ABSTRACT
This chapter finishes off Part I with some “you can’t make this stuff up” fanfare. The author tells the story of a real-life cartoon character posing as an OSHA Compliance Officer. What ordinarily would have been a routine inspection resulting from an employee complaint became a circus. The inspector arrived unannounced seeking to investigate potential wrongdoing on the part of an employer. Though the company complied with all requests, no answer seemed to satisfy. Instead of a civil, cooperative inquiry, this particular inspector made a spectacle of himself by dramatically answering his own questions in a squeaky, cartoonish voice. His antics did not yield any real result, because the complaint was later found to be false, made by a disgruntled former employee. While recognizing that this man is certainly not representative of all OSHA employees, the author concludes the section with a rhetorical, thought-provoking question. How much of what is done in the safety profession does nothing to further the cause? And what would it take to see that change take place?
