§ 28-21-13 - Enforcement of chapter.
SECTION 28-21-13
§ 28-21-13 Enforcement of chapter. –(a) The responsibility for enforcement of the provisions of this chapter shallbe that of the department of labor and training. In addition to its otherobligations, the department shall establish and maintain the list of designatedsubstances, and the list shall be reviewed at intervals of six (6) months. Thedepartment will also maintain and make available upon request to the public anyavailable MSDS sheet. The provisions of chapter 35 of title 42, theAdministrative Procedures Act, shall be applicable in determining additions ordeletions to the list. The department shall assign chemical abstract series(CAS) numbers to the designated substances to facilitate comparisons withemployers' lists and lists from other states. The department shall also keep acentral file of annually updated chemical identification lists per employer.The central file must be cross-referenced by designated substance to facilitatethe identification of all firms using a particular designated substance. Accessto the central file shall be in accordance with chapter 24.4 of title 23. Thelist of designated substances shall be available for public inspection duringbusiness hours at the office of the director of the department of labor andtraining. The department shall have all rights of entry and inspection as setout in § 28-20-12, and shall annually conduct and without notice to theemployer, at least two hundred (200) inspections of employing units covered bythis chapter to determine compliance.
(b) Upon the finding of a violation arising from aninspection, the employer shall inform the employees and immediately undertakemeasures for the safety of the employees. The employer shall have ninety (90)days from the date of the finding of a violation to comply with the remainingprovisions of this chapter.
(c) The department shall obtain any and all informationrequired by § 28-21-5 from the person responsible for the administrationand direction of a fire department in a fire district or municipality,including a fire chief or fire administrator or that person's designee, in theevent that an employer ceases to do business in the state. The department willkeep the information for thirty (30) years and will make the informationavailable, upon request, to employees as defined in § 28-21-2(4).
(d) In addition to and not in lieu of the legal remediesavailable to the employee under § 28-21-8(4), the department may order anemployer to reinstate an employee who was dismissed or disciplined forexercising the right to refuse work as defined in § 28-21-8(1). Inaddition, the department may order an employer to reimburse an employee for anymonetary losses, plus interest, resulting from the employee's dismissal ordiscipline. Upon notification from the department, an employer shall have five(5) business days to show cause why the employer should not comply with thedepartment's order.