It just goes to show that an occupational fatality can happen anywhere: OSHA is investigating the death of a tree worker at a nudist club in New Jersey.
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Tags: hard hat, nudist club, struck on the head
A foundry worker had a stroke at work. He filed for workers’ comp, arguing that working in a 100° room contributed to the stroke. Will the employee get comp benefits?
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You know Mike Rowe, the guy on the Discovery Channel who hosts Dirty Jobs? A viewer recently called him out on not wearing the proper safety gear on his show. His response? “Of all the platitudes embraced in the workplace there is none more pervasive, erroneous, overused and dangerous than ‘Safety First!’”
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Tags: Dirty Jobs, Mike Rowe, safety first, Safety Third
A federal judge has sentenced a construction site superintendent who covered up a safety violation that led to the 2009 death of a worker.
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Tags: fatal fall, Franc Construction, home confinement, willfully violating OSHA regulation
If the projectile had hit anywhere else on his face, doctors say volunteer fire chief Gary Cheesman would have had just a scratch.
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Tags: bizarre accident, eye protection, eyesight
The Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office has filed criminal charges against a college professor who supervised a UCLA lab where a staff research assistant was killed in a fire three years ago. The University of California also faces millions of dollars in criminal fines in the case.
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Tags: criminal charges, research assistant killed in fire, UCLA fatal fire
Directions given by an OSHA inspector to workers prevented serious injury and perhaps even the death of one employee.
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Tags: fall protection, harnesses, lanyards, OSHA inspector
Want fewer injuries at work? Perhaps your company should encourage employees to join weight loss and exercise programs.
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Tags: Falls, obese workers, obesity, sleep apnea, wellness programs
OSHA says it’s trying to level the playing field with new rules for residential construction. But some builders say the new rules are having the opposite effect: They’re tilting the field in such a way that cheaters are prospering, and those who comply are in danger of falling over the edge.
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Tyson Foods will pay $32 million to settle the question of whether workers should be paid for the time it takes to put on and take off protective clothes and safety gear at the beginning and end of their shifts.
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Tags: donning and doffing, PPE, safety gear, Tyson Foods, United Food and Commercial Workers
A company with 14 affiliates spread across the country has agreed to pay a $34,750 fine to settle OSHA citations. That doesn’t sound too bad for a big, nationwide construction company. But it’s only the tip of the iceberg.
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Tags: 30-hour OSHA course, construction company, enterprise-wide settlement agreement, fall protection, OSHA citations, safety program
Should the federal government use a plea agreement reached in connection with a Colorado worker’s death as a template for similar cases involving fatalities?
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Tags: asphyxiation, engulfed by grain, Safety training, Tempel Grain Elevator, victim's family
Cal/OSHA has issued 11 citations to a company in the Los Angeles area in connection with the death of one employee and serious injuries to two others who tried to rescue their co-worker.
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Tags: atmosphere test, protective equipment, rescue, worker dead
When it comes to workers’ comp benefits, is employee hearing loss over a long period of time different from other injuries suffered in the workplace? The answer is key in a lawsuit by more than 40 workers.
Tags: hearing loss, long-term exposure, Louisiana, refinery, Workers' comp
Here we go again: Another federal court has ruled on whether employees should be paid for the time it takes to put on and take off their required safety gear. And the ruling is opposite one handed down by another court just last month.
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Tags: Butterball, donning and doffing, protective gear, safety gear, Tenth Circuit
Confused about whether you’re required to pay workers for the time they spend putting on and taking off their required safety gear? You’re not alone. Yet another federal court has weighed in on the issue.
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When OSHA wants to make a statement with a large fine, it can ratchet up the amount by multiplying violations by the number of employees. Such is the case in a recent fine involving a Midwest facility.
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Tags: asbestos, cancer, protective clothing, respirators, training, willful violation
OSHA can’t send people responsible for workplace safety to jail. But they can refer cases to local prosecutors who are able to seek prison time. That’s what happened in this case, and now two men will be locked up.
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Tags: fall, fall protection, harnesses, involuntary manslaughter, owner jailed
In the comics, Spider-Man worked without fall protection. Actors in a new show based on the comic can’t do that, and four on-stage injuries have caught OSHA’s attention.
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Tags: fall protection, harnesses, Spider-Man
How did a company successfully appeal a safety citation and get an administrative law judge (ALJ) to order OSHA to pay the employer’s attorney fees?
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Tags: attorneys' fees, Equal Access to Justice Act, fall protection, Paramount Advance Wireless, unpreventable employee misconduct
A construction worker using a self-retracting lifeline attached to his harness is struck by large, heavy aluminum plates that fell from a crane. The employee is seriously injured and won’t walk again. Should the lifeline have had a warning label stating that, in such situations, the gear might not protect the employee?
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Tags: construction work, harness, lifeline, warning labels
The question of whether companies are required to pay employees for the time it takes them to put on and take off required safety gear is still complicated. Now, the U.S. Supreme Court has taken a pass on a case, leaving in place a lower court ruling.
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Tags: donning and doffing, FLSA, Kraft Foods, safety gear, steel-toed boots
A sales associate at a Staples store has filed a lawsuit claiming she was fired after complaining to OSHA about cleaning an overflowing toilet without protective gear.
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Tags: clean restroom, overflowing toilet, protective gear, Staples
OSHA has issued 12 violations to a Pennsylvania tree-trimming company following the electrocution of one of its employees.
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Tags: electrocuted, power line, tree trimmer
An investigation into a deadly explosion has resulted in 54 OSHA citations and fines of more than $1.2 million.
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Tags: Black Mag Industries, egregious willful violations, gun powder explosion, two workers killed
OSHA administrator David Michaels says safety incentive programs based primarily on injury numbers often discourage employees from reporting injuries. Now Michaels has more support for that position.
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Tags: David Michaels, safety incentive programs, VPP, VPPPA
This story illustrates that not only do workers need to use their PPE — they need to use it properly. The consequences of not doing so can be fatal.
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Tags: confined spaces, flame-resistant clothing, flammable vapors, Tactical Cleaning Co.
Where do workers get the idea that it’s OK not to use safety gear for hazardous jobs? Is one source online videos?
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Tags: free climbing, hazardous jobs, safety gear, tower climbing, viral video
It pays to settle safety disputes with employees. Otherwise, they may file a report with OSHA and prompt an inspection. This story involves a difference of opinion over personal protective equipment.
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What triggers an OSHA inspection that leads to big fines: High injury rates? Employee complaints? For the construction industry, expensive fines are often the result of hazards being evident in broad daylight.
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OSHA is going postal. No, not like that.
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Tags: inspections, lockout/tagout, OSHA, OSHA fines, PPE
Even after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the matter, whether companies have to pay employees for the time spent donning and doffing safety gear was still confusing. The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) is trying to clear that up.
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Tags: Department of Labor, donning and doffing, interpretation, safety gear
OSHA has placed 20 to 25 of its inspectors at the staging areas for cleanup of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. While early concerns centered around exposure to oil and fumes, OSHA officials are finding another problem:
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Tags: BP, Gulf of Mexico, heat stroke, OSHA
It’s a common thought among workers who choose not to use their safety gear: It’ll be OK just this one time. This story shows the consequences — this worker is very lucky to be alive today.
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Situations in which a falling item kills a worker aren’t that uncommon. But in this case, the thing that fell was alive.
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Tags: bizarre accident, crushed, worker killed
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