On April 25, 2017, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) rescinded a Feb. 21, 2013 letter from former Deputy Assistant Secretary Richard E. Fairfax to Mr. Steve Sallman (Fairfax Memo) that permitted workers at a worksite without a collective bargaining agreement to designate a person affiliated with a union or community organization to act on their behalf as a representative during an OSHA walkaround inspection.
Employers have viewed the Fairfax Memo as a way for unions to get access to employees that they hope to unionize. With the rescission of this memo, employers are no longer required to permit union officials to represent workers at a worksite without a collective bargaining agreement during an OSHA walkaround inspection.