The federal Occupation Health and Safety Administration proudly proclaims that it aims "to assure so far as possible every working man and woman in the nation safe and healthful working conditions and to preserve our human resources." In the course of this goal, it applies regulations to every kind of employer, including temporary staffing agencies. These agencies differ from other employers because supervision of employees is shared with the "host employer" or client. Agencies do not usually control their employees' work environment and thus do not bear the full burden for the employee's safety and safety training. Still, OSHA outlines a role for agencies in protecting their workers.
While temporary agencies do not have to do site-specific safety training or provide protective gear and equipment for their field workers, OSHA requires agencies to take part in safety education. Whether by video, paper manual, interactive computer-based training or in-person lecture, agencies must educate workers on safety precautions and standards appropriate to the workplace they will be assigned. For health-care workers, this includes sharps handling and blood-borne pathogen training, whereas for construction workers, education may include worksite safety standards. Workers exposed to chemicals as part of their jobs should receive hazardous materials training from their agencies. Agencies should keep written records of this training to show OSHA in case of inquiry.
Whoever supervises an employee directly is responsible for workplace injury records. In most cases, this means an agency's client is responsible for recording and documenting an employee's workplace injury, and the agency is excused from this responsibility. However, when agencies have on-site offices as staffing agencies as part of contracts to provide many workers to a large employer, then the burden of recording and managing workplace injuries falls to the agency.
A memorandum of understanding between OSHA and the federal Employment Standards Administration requires them to work together so that if either agency spots a cause for concern on either health and safety issues or labor and wage issues, they will alert the other. Among their joint responsibilities and mandates is to ensure that temporary agencies inform their employees about their rights under a host of federal labor laws, including Occupational Safety and Health Act, Fair Labor Standards Act, Davis-Bacon and Related Acts and the Service Contracts Act.
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