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OSHA certifies state employee safety plan for Maine

hardhat hanging from machinery — *Image via Unsplash*

Maine's new workplace safety plan for state and local government workers has been certified by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The plan is designed to cover workplace discrimination, enhance inspections and outline compliance.

Maine's plan dictates that an employee cannot be fired for filing a complaint related to workplace safety concerns. It also dictates the appropriate process if an inspection is deemed necessary and the procedure if an employer refuses an inspection.

OSHA's certification verifies that Maine has satisfactorily completed all of the plan's required aspects and attests that the state has all structural components needed in place for a state plan covering state and local government workers.

Maine is one of seven state plans, including New Jersey, Illinois, Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts and the Virgin Islands, that administer safety and health programs for state and local government workers only. There are also 22 state plans that cover private sector, as well as state and local government workers.

Administered by the Maine Department of Labor's Workplace Safety and Health Division, its state plan covers approximately 2,400 state and local government employers and nearly 80,000 workers in state, county and local governments and quasi-municipal agencies. The plan also covers volunteers under the direction of a state or local government employer.