Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission

Plain Writing Act Compliance Report

April 13,20201

I.Senior Agency Official forPlain Writing:

Amanda WoodLaihow, Chief Counsel toChairmanJames J. Sullivan, Jr.2

Plain Writing Contact:

JohnX.Cerveny, Executive Secretary

Contact Information:

plain@oshrc.gov

II.Explain what specific types of agency communications youhavereleased by making them available in a format that is consistent with the PlainWritingguidelines.
|                                                                                   |                                                                                                               |                                                     |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------|
| Guide to Review Commission Procedures

Available on OSHRC Website                 | Employers who may or may not be represented by legal counsel                                                  | The documents are clearer and more self-explanatory |
| Employee Guide to Review Commission Procedures

Available on OSHRC Website        | Employees who wish to participate in a Commission proceeding or who are contesting a proposed abatementperiod |
| Guide to SimplifiedProceedings

Available on OSHRC Website                        | Employers who may or may not be represented by legal counsel                                                  |
| The Freedom of Information Act

Reference Guide

Available on OSHRC Website       | Anyone who is interested in submitting a FOIA request to the Commission                                       |
| Press Releases

Available on OSHRC Website                                        | Anyone who is interested in Commission news and events                                                        |
| Commission Briefing Notices

Available on OSHRC Website                           | Anyone who is interested in the issues in cases at the

Review Commission level                               |
| Commission Subpoenas

Issued as necessary byCommission

Administrative Law Judges | Anyone who is requested to testify orprovide

evidence at Commission hearings                                 |
| E-Filer User Guide

Available on OSHRC Website                                    | Parties intending to file OSHRC case documents electronically                                                 | The documents are clearer and more self-explanatory |
| E-filer User Guide OSHA Area Offices

Available on OSHRC Website                  | OSHA Area Officesintending to file OSHRC case documents electronically                                        |
| @OSHRC_Chairman Twitter account

Available at:https://twitter.com/OSHRC_Chairman  | Anyone who is interested in Commission news and events                                                        |
| E-Alert Service

Available by subscription through the OSHRC Website              | Anyone who is interested in Commission news and events                                                        |

III.Informagencystaff of Plain Writing Act’s requirements:

On June 24, 2011, the Senior Agency Official for Plain Writing informed all Commission personnel by e-mail of the Plain Writing Act and its requirements.The email included links to various plain writing resources, including material posted on the Commission’snetwork.

IV.Training

Since the last Plain Writing Act Compliance Report was published onApril13, 2019, the Review Commission provided the following training:

|                                                                                                   |                                     |                           |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------|---------------------------|
| Webinars andonline trainingprovided by plainlanguage.gov and hosted on the Commission’snetwork.   | Available to allCommissionemployees | Ongoing                   |
| Legal Writing for Paralegals: Common Mistakes to Avoid                                            | One employee                        | August 29, 2019           |
| Legal Ethics of Email and Social Media                                                            | One employee                        | September 11, 2019        |
| Effective Writing Workshop                                                                        | One employee                        | September 24 and 25, 2019 |
| Advanced Legal Writing and Editing                                                                | One employee                        | September 26, 2019        |

V.Ongoing compliance/sustainingchange

The Commission will stay in compliance with theAct by incorporating plain language considerations in all documents that the Commission issues to the public.

VI.Agency’s plain writing website

a.Website address:https://www.oshrc.gov/plain-writing/

b.Implementation of the Act: 

The Commissionwill be using plain writing in any updates to documents most often read by thegeneral public, such as our Guide to Review Commission Procedures,Guide to Simplified Proceedings,Employee Guide to Review Commission Procedures, The Freedom of Information Act Reference Guide,andCommission announcements and notices.

c.Link to Compliance Reports: Compliance reports will be available on the Commission’s Plain Writing website:(https://www.oshrc.gov/plain-writing/).

d.More information on Plain Writing may be obtained at the Plain Language website (http://www.plainlanguage.gov).

VII.Customer Satisfaction Evaluation after Experiencing Plain Writing Communications

The Commissionset up an e-mail address (plain@oshrc.gov) through which the public may contact us to let us know if they have trouble understanding our documents or the pages on our website. The Commissionwill monitor that e-mail address and will takeappropriateaction on all correspondence received.

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1 Report updated on April 13, 2021.

2 Amanda Wood Laihow assumed the role of Commissioner on January 21, 2020