a software error, so that previous indications that expansion had slowed were wrong.

In fact, manufacturing activity has been expanding for the 12th consecutive month in a row, following April.

In view of this, it should be noted those who plan on expanding their labor force of temporary workers in a manufacturing setting should take care. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is taking special caution to look at temps in this industry, according to Reinhart, a group of attorneys who work with staffing companies. Reinhart cited OSHA considers employers and staffing agencies to be equally responsible for the safety of their workers. As such, OSHA has been cracking down on companies that use an employer of record to avoid the expenses associated with employee training, chemical hazard communication and keeping records of on-the-job injuries.

According to Reinhart, OSHA considers employers responsible for ensuring all the duties of the temporary worker comply with regulations. The employers must also communicate these duties to the staffing agency, which makes a separate determination as to whether OSHA compliance is being met with regard to the safety and welfare of the temp. Employers must also record all injuries that happen to temps on the job, and immediately contact the temporary service company to inform it of the injury.

Staffing companies are responsible for ensuring the worksite is safe. The company must send someone to visit the site and determine if there are any hazards and if the worksite meets OSHA compliance standards.

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