History

OSHA officially formed on April 28, 1971, the date that the OSH Act became effective. George Guenther was appointed as the agency's first director.

OSHA has developed a number of training, compliance assistance, and health and safety recognition programs throughout its history. The OSHA Training Institute, which trains government and private sector health and safety personnel, began in 1972. In 1978, the agency began a grantmaking program, now called the Susan Harwood Training Grant Program, to train workers and employers in reducing workplace hazards. OSHA started the Voluntary Protection Programs in 1982, which allows employers to apply as "model workplaces" to achieve special designation if they meet certain requirements.