The OSH Act established a separate program for federal government employees. Section 19 of the OSH Act makes federal agency heads responsible for providing safety and healthful working conditions. Although OSHA does not fine federal agencies, it does monitor them and conducts inspections in response to workers’ reports of hazards. Under a 1998 amendment to the OSH Act, the U.S. Postal Service is covered under the OSH Act just like any private sector employer.
The Act does not cover:
Self-employed persons; Farms which employ only immediate members of the farmer's family; Working conditions for which other Federal agencies, operating under the authority of other Federal laws, regulate worker safety. This category includes most working conditions in mining, nuclear energy and nuclear weapons manufacture, and many aspects of the transportation industries; and Employees of state and local governments, unless they are in one of the states operating an OSHA-approved state plan.
