Distracted driving is becoming an epidemic, especially as more people use cell phones and smart phones that create a constant temptation to text message, or check e-mail, or look at a website while behind the wheel.

OSHA is now getting into the fray with a program to encourage drivers to stay focused. “While we experience fewer fatalities in the workplace today,” the OSHA announcement says, “the leading cause of worker fatalities year after year is motor vehicle crashes. Distracted driving dramatically increases the risk of such crashes.” 

The U.S. Department of Labor, through OSHA, is partnering with the Department of Transportation to combat distracted driving. OSHA will first focus on texting while driving and says employers should prohibit any work policy or practice that requires or encourages workers to use that dangerous practice.

Texting while driving greatly increases the risk of being injured or killed in a motor vehicle crash. Prohibiting such texting is the subject of an Executive Order signed by President Obama last year for federal employees, and it is the subject of rulemaking by the DOT. 

“The OSH Act of 1970 is clear: Employers must provide a workplace free of serious recognized hazards,” OSHA states. “It is imperative that employers eliminate financial or other incentives that encourage workers to text while driving. Employers who require their employees to text while driving, or who organize work so that doing so is a practical necessity even if not a formal requirement, violate the OSH Act.”

To help cut down on distracted driving, OSHA is launching a multi-pronged initiative that will include:

• An education campaign, launched during Drive Safely Work Week, calling on employers to prevent occupationally related distracted driving, with a special focus on prohibiting texting.
• A website with a video message and an open letter to employers from an OSHA assistant secretary. The agency will showcase model employer policies and team with employer and labor associations to communicate its message.
• Alliances with the National Safety Council and other key organizations to help in reaching out to employers, especially small employers.
• Special emphasis on reaching young workers.
• Investigating credible complaints against employers and where necessary issuing citations and penalties.

“By prohibiting texting while driving, we are working to ensure that workers are safe on the road and that they return home safely at the end of their shift,” OSHA says.

You may already have a policy against texting and other distracting behaviors while driving. Perhaps now is a good time to revisit it – because temptations to multi-task while behind the wheel are strong and pervasive.