Any affected employer may apply to the Director of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation or his designee for a temporary permit granting a variance from a rule or regulation or any provision thereof promulgated under this article. Affected employees shall be given notice by the employer of each such application and shall be furnished an opportunity to participate in any hearing which shall be directed at the request of the employer or by the Director on his own motion. Such temporary permit shall be granted at the discretion of the Director if sufficient evidence establishes that:

(a) He is unable to comply with a rule or regulation by its effective date because of unavailability of professional or technical personnel or of materials and equipment needed to come into compliance with the rule or regulation or because necessary construction or alteration of facilities cannot be completed by the effective date;

(b) He is taking all available steps to safeguard his employees against the hazard covered by the rule or regulation;

(c) He has an effective program for coming into compliance with the rule or regulation as quickly as practicable. Any temporary permit issued under this section shall prescribe the practices, means, methods, operations and processes which the employer must adopt and use while the permit is in effect and state in detail his program for coming into compliance with the rule or regulation.

No temporary permit may be in effect for longer than the period needed by the employer to achieve compliance with the rule or regulation or for one year, whichever is shorter, except that such an order may be renewed not more than twice (1) so long as the requirements of this paragraph are met and (2) if an application for a renewal is filed at least ninety days prior to the expiration date of the order. The form of the application itself for a temporary permit shall be as prescribed by the Director.