Senate Confirms David Keeling as New OSHA Leader
Earlier this month, the Senate confirmed David Keeling as the new Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, after his nomination was approved with a 51-47 vote, along with more than 100 other nominees.
David Keeling, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health
Keeling, President Trump’s nominee for the new leader of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), was confirmed as OSHA’s new leader on October 3, 2025, and takes over from Amanda Wood Laihow, who has served as acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health since February 2025. OSHA has been without a permanent head since Douglas L. Parker left the role, having served from 2021 to 2025 under the Biden administration.
Keeling has previously served as safety executive at UPS, a position he held for more than 30 years, before moving to Amazon, where he served as Director of Global Road and Transportation Safety for two years. Keeling’s nomination was approved by the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee on June 26, in a 12-11 vote along party lines. Keeling shared three main goals with the HELP Committee that he is committed to achieving at OSHA – modernizing regulatory oversight and rulemaking, expanding OSHA’s cooperation and collaboration efforts, and transforming enforcement of safety and health regulations through technology such as predictive analytics.
Keeling said new technologies and predictive analytics will move the focus to injury prevention and informed design, rather than simple regulatory compliance and post-injury response. He is committed to improving collaboration between OSHA and professional groups, companies, and unions to achieve the common goal of improving safety and health in the workplace. He also plans to engage at-risk employers and employees through predictive risk mitigation and reduction programs. Keeling’s experience at both UPS and Amazon will be invaluable in the new role, as the biggest killer at work is driving on or working near a roadway. As Lorraine Martin, CEO of the National Safety Council explained, there were 4,543 preventable deaths in occupational settings in the United States in 2023, and 37% of those deaths were transport related.
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After waiting almost four months to be officially confirmed, Keeling faces initial disruption to his plans as more than 70% of OSHA’s workforce has been furloughed due to the government shutdown. OSHA is currently operating under contingency plans that see the agency only conducting limited activities due to the lapse in appropriations. Under the contingency plan, OSHA inspectors are focused on inspections of sites with imminent danger situations, employers who have experienced workplace fatalities and catastrophes, investigating complaints about serious safety and health risks, and ensuring the abatement of previous high-gravity and serious violations. During the shutdown, OSHA has temporarily ceased providing compliance assistance, technical assistance, rulemaking, training classes, outreach programs, and its financial and administrative efforts. While OSHA is working in a limited capacity, employers should ensure they remain vigilant about worker safety and must ensure that they submit timely reports of work-related injuries and illnesses.
