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What do employees really think about workplace safety?


September 2, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, New safety statistics, Workers' attitudes about safety

What better time than Labor Day weekend to find out what U.S. employees think about safety in the workplace?

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Worker killed while mowing lawn


September 2, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Bizarre Accident of the Week, Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views

On average, about 95 people are killed each year in lawn-mowing incidents. A worker for New Castle County in Delaware is a recent victim.

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$200 million settlement proposed in crash caused by texting


September 1, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries, Latest News & Views, Transportation safety, What do you think?, cell phone and driving, cost of safety

A commuter rail system and its former operating contractor want to use federal law to limit their liability in a deadly train crash caused by a texting employee.

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Jury awards $30.4 million in worker’s popcorn lung lawsuit


August 31, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Chemical safety, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, Lawsuits, What do you think?, cost of safety

A jury in Chicago has awarded the largest individual verdict in a popcorn lung disease case.

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Video cameras focus on workers to improve safety


August 30, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries, Latest News & Views, Transportation safety, What do you think?, Workers' comp

What if you could capture on video the seconds immediately before and after an injury-causing incident in the workplace? One employer hopes to do just that.

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5 workers die: Emergency responders were an hour away


August 26, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Chemical safety, Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Investigations, Latest News & Views, fire/explosion

Ingredients for disaster: flammable materials, confined space, no emergency responders on site.

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OSHA fines SeaWorld in fatal whale attack on trainer


August 25, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Bizarre Accident of the Week, Falls, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, What do you think?, Who Got Fined and Why?

OSHA has cited SeaWorld of Florida for three safety violations following the death of an animal trainer who was pulled under the water by a six-ton killer whale in Orlando.

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Worker rescued from giant tank of peanuts


August 25, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Falls, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, OSHA news, Respiratory safety, confined spaces

A fall left a worker submerged in a giant tank of peanuts. Fortunately, he lived to tell about the experience.

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Other investigations suffer because of BP disaster


August 24, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: BP, Chemical safety, Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Investigations, Latest News & Views, fire/explosion

A federal agency says it’s overburdened and understaffed, and as a result, other investigations will suffer because of its work on the BP oil rig explosion.

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Workplace deaths reach all-time low


August 20, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, New safety statistics, OSHA news

The federal government has reported the smallest annual total of workplace deaths since the census of occupational injuries was started.

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OSHA files whistleblower lawsuit against convenience store chain


August 20, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, Lawsuits, OSHA news, whistleblower

OSHA shows it’s serious about stepping up action against companies accused of firing workers for making complaints about safety.

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How OSHA fines can lead to bigger costs


August 19, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries, Latest News & Views, Lawsuits, OSHA news, Who Got Fined and Why?, cost of safety, fire/explosion

Sure, a $16.6 million OSHA fine sounds like a lot of money. But that might be only the tip of the iceberg in the case involving an explosion at a Kleen Energy construction site.

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Oil vapors caused blast that killed 2 workers


August 18, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Investigations, Latest News & Views, fire/explosion

A cautionary note to pass along to employees who weld outdoors: Hot weather can add to the risk of an explosion.

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California Chamber: Pot law would hurt workplace safety


August 17, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Alcohol/drugs, In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries, Latest News & Views, What do you think?

Business groups are lining up against a measure that would legalize marijuana in California.

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Company faces $75K in health fines


August 16, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Chemical safety, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, Worker health

OSHA administrator David Michaels has called for a new emphasis on the health regulation side of the agency. Recent fines received by one company show the potential impact of this new emphasis.

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New record OSHA fine: BP to pay $50.6M


August 13, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: BP, Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries, Latest News & Views, cost of safety, fire/explosion

Once again, BP will pay the largest fine in OSHA history, breaking its own previous record. But, the oil giant also faces a half-billion dollars in additional costs as part of its settlement with the federal safety agency.

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In China, productivity tops safety laws


August 12, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries, Latest News & Views, Safety vs. production

China is on the verge of overtaking the U.S. as the world’s top manufacturer. Some use Chinese competition as a reason why OSHA’s regulations shouldn’t be stricter. However, a recent newspaper article paints a picture of workplace safety in China that no one would want.

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Truck driver runs over napping worker


August 10, 2010 by Jeff Holland
Posted in: Bizarre Accident of the Week, Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views

Pop quiz: Do workers need to check underneath their vehicles before driving away? 

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Getting workers’ comp, but caught working — as a stripper


August 6, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Back/lifting injuries, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, Workers' comp

Oh, the difficult life of a workers’ comp fraud investigator, having to track down comp recipients who are scamming the system. It’s a tough job that includes visiting places such as … strip clubs?

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Kleen Energy explosion: OSHA issues third-largest fine ever


August 6, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries, Latest News & Views, Who Got Fined and Why?, cost of safety, fire/explosion

A February explosion in Middletown, CT, that killed six workers, injured 50 others and ravaged an under-construction energy plant has prompted OSHA to issue its third-largest fine ever.

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Is this a good way to cut workers’ comp costs?


August 5, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries, Latest News & Views, What do you think?, Workers' comp, cost of safety

No one can blame an employer for trying to reduce workers’ comp costs through a return-to-work program. But an employer might run into trouble if the state workers’ comp board finds the policy to be illegal.

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OSHA urged to place special restrictions on BP


August 5, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: BP, Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries, Latest News & Views, OSHA news, What do you think?, Who Got Fined and Why?, cost of safety

While BP still works on cutting off the leaking oil well in the Gulf of Mexico for good, another safety matter waits in the wings for the company: settling citations issued by OSHA for two of its refineries.

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OSHA says explosion could’ve been prevented


August 4, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, Who Got Fined and Why?, construction safety, fire/explosion

Two companies face more than a quarter-of-a-million dollars in fines in connection with an explosion that resulted from the combination of flammable vapors and welding.

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Are company drivers impaired by legal drugs?


August 3, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Alcohol/drugs, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, Workers' attitudes about safety

Law enforcement officials say driving under the influence of legal drugs is an increasing problem.

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Worker suffers fatal fall: Was it unpreventable employee misconduct?


August 2, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Falls, Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, Who Got Fined and Why?

A worker falls to his death while upgrading a communication tower. An OSHA investigation showed that the worker had, for some reason, detached himself from his fall protection. Is the company at fault?

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Key to lower OSHA fines after a violation


July 30, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, OSHA news, Who Got Fined and Why?, construction safety, enforcement, new court decision

Uh oh. An OSHA inspector shows up at your business. He uncovers a violation, and you don’t dispute it. How do you limit your company’s financial liability?

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Negligent safety attitude, circuit failures, led to fatal crash


July 29, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Investigations, Latest News & Views, Transportation safety

“Safety needs to come from the top.” You’ve probably heard that one before. However, a federal agency had to remind a public transit provider of that again in its report on what caused a fatal train crash in Washington, DC.

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Company faces retaliation complaint on top of OSHA fine


July 28, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Chemical safety, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, OSHA news, Who Got Fined and Why?, whistleblower

It should come as no surprise to a company that it will face a retaliation complaint if it fires a whistleblower who complained to OSHA about workplace safety.

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Employee crushed to death in trash compactor


July 27, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Bizarre Accident of the Week, Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views

Here’s a question for employees: If an item falls into a large trash compactor by mistake, is it worth risking your life to try to retrieve the item?

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Jury awards $82.5M in workplace death lawsuit


July 26, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Fatality, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, What do you think?, Workers' comp, fire/explosion

Even though workers’ compensation is supposed to be the exclusive remedy for workplace injuries and death, lawyers will find a way to make someone pay even more, especially in the case of a fatality.

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You’re not the only one trying to reduce workers’ comp bills


July 23, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, Workers' comp, cost of safety

How much do you think federal government employees collected in workers’ comp payments in fiscal year 2009? A. $5.2 million? B. $40.3 million? C. $145 million? D. $1.6 billion.

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Crane crashes into house; OSHA investigates


July 23, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: Helpful Safety Links, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, construction safety

OSHA policy says it will investigate an incident when there is a fatality or multiple serious injuries. The agency can also use its discretion to look into situations in which there was no bodily harm, but there was significant structural damage.

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BP Photoshops picture of its crisis command center


July 21, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: BP, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, What Would You Do?, What do you think?

You can’t blame any company for being proud of its safety program — perhaps so proud that it wants to put photos about its safety program on its company website. But, as a safety pro, would you allow those photos to be altered? And what if the company we’re talking about is BP?

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OSHA uses general duty clause to issue workplace violence fine


July 20, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries, Latest News & Views, OSHA news, Safety training, What do you think?, Who Got Fined and Why?, enforcement, workplace violence

As Wal-Mart fights an OSHA general duty clause (GDC) fine about retail crowds, the agency has issued another citation under the catch-all regulation involving workplace violence.

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Employee’s transplant damaged in work incident: Does he get comp?


July 19, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Posted in: In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries, Latest News & Views, What do you think?, Workers' comp, new court decision

An employee who suffered from an eye disease had a corneal transplant that improved his vision from 20/200 to 20/50. Then, a workplace incident damaged the transplant, and his vision returned to 20/200.

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