The group calculates a Pedestrian Danger Index (PDI) for each area based on number of deaths per 100,000 residents and the percent of employees walking to work.

Here are the top 10 most dangerous areas along with their corresponding PDIs:

1. Orlando-Kissimmee, FL: 221.5
2. Tampa, St. Petersburg-Clearwater, FL: 205.5
3. Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL: 181.2
4. Jacksonville, FL: 157.4
5. Memphis, TN: 137.7
6. Raleigh-Cary, NC: 128.6
7. Louisville/Jefferson County, KY-IN: 114.8
8. Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, TX: 112.4
9. Birmingham-Hoover, AL: 110.0, and
10. Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, GA: 108.3.

The three safest areas are the New York City metropolitan area, Boston and Minneapolis.

Overall, nine of the ten most dangerous metros are in the South, including the top four in Florida. Transportation for America says these areas are dominated by lower population density and vehicle-oriented development patterns.

On the other hand, metros in older northeastern and northern states did much better because they have compact development patterns.

Transportation for America is calling for more spending to cut down on pedestrian deaths, noting that walking and bicycling is becoming more popular as gas prices go up and workers turn to alternative forms of transportation.

The medical community appears to be split on this.

Hand washing does help stop the spread of the common cold, many respiratory infections and viruses that cause diarrhea.

But in a Newsweek article, Arthur Reingold, head of epidemiology at the University of California, Berkeley, says there’s virtually no evidence that people can catch the flu virus via physical contact. He says people are more likely to catch the flu from breathing in microscopic particles exhaled by infected people.

Dr. Michael Osterholm, head of the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, notes that some animal studies confirm flu is transmitted through the air and not by physical contact.

Among those still promoting hand washing is the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Dr. Anne Schuchat. She supports hand washing because it protects against respiratory and intestinal diseases in general – and H1N1 does cause respiratory and intestinal problems.

What’s the take-home for businesses? First, hand-washing is effective in preventing some illnesses, so there’s no reason not to promote it.

Second, this points to the importance of sending sick employees home, and telling them to stay there until they’re well.

Third, the best step people can take starting next month is to get the H1N1 flu shot, when it becomes available.

The video, made by the police department of Gwent, Wales, is 30 minutes and shows the crash in graphic detail. Two passengers in the car of a young woman who is texting-while-driving are killed. The video also shows the aftermath for the surviving young woman and her family. (See our previous story.)

The film’s director, Peter Watkins-Hughes, told The New York Times, “Young people were telling us, ‘It needs to be more shocking, it needs to be more violent, it needs to be more truthful.’”

But some experts on safety and risk disagree. Kip Viscusi, who has studied risk for decades says one reason violent videos may not work is that people are already well aware that some activities are dangerous.

Ann McCartt, senior VP for research at the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said, “Over time, people go back to their everyday behaviors.”

McCartt’s alternative? Strong laws. “What really gets people to change their behaviors is strong laws, strongly enforced,” she said.

Richard Tay, a road safety researcher at the University of Calgary said a violent video must also instruct people on how to change their behavior.

Others are calling for the cell phone industry to handle the problem through technology, such as prompts on phones reminding people not to text and drive, or a feature that allows automatic, “I’m driving now” responses in incoming calls.

This issue mirrors a question often asked by safety pros: Do bloody, graphic videos showing workplace injuries really encourage workers to follow safety rules?

What do you think? Do gory safety videos work? Will this video on texting have a positive effect? Let us know in the Comments Box below, and take our poll on Safety News Alert’s home page.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) annual National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries in 2008 shows transportation incidents were the most common cause of occupational fatalities. They accounted for 40%.

Contact with objects and equipment accounted for 18% of deaths; 10% of all deaths were caused when an employee was struck by an object or equipment.

Other causes:

• assaults and violent acts, 16%
• falls, 13%
• exposure to harmful substances or environments, 9%, and
• fire and explosion, 3%.

Overall, workplace fatalities decreased from 5,657 in 2007 to 5,071 in 2008. However, the fatality rate usually goes up after the initial BLS report because of cases not originally accounted for. Last year, an additional 169 deaths were eventually added to the final total.

BLS also notes that economic factors likely played a role in the fatality decrease. Average hours worked fell by 1% in 2008. Plus, some industries that have historically higher fatality rates, such as construction, experienced larger declines in employment.

Among increases in deaths:

• farming, fishing and forestry rose 6%
• those aged 16 or 17 rose 1.9%, and
• falls on the same level (to a floor or against an object) increased slightly.

The full BLS report is available here.

Between 1994 and 2007, between 1,343 and 1,442 American workers died in highway-related incidents in each and every year. That’s according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

And 2007, which provides the most recent data, was right in line. The final tally: 1,414.

Why aren’t the numbers improving? One reason may be that business drivers are at best, apathetic about safety, and at worst, downright resistant.

A recent study suggests that more than 40% of those drivers would not be open to road safety training — or at least that their managers think they wouldn’t be. And less than a quarter of managers thought their drivers would “definitely be willing to take part in road safety training.”

The study was done in England, but based on the discouraging yearly numbers here, it’s reasonable to wonder whether we have the same problem.

What do you think? In your experience, how do business drivers respond to safety training? Is there a way to improve the numbers? Share your thoughts in the Comment Box below.

The National Safety Council (NSC) is advocating legislation to ban all types of cell phone use on the road, including hands-free usage.

Now, six states have bans on driving while talking on a hand-held cell phone: California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Utah and Washington. It’s also banned in the District of Columbia, and at least five other states have cities and towns with bans.

The organization acknowledges that it’ll take a long time to get all states to pass such legislation, so it’s also urging businesses to enact policies prohibiting the practice.

The NSC notes results of several studies to back up its call, including:

• Drivers are at a four times greater risk of a crash
• Cell phone use contributes to 6% of crashes, and
• The annual financial toll of cell phone-related crashes is $43 billion.

Anticipating some of the arguments against cell phone bans, the NSC admits other in-car activities are more dangerous than using cell phones. However, the group says as cell phone use has become so prevalent, it has become more dangerous overall.

Also, studies show that hands-free devices don’t make cell phone calls while driving safe.

What’s the difference between talking on a hands-free phone and speaking with someone else in a car? Unlike the passenger sitting next to you, the person on the other end of the call is oblivious to what’s happening around the driver on the road. The passenger provides another pair of eyes and can help keep the driver alert.

Do you think a total ban on cell phone use while driving is necessary? Does your company have a policy banning your employees from using cell phones while driving for business? Does that ban include hands-free usage? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

The NSC has set up a Web page with resources and data at http://distracteddriving.nsc.org.

We polled our editors of safety publications at Progressive Business and came up with this list:

10. More research on dangers of nano-particles to exposed employees. Among the new studies, one that showed long, thin carbon nanotubes exhibited the same effects as long, thin asbestos fibers when injected into mice.

9. The National Institutes of Health says the superbug methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is no longer limited to hospitals. Outbreaks of one strain — community-associated MRSA — have turned up in athletes, prison inmates, the military, daycare attendees and those who live in communal conditions such as college dormitories.

8. MSHA proposes and enacts a flurry of new mining rules in the wake of previous years’ mining disasters, such as Crandall Canyon, including: a policy letter on underground communication and tracking devices; a new final rule that increases the pounds per square inch that pressure seals must withstand in an explosion; a proposal to test miners for drugs and alcohol; and a final rule requiring additional safety equipment for rescue teams at underground mines.

7. California gets serious with heat stress on the job. The company that hired a pregnant teen who died of heat stroke this spring after working in a vineyard without enough shade or water was hit with the highest fine ever issued to a farming operation in the state. Merced Farm Labor’s license was also revoked until Aug. 24, 2011 after the death of Maria Jimenez.

6. The employer payment for most types of PPE rule takes effect. OSHA started enforcing the new rule May 15, 2008. The only exceptions: non-specialty safety-toe protective footwear; shoes or boots with built-in metatarsal protection requested by an employee; logging boots; and everyday work or ordinary clothing used solely for protection from weather.

5. An explosion at an Imperial Sugar Refinery near Savannah, GA, kills 14 people and injures dozens more. The blast destroyed a packaging plant. The cause, ignition of dust, placed an emphasis on workplace ignitable dust hazards.

4. Amendment to the Americans with Disabilities Act to place burden on employers. The revision may dramatically increase the number of employees who can legally qualify as disabled. Action step for employers and those in charge of safety: Instead of an open-ended light-duty assignment that might define a worker as disabled, re-assess the returning worker’s condition every two weeks.

3. Distracted drivers prove fatal and costly. A Sept. 12 collision between two trains in California killed 25 people. The National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating, but preliminary information shows the locomotive engineer of one train was using his cell phone to text within 30 seconds of the accident. In the wake of the crash, the Federal Railroad Administration enacted a new rule banning railroad employees from using cell phones (except in emergencies) and other electronic devices on the job. In another case, International Paper Co. agreed to pay $5.2 million to settle a personal injury lawsuit after one of its employees used her cell phone while driving for work. The employee hit another car, and its driver had to have an arm amputated as a result.

2. Now OSHA can multiply PPE and training fines by the number of employees. Under a new rule, OSHA can issue per-employee citations for those types of violations starting Jan. 12, 2009.

1. President-elect Barack Obama promises an “invigorated” OSHA. Obama supported the Protecting America’s Workers Act as a Senator. The bill would increase OSHA penalties. Obama has also called on OSHA to issue standards “in a timely and more effective manner.” While the financial crisis may delay some reforms the new administration may want, some changes can be made by just shifting existing funding.

Vote for your top safety story or nominate one of your own in the Comments Box below.

“Death by Cell Phone” is the title of a new billboard campaign launched by the NSC.

The billboards feature Linda, a 61-year-old wife, mother and grandmother from Oklahoma, and Joe, a 12-year-old boy from Michigan, both killed in car crashes caused by drivers using cell phones.

The phrase comes from what Linda’s daughter said about her mother’s crash: “My mother died within a couple of hours from blunt force trauma to the head, neck and chest. I just call it death by cell phone.”

A companion video is also available at DeathByCellPhone.org. The video tells Linda’s and Joe’s stories.

According to a 2008 poll by Nationwide Insurance, 81% of cell phone owners report talking on their phones while driving and 18% admit texting while driving.

In January, the NSC called for a nationwide ban on all forms of cell phone use while driving.

The following state bans are in effect, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety:

• 6 states (California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Utah and Washington) and Washington, DC, ban talking on a hand-held cell phone while driving.
• Use of all cell phones by novice drivers is restricted in 21 states and DC, and
• Text messaging is banned for all drivers in 14 states and DC.

Would you support a nationwide ban on all use of cell phones while driving? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

In a study in the July issue of The American Journal of Preventive Medicine, researchers estimate there were nearly 10,000 emergency room visits for computer-related injuries in 2006, including cuts, bruises, sprains and fractures.

More than half of the injuries happened when people were moving their computers. The monitor was the piece of computer equipment most commonly involved.

Injuries have declined somewhat since 2003 with the sales of more and more LCD monitors.

Another hazard: trips and falls over computer wires.

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that OSHA’s internal controls aren’t sufficient to ensure that only qualified worksites participate in VPP.

From January 2003 to August 2008, 30 VPP sites had fatalities. The GAO found that some sites had safety and health violations related to the fatalities and remained in the VPP despite no longer meeting the definition of an exemplary workplace.

OSHA’s response to the GAO report came swiftly. It said it’s committed to fixing any problems with the program.

But the headline OSHA put on its own press release tells the real story: “OSHA begins evaluation of Voluntary Protection Program.”

The release goes on to say that OSHA’s evaluation will “determine how the agency should best allocate its resources among cooperative programs, enforcement and the agency’s other activities.”

VPP and its related Alliance Program will go under the microscope “to determine their effectiveness as well as review the programs’ roles in helping the agency promote the safety and health of America’s workers.”

Acting OSHA administrator Jordan Barab noted that the agency hadn’t acted on a 2004 GAO report that suggested an evaluation of VPP’s effectiveness.

The Obama administration has made no secret of wanting to increase OSHA enforcement. It’s already allocated more funding to do that. One more way the administration could devote more money to enforcement: Reallocate money from cooperative programs such as VPP to inspections.

You can download the GAO’s report here.

That’s the possibility raised in a report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) about a voluntary program administered by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).

The report says it appears the Performance and Registration Information Systems Management (PRISM) program is keeping carriers that FMCSA has ordered out of service from obtaining vehicle registrations in the 25 states in which it operates.

An additional 6 states have started collecting identification numbers and may be checking the safety status of the carrier at the time of registration.

But 3 states are not participating in PRISM, and another 15 states and the District of Columbia haven’t started to implement the program despite commitments to FMCSA that they will do so. This includes states with the greatest number of registered commercial motor vehicles.

The 18 states without active programs are: California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.

The GAO report is available online here (free Adobe Acrobat Reader required).

A recent survey by a British insurance company seems to suggest that.

RSA surveyed over 2,000 UK employees, and 71% report an increase in their stress levels because of the recession.

On top of that, 20% of workers surveyed believe they are more likely to face a workplace accident due to recession stress. The percent of workers who fear they’re more likely to have an accident, broken out by industry:

• manufacturing: 35%
• transportation: 28%, and
• leisure sector: 21%.

RSA estimates 13.5 million work days will be lost this year in Great Britain due to workplace stress.

Is there something to this? Let us know what you think in the Comments Box below.

Which types of on-the-job injuries cause employees to miss the most time from work?

Liberty Mutual Insurance has released its annual Workplace Safety Index that identifies the leading causes of the most disabling workplace injuries.

Overall, the estimated direct U.S. workers’ compensation costs for these top ten injuries totaled $48.6 billion in 2006.

These 10 categories account for 87.9% of the cost burden of disabling workplace injuries.

Here’s the breakdown on the top 10:

1. Overexertion (injuries caused by excessive lifting, pushing, pulling, holding or throwing): $12.4B, 25.7%
2. Fall on the same level (such as slips and trips): $6.4B, 13.3%
3. Fall to lower level: $5.3B, 10.8%
4. Bodily reaction (injuries caused from slipping or tripping without falling): $4.8B, 10.0%
5. Struck by object (such as a tool falling on a worker from above): $4.3B, 8.9%
6. Struck against object (such as a worker walking into a door): $2.5B, 5.1%
7. Highway incident: $2.4B, 4.9%
8. Caught in/compressed by: $2.1B, 4.4%
9. Repetitive motion (injuries due to repeated stress or strain): $2.0B, 4.0%, and
10. Assaults/violent acts: $0.4B, 0.9%.

Between 1998 and 2006, the costs of repetitive motion injuries declined the most: 35.3%. The costs of fall on the same level and fall to lower level each showed the largest increase: 17.9%.

Have you had success recently in reducing any of these types of injuries? If so, let us know about it in the Comments Box below.

One way to counter that thought: Arrange to have employees hear important safety messages from a number of different sources.

A new report from the National Weather Service (NWS) backs that up.

NWS just released its internal report on the Super Tuesday tornado outbreak of Feb. 5-6, 2008. The report’s subtitle: Why Some People Don’t Heed Severe Weather Warnings.

Reason: Many people minimize the threat of personal risk through “optimism bias,” the belief that such bad things only happen to others.

This optimism bias was reflected in comments from several affected residents in the report, such as, “They [tornadoes] always seem to hit down the road,” and “We didn’t think it was going to be here.”

A prime example: A woman in Arkansas heard a tornado warning from the local TV news and then from a local radio station. Warning sirens sounded twice. Only after her son-in-law called did she decide to take shelter.

NWS theorizes an important factor in how people respond to warnings is whether they personalize the threat.

This example shows how some people require multiple sources of information to assess personal risk.

Here’s the good news: You don’t have to be the only one to repeat safety warnings to workers. Getting others to do it will help. How can you do this?

• Get outside expert speakers to address employees.
• Use other sources of information – such as this Web site – to back up your points.
• Make it really personal: Have an accident victim speak. If one isn’t available, ask workers how their lives would be affected if they were injured.

A new study published by the British Psychological Society found that children with ADHD continue to experience difficulties that impair their work performance and increase the number of accidents they have as adults.

The team surveyed 8,563 workers. They found 1.9% of them met the criteria for Adult ADHD.

Those with the condition were twice as likely to have had an accident at work during the preceding year.

The researchers estimated that each worker with Adult ADHD cost their employer $4,336 in lost revenue because of extra sick leave and lower work performance.

Only four of the 163 workers with Adult ADHD in the study were receiving treatment for their condition.

The study concluded that, given the effectiveness of drugs for Adult ADHD, employers consider screening for Adult ADHD.

The research was funded by pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly, a developer of drugs for ADHD.

Click here for more information on the study.

Considerate, understanding bosses who keep up contact with their sidelined workers are key to getting them to return.

Previous research showed a strong link between management and sick leave – especially how the risk of long-term leave rose with the lack of support from management.

Because of this, scientists looked at the link between positive management and workers on sick leave.

They found people on leave and light duty need to feel their problems are being taken seriously. Those who do are likely to fight harder to get back to work as quickly as possible.

Communication is key for both managers and hurt employees, since misunderstanding the workers’ needs can lead to problems later on.

And not all workers have the same needs. While older workers are more concerned with adapting to the work environment, younger employees are more in need of encouragement.

But in all cases, these seven manager types were most successful at getting employees back to work:

1. The Protector: Understands the situation, shows compassion, and looks out for the employee.
2. The Problem Solver: Professional and solution-oriented. Can help worker adapt to the environment.
3. The Contact Maker: Keeps in touch with the worker to see how he’s doing and relays what’s happening in the workplace.
4. The Trust Creator: Discreet, honest and open. Develops trust and a feeling of job safety.
5. The Recognizer: Shows respect and confidence to employees during their time on light duty.
6. The Encourager: Motivates and inspires while being patient.
7. The Responsibility-maker: Gives the employee challenges and responsibility for his situation.

The research was conducted by The International Research Institute of Stavanger in Norway.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) analyzed data from the Georgia Study of Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, in which 6,530 randomly selected adults were interviewed. Sixteen percent of Georgia’s residents experience persistent problems staying awake during the day. However, only 10% of the people in the study reported having been diagnosed with a sleep disorder.

The study also found:

• 35% wake up in the morning feeling unrefreshed
• 31% can’t sleep through the night, and
• 25% complain they have problems falling asleep.

Study author, Michael Decker, notes people who don’t get enough sleep, or have poor quality sleep, present hazards in their jobs and on the roads.

His suggestion: Educate workers about the symptoms of sleep disorders and prompt them to seek appropriate medical care.

The CDC has a new Web site with information about sleep disorders. The study can be found online here.

A recent Purdue University study may provide some clues.

When it comes to speeding, many people don’t worry about safety. They just worry about getting caught.

That’s one of the messages researchers took away from surveying almost 1,000 people.

They also found this correlation: The faster people think they can go before getting a ticket, the more likely they are to think safety’s not compromised at higher speeds.

As a safety pro, you know what happens after employees complete safety training. Many workers take the training to heart and follow the rules, such as always wearing their protective gear, or locking and tagging out equipment every time they perform maintenance.

But there’s always at least one in a crowd who has rationalized not following the rules. They think they’ll never get hurt. The only reason they might follow a safety rule is because of stiff consequences if they don’t.

Another finding by the researchers may be even more troubling. Getting stopped for speeding didn’t seem to have an effect on whether or not someone speeds again.

The researchers say this is probably because people who habitually speed aren’t significantly deterred by being stopped. Those who are inherently more conservative are more likely to slow down after getting a ticket.

What’s the lesson here? Perhaps it’s a call for a “two strikes and you’re out” policy when it comes to safety rules. Depending on the nature of the infraction, a second chance might be in order when a worker violates a safety rule.

But if they break the rule again, you may have someone who doesn’t care about safety – all they care about is whether they’ll get caught. Since no one can watch these workers every minute while they’re at work, the second strike may be a sign to let the worker go.

What do you think? Let us know in the Comments Box.