The Bureau of Labor Statistics says 39% of workers don’t have paid sick time. Result: People who can’t afford to receive smaller paychecks go to work sick. Then they spread their illness — including flu — to their co-workers.

“Providing workers with paid sick days is essential if we’re going to get serious about the public health recommendations for swine flu — stay home until 24 hours after your fever is broken,” said George Benjamin, executive director of the American Public Health Association. Staying home until a fever is broken may take up to five days.

According to The New York Times, workers at some retailers and restaurants say their employers’ policies discourage them from calling in sick.

Wal-Mart issues employees a demerit point when they miss a day of work. If employees get four demerits in six months, they begin receiving warnings that can lead to dismissal.

Fast food chain White Castle says its policy is that when an employee is ill, they are allowed — and required — to stay home until they’re well. However, White Castle doesn’t provide paid time off. A company VP says workers don’t have to lose pay because they can make up the missed time by working more hours after they’re well.

Supporters of a bill in Congress that would mandate companies with 15 or more workers to provide seven paid sick days a year are using the H1N1 pandemic to push their cause.

Business groups oppose the measure, saying it’s expensive and unnecessary.

Does the U.S. need to mandate paid sick time for workers? Let us know what you think in the Comments Box below.

Mezzanine Safety Gate

The Protect-O-Gate CLEAR-AISLE model is a revolutionary breakthrough for reducing the potential for falls and other accidents associated with mezzanine loading areas while taking up only 10” of aisle space. When “corral” is raised, ledge gates slide down so the worker has access to the load. Fall potential is eliminated. When “corral” is lowered, ledge gates slide up so the worker is blocked from the staging area. The CLEAR-AISLE provides access to the work area from three sides. It requires only 10” of space on the mezzanine ledge when “corral” is in the raised position. It offers ergonomic, counterbalanced operation. Durable, welded steel construction.

Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) originally drafted The American Communities Right to Public Information Act as a separate piece of legislation. It was passed into law as part of an appropriations bill for The Department of Homeland Security.

The amendment makes clear that the Sensitive Security Information designation created by recent homeland security laws can’t be used to withhold information that the government should share with the public.

The legislation was drafted in response to the Bayer CropScience explosion in August 2008 that killed two workers in Institute, WV.

The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee accused Bayer of using a “campaign of secrecy” regarding the explosion.

The committee said Bayer withheld critical information from emergency responders and investigators from the U.S. Chemical Safety Board.

The appropriations bill says information may not be designated as security sensitive “to conceal a violation of law, inefficiency, or administrative error … to prevent embarrassment to a person, organization or agency … to restrain competition … or to prevent or delay the release of information that doesn’t require protection in the interest of transportation security, including basic scientific research information.”

The American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) recently released a position statement on ergonomics (PDF) which supports “the development of ergonomics-related reporting, regulations and standards as a more effective long-term strategy” than guidelines.

AIHA says ergonomic regulations should focus on the development of health and safety programs that reduce the risk of musculoskeletal diseases (MSDs).

Specifically, AIHA has called for OSHA to:

• develop a strong and clear minimum standard for the recognition and abatement of hazards that result in MSDs based on the best available scientific and medical knowledge, and
• continue to require employers to record MSDs on Form 300, Log of Work-Related Injuries.

Earlier this year, interim OSHA administrator Jordan Barab called ergonomics “the 60,000-pound elephant in the room.” He acknowledged OSHA can’t create a new standard. Congress barred OSHA from issuing a similar standard when the original ergonomics rules were overturned in 2001.

However, Barab said, “we can fix this.”

Even during the Bush years, OSHA issued 19 General Duty Clause (GDC) citations for ergonomics.

Should OSHA address workplace ergonomics through regulations? Or should the agency just use the GDC to issue fines when it finds ergonomic problems? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

A government labor official says a McDonald’s store manager who died of a brain hemorrhage was a victim of “karoshi” — death by overwork.

The 41-year-old woman had worked more than 80 hours of overtime per month on average for the six months before her death. She suffered from headaches for three weeks before the brain hemorrhage.

She collapsed during a training program and died in the hospital three days later.

The determination that work caused her death makes her dependent family members eligible to receive a public pension.

Japan’s welfare and labor ministry investigates whether deaths are caused by overwork if the employee worked 80 or more hours of overtime for the preceding six months or 100 hours for the previous one month.

The ministry attributes about 150 deaths each year to karoshi, usually through strokes or heart attacks.

Earlier this year, a judge ruled a man’s suicide was due to his working conditions and ordered his employer to pay 100 million yen ($1.2 million) to his surviving relatives.

A judge ruled the company, an agricultural co-operative, failed to fulfill its duty to ensure workplace safety and prevent his death.

Do you think it’s possible to determine if an employee’s stroke or heart attack was caused by working too many hours? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

Maxlite PU Boots

MCR Safety now offers a 16” over the sock, 100% waterproof boot constructed of durable Polyurethane material that provides a high resistance to chemicals while providing exceptional shock absorption, insulation, and softness.  Steel toe meets ASTM 2412-05 and 2413-05 requirements and offers protection against impact and falling objects. Features cleated sole for excellent grip and slip resistance, polyester liner and kick off lug for ease in putting on and taking off.  Anti-Fungus and Anti-Bacteria treated.  Color: Brick with Beige outsole or Blue with Gray outsole.  Also available with plain toe.  Sizes available 5-14.  Call 800-955-6887 or visit www.mcrsafety.com for all of our PPE offerings.

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As states pass non-smoking laws, fewer service employees are exposed to customers’ second-hand smoke. But should companies be liable for their workers who still encounter it on the job? Some businesses are facing lawsuits.

Lawyers have filed two class-action lawsuits against Las Vegas casinos, alleging that the health of employees is being affected by second-hand smoke.

The latest lawsuit is against the Wynn Las Vegas. The first one was against Caesars Palace.

Caesars hasn’t filed its answer to the lawsuit. Wynn Las Vegas didn’t respond to a request for comment by the Las Vegas Sun.

The suit says the smoke is causing employees to suffer eye irritation, coughing, sore throat, sneezing, shortness of breath, dizziness, wheezing, tightness in the chest, asthma, headache, nausea, and ingestion of cancer-causing chemicals and toxins.

Lawyers for the casino workers claim some Las Vegas properties have taken measures to minimize second-hand smoke on their gaming floors. The Bellagio has a high-tech air filtration system. The Palazo built smoke-free corridors and half of its gaming area is non-smoking.

The suit also charges that Wynn employees risk losing their jobs if they complain about the second-hand smoke.

The suit seeks an order requiring Wynn “to take reasonable measures to protect its employees from second-hand smoke” and unspecified costs and attorney’s fees.

The suit against Caesars notes that the Palace and its sister properties, Bally’s and Paris, were part of a study released in May by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

The study found that casino dealers had traces of a tobacco-specific carcinogen in their urine. The NIOSH study said, “The increase in [a known lung carcinogen] in the urine of most non-poker casino dealers at the end of their work shift demonstrates that non-poker casino dealers are exposed to a known carcinogen in the tobacco smoke at the casinos. The best means of eliminating workplace exposure … is to ban all smoking in the casinos.”

What do you think about the lawsuit? Should a court be able to order a business to go smoke-free? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

The previous largest penalty was also against BP after the Texas City explosion. BP signed a settlement with OSHA and agreed to pay $21 million in fines.

As part of the settlement, BP also agreed to correct violations at the plant. OSHA claims it hasn’t. It’s issued 270 citations for failure-to-abate previous violations. That totals $556.7 million in fines at a rate of $7,000 per fine times 30 days.

OSHA also found 439 new willful violations, totaling $30.7 million.

Since the 2005 incident, four more fatalities have occurred at the Texas City facility.

The New York Times reports that, in the 30 years before the 2005 explosion, there were 23 deaths at the Texas City refinery.

“The $87 million fine won’t restore those [15] lives, but we can’t let this happen again,” said U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis.

“BP was given four years to correct the safety issues identified pursuant to the settlement agreement, yet OSHA has found hundreds of violations of the agreement and hundreds of new violations,” said acting OSHA administrator Jordan Barab.

Since the explosion, BP has settled more than 4,000 civil claims, paid from a $2.1 billion fund it set aside.

The BP refinery is the third largest in the country.

Do you think this large fine is justified against BP? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

You can also take our Quick Poll on the subject on our home page.

The number of violations in the top 10 increased almost 30% over the same time period in 2008.

The violations are:

1. Scaffolding: 9,093
2. Fall protection: 6,771
3. Hazard communication: 6,378
4. Respiratory protection: 3,803
5. Lockout/tagout: 3,321
6. Electrical (wiring): 3,079
7. Ladders: 3,072
8. Powered industrial trucks (forklifts): 2,993
9. Electrical: 2,556
10. Machine guarding: 2,364.

OSHA will update these numbers later in 2009. The preliminary list was released at the National Safety Council’s annual congress.

A worker at David’s Cookies was assigned one day to pack biscotti into boxes after they passed through a chopping machine. Sometimes small bits of cookie caused the machine to get clogged.

The employee had worked at the cookie production plant for a year, but never near the biscotti machine. She didn’t speak or read English.

The biscotti machine got clogged. While it was still running, the employee reached her hand under the machine’s guard. Her hand came into contact with the blade, and its chopping motion caused her significant injuries.

The worker sued her employer for intentional harm.

David’s Cookies pointed out that the machine had a proper guard and a sign with a pictogram that showed workers they shouldn’t stick their hands into the machine. Workers’ comp should cover this case, the employer said.

The employee argued she’d never been given training on the biscotti machine.

The company won when the court threw out the lawsuit. The judge wrote an employer “could … assume that a rational person is not gonna stick his hand in a machine that’s being operated by electrical power” but would “call somebody or pull the plug or disengage the machinery.”

Cite: Cong Su v. David’s Cookies, Superior Court of NJ, 8/10/09.

The magazine used four criteria: workplace deaths, violent crime, fatal crashes and natural disasters.

And the winner is: Minneapolis. The city ranks in the top 10 in all four categories.

The Midwest placed four metropolitan areas in the top-10 list. Milwaukee came in #2, Cincinnati #9, and Cleveland tied for #10 with Denver.

Is New York City really unsafe? Not according to this survey. It ranked #8.

Milwaukee had the lowest natural disaster risk of the cities considered. Portland, OR, had the lowest crime rate and came in #3 overall.

Boston and Seattle were tied for fourth because of low traffic fatality rates. Why do they have fewer traffic deaths per capita? They have better mass transit systems that keep drunk drivers off the road.

When it comes to measuring workplace deaths, the industries located in the cities come into play. There are fewer deaths per capita in areas like Seattle and San Jose (#7 overall) where there are lots of technology and service jobs. Pittsburgh and Indianapolis didn’t make the top-10 list because of more industrial jobs with higher fatality rates.

Forbes only looked at the top 40 most populated metropolitan areas. So places like Memphis, TN, and Richmond, VA, weren’t ranked.

Capanna worked for a contractor that had been hired by an oil refinery in Paulsboro, NJ.

Oct. 5, 1979 was his last day on the job there. He’d been concerned about some other injuries that had occurred at the refinery.

The final job: Remove an old water pump. The bolts that held the pump in place were so rusted they couldn’t be moved. So Capanna got the OK to use an acetylene torch to burn the bolts off.

He was burning off the last bolt when there was an explosion and flash fire.

Turns out, the pump wasn’t for water, it was for crude oil. Capanna was covered in crude oil, and he burst into flames.

The flash blinded him, but he managed to get out of the building that housed the pump. His flesh was engulfed in flames, and he fell.

Two other workers patted the flames out.

Capanna continued to burn for hours because the hot crude oil had stuck to him.

Through all this, he never lost consciousness. He felt everything, and burns are some of the most excruciating injuries because they leave nerves damaged and exposed.

As part of his treatment, his eyes were sewn shut for three months so his eyelids would not shrink while awaiting a skin graft. A pair of glasses worn during the blast saved Capanna’s sight.

In 1979, psychological treatment for severe burn patients was different than today. There were no mirrors anywhere in his hospital room where he could see himself. Even spoons were plastic so he couldn’t see his reflection in them.

One day while he was away from his room working with a physical therapist, Capanna slipped into a public restroom to look in the mirror.

The site of his own face made him throw up. He wasn’t prepared for what he saw in the mirror: missing ears, lips and nose.

“I was devastated,” Capanna said.

Over the course of 20 years, Capanna had 75 surgeries to close his skin and reconstruct his nose, ears and lips.

But reconstructive surgery has its limitations. Children would look at him and say, “Look mommy, a monster.” Adults would turn away from him.

Today, Capanna works with the Phoenix Society, a national organization that works with people who suffer burn injuries.

He recently told his story to The Pocono Record. It’s a story that’s sure to have an impact on workers.

The Book of Odds (www.bookofodds.com) compares the risks and uncertainties of daily life.

The site has an entire category on Accidents & Deaths, and a sub-section on Workplace Accidents.

Among the statistics you’d find there:

• 1 in 25.89: the odds a workplace death will be caused by an electric current
• 1 in 32.86: the odds a workplace death will be caused by an aircraft accident
• 1 in 16.05: the odds a workplace death will be caused by being struck by a vehicle.

You get the picture. So a worker is more likely to die on the job from being struck by a vehicle than an aircraft accident.

Short articles on topics also contain links to the source of the information, such as the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

So the next time naysayers in a safety training class say, “What’s the chance of that kind of accident happening here?” you can tell them.

A survey shows 91% of Americans said they want their co-workers to remain at home if they’re infected with H1N1.

And those workers have support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The agency recommends people with flu stay home until their temperature drops below 100°F without pain relievers for 24 hours to reduce its spread.

Other findings from the Mansfield Communications survey of 2,029 Americans:

• 69% of workers said they’d received no communication about policies in the workplace pertaining to H1N1
• 84% believe the recession creates more pressure to show up for work, even if they feel sick
• 47% said they’d still engage in public activities (riding the bus, picking up a prescription or grocery shopping) even when they were infected with H1N1 and required to stay home from work, and
• 84% were likely to report a colleague who had flu symptoms.

Recently, SafetyNewsAlert.com asked our readers how prepared they were for a swine flu outbreak:

• 52% somewhat prepared
• 29% not at all prepared
• 17% well prepared, and
• 2% don’t think swine flu will affect their company.

So if you’re like many businesses playing catch-up when it comes to flu preparedness, the federal government has a Web page with suggestions.

Now, we’d like to hear from you. What should a company’s policy be about workers who have the flu? Should they be required to stay home? What happens when so many workers are sick that it affects productivity? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

A casino dealer at Harrah’s Metropolis Casino in Illinois claimed she hurt her back while dealing a stand-up card game.

She said she had to twist her upper torso to take the cards in her left hand from the card dispenser located to her right.

Her doctor said she aggravated a prior back injury which was caused by repetitive bending and twisting as a card dealer.

The casino argued that the work incident was only a minor contributing factor.

Result: The Workers’ Compensation Commission ruled that the employee established her accident arose out of and in the course of employment. She’ll get comp benefits.

Does your company teach proper lifting to any employees performing mostly service functions? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

Cite: Britton v. Harrah’s Metropolis Casino, Ill. W.C. Comm. 2009.

When SafetyNewsAlert.com reported on the OSHA recordkeeping inspection program, readers responded with their best safety incentive ideas that don’t discourage injury reporting:

• Bill B.: True safety incentives are a positive reinforcement of the safety culture. We have set up a program for “on the spot” recognition for above and beyond safety actions. Seems to be working on our construction site with 20 contractors and over 70 workers.
• Dave B.: Supervisors should reward safe practices like wearing PPE, reporting hazards or developing safe solutions. When the employees wearing proper PPE and following safety procedures get all the free stuff, it doesn’t take long for the other employees to join in.
• Safety Sam: I developed a plan to base incentives on employee participation instead of simply not getting hurt. I made a list of things that I wanted to get done, and then presented that to the employee safety committee with the mandate to base getting the incentives on getting this stuff done. It was hugely successful and took away any edge that OSHA might have had in using our incentive plan against us. (Sam is at an OSHA Voluntary Protection Program site.)
• Tim H.: (1) Base the incentive on behavior (individual and collective) not injury reports, and (2) Structure a supervisor’s performance review so that a failure to make a required injury report is a negative.
• Alex: (Our plan is) based on proactive activities reported to and recorded and audited by the safety department. Measurements include number of near-misses reported, job/task observations, area inspections, safety team meetings, completion of compliance and awareness training, and monthly safety topics.

Even more comments had this general theme: Reward positive safety behavior, not a lack of injuries.

You can take our Quick Poll on safety incentive programs on our home page.

Employees across the country have a message for their co-workers during this H1N1 flu season: Don’t come in if you’re sick.

A survey shows 91% of Americans said they want their co-workers to remain at home if they’re infected with H1N1.

And those workers have support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The agency recommends people with flu stay home until their temperature drops below 100°F without pain relievers for 24 hours to reduce its spread.

Other findings from the Mansfield Communications survey of 2,029 Americans:

• 69% of workers said they’d received no communication about policies in the workplace pertaining to H1N1
• 84% believe the recession creates more pressure to show up for work, even if they feel sick
• 47% said they’d still engage in public activities (riding the bus, picking up a prescription or grocery shopping) even when they were infected with H1N1 and required to stay home from work, and
• 84% were likely to report a colleague who had flu symptoms.

Recently, SafetyNewsAlert.com asked our readers how prepared they were for a swine flu outbreak:

• 52% somewhat prepared
• 29% not at all prepared
• 17% well prepared, and
• 2% don’t think swine flu will affect their company.

So if you’re like many businesses playing catch-up when it comes to flu preparedness, the federal government has a Web page with suggestions.

Now, we’d like to hear from you. What should a company’s policy be about workers who have the flu? Should they be required to stay home? What happens when so many workers are sick that it affects productivity? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

Saturation proof Sweat GUTR Sweatband

Introducing the innovative, saturation proof, Sweat GUTR (GUTR) sweatband that is proving very successful in the age-old battle to provide clear vision to industrial workers struggling to keep sweat out of their eyes.  Traditional sweatbands try to absorb sweat and eventually become saturated and lose their effectiveness. The GUTR is non-absorbent and works by diverting sweat away from the eyes and glasses providing continuous superior sweat management performance.  Since the sweatband never saturates, it is basically dry after use and it can be worn every day. Also, the GUTR typically only requires annual replacement which can provide companies with very significant savings on the sweatband expenditures on a yearly basis. The GUTR is comfortable and fully adjustable to fit most head sizes. The product also works well with hard hats, caps and safety glasses.

The GUTR also provides a heat stress management benefit superior to bandanas and wraps that cover the head.  It has been designed with a slim profile to allow heat to escape from the top of the head unimpeded, assisting the body to help cool itself.  For more product information or to arrange a trial order please contact Greg Thurmond at Greg@SweatGUTR.com .  More information is also available at http://www.sweatgutr.com/industrial-sweatband.html

The agency has cited Sealcoating, Inc., of Hingham, MA, for $38,100 in violations after a nighttime inspection on its bridge restoration work.

The contractor was cited for 11 alleged repeat and serious violations as part of OSHA’s Boston North Area Office’s efforts to inspect construction projects where silica is generated.

“Employers should not assume that OSHA will not conduct inspections because much of their work is done at night,” said Paul Mangiafico, an OSHA area director.

Among the citations:

• employees exposed to excess silica levels while jack hammering concrete
• no controls to lower exposure levels
• failure to evaluate employees’ exposure levels
• inadequate respirator protection program and training, and
• no fit-testing of respirators.

The company has 15 days to decide whether to appeal the citations.

Its tough construction of high density plastic with stainless steel blades has a long useful life and lasts for hundreds of cuts. After that it can be conveniently discarded or recycled, eliminating the need to handle or replace used blades.

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The Pearl Room in Bay Ridge, NY, was fined by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division because the teenager was working in violation of the child labor provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

The teen was killed when he tried to stop a rolling minivan from hitting another parked car.

Police say the teen had hopped out of the vehicle without putting it in park.

When the van started rolling backwards, he ran behind it and tried to stop it from moving. But the force of the van threw him backward, pinning him against another vehicle.

The FLSA prohibits 17-year-old workers from driving vehicles after sunset as part of their jobs.

The $50,000 penalty is the maximum allowed under a recent amendment to the FLSA. The $604 was for the employer’s failure to record the young worker’s date of birth.

OSHA had investigated this case and referred it to the Wage and Hour Division.

A tow-truck operator in Connecticut is dealing with a bizarre twist on workplace violence. Her pet chimpanzee went nuts on an employee, ripping off her hands, nose, lips and eyelids, according to an Associated Press story. Eight months later, the employee remains hospitalized.

And her family wants to sue the chimp’s owner for $50 million.

But the owner is claiming that workers’ comp should be the exclusive remedy, insisting that the chimp was an integral part of the business. The proof? His picture was on the wrecker and he regularly made promotional appearances.

Further, the house where the attack happened is a business office. And the employee’s duties included cleaning the chimp’s play area and picking up his supplies, says the company’s lawyer.

If the courts agree, the employee will have her medical bills paid, and will get some sort of wage replacement, but zilch for pain and suffering.

It’s an interesting strategy for the employer, and one that creates a quandary for the victim, the story points out. She has only one year to file a comp claim. If she chooses not to, and the lawsuit is eventually tossed, she could be left with nothing.

Is the employer unfairly trying to exploit the system? Or is the strategy simply a fair response to existing laws?  Let us know in the comments box below.

Now with just a couple mouse clicks, the whole world can see which U.S. companies had an employee fatality in the previous week.

Example: For the week of Aug. 28, 2009, OSHA’s Weekly Fatality Report lists 18 incidents. First on the list is an incident involving Tri-State Electrical Contracting, Inc., Bay Terrace, NY. The Web page lists Nature of Incident as “victim was operating a knuckle boom truck and was crushed between the boom and the controls.”

That’s all the information given.

While the Web page explains how OSHA receives the incident information, there’s no word (at least as of the writing of this article) on what purpose the agency thinks posting this information will serve.

So, we have two guesses:

1. OSHA hopes employers use the information in safety training to show workers the real-life consequences of various workplace hazards, or
2. OSHA is posting the information to call attention to companies that just experienced a worker fatality or other catastrophe.

There are two potential problems with either of these uses. If these are meant to be used as teaching lessons for employees, the items are light on detail. If this is meant as a Wall of Shame for the companies involved, OSHA is posting the information before investigations can be completed, and before exact cause for the incident can be determined.

One more note: When the page for the Weekly Fatality Reports first appeared on OSHA’s Web site, many may not have found it. To access it, you had to find a one-line clickable link among everything on OSHA’s home page. A few days later, OSHA made it highly noticeable, front and center, in a bright blue box in the middle of its home page.

While safety pros can agree that sharing information about workplace fatalities can help prevent similar incidents from happening, it’s not entirely clear what OSHA’s intention of posting the information is.

What do you think? Is this useful information for safety training? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

Extended service life – 7-year interval before an unused unit is required for recertification.

A proper safety at height program includes the necessary steps for safe and quick rescue in an emergency. The new Miller SafEscape ELITE Rescue/Descent Device (RDD) is the next-generation global solution for rescue/descent that lowers cost of ownership, meets all applicable safety standards throughout the world, enhances safety and is easy to use. Available as basic Miller SafEscape ELITE RDD models or in custom-designed kits for Wind Energy and Tower Crane applications.

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In some states, when workers are placed on permanent partial disability, it’s expected that injured employees will make a “good-faith effort” to find alternate employment they can perform. However, one state court just found a reason to overturn that 15-year precedent and allow a worker to keep collecting.

Carolyn Bergstrom worked for Spears Manufacturing Co. as a production janitor. One day, after lifting a garbage can and setting it back down, she felt pain in her back.

The next day the pain became severe, and she was reassigned to sorting parts. She was unable to do that because standing in one place caused her too much discomfort.

An orthopedic surgeon directed her to stop working and file for disability benefits. Initially, she was awarded permanent total disability by an administrative law judge (ALJ).

But the state workers’ comp board set aside that decision, and the ALJ suggested Bergstrom try to return to work. She did, and she was again assigned to the parts sorting job.  She said she wasn’t able to perform the job for more than 3 hours because of pain and went home. The company fired her.

Then her award was reduced to permanent partial disability. The state’s workers’ comp board found that Bergstrom “didn’t exercise good faith” when she failed to perform alternate job duties that her company offered her after her injury.

Bergstrom appealed.

An appeals court upheld the reduction of her award based on the “good-faith effort” doctrine that appeals courts in Kansas had applied to such cases for 15 years. In other words, a workers’ comp award could be reduced if the injured employee didn’t make a good-faith effort to seek out and accept alternate employment.

But a majority on the Kansas Supreme Court ruled that the state’s workers’ comp law contained no such good-faith provision. It ruled that appeals courts in the state had ruled incorrectly for years on the matter. So in this case, it reversed the lower court’s ruling and sent it back for further consideration.

The upshot: It appears until this is corrected by an act of the Kansas legislature, employees can decide they suffer too much pain after a workplace accident, leave their job and collect benefits without looking for alternate employment.

Let us know what you think about this case in the Comments Box below.

Cite: Bergstrom v. Spears, Supreme Court of KS, No. 99,369, 9/4/09.

Celebrity Web site TMZ.com posted two photographs and a video showing Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s wife, Maria Shriver, driving a large SUV while holding a cell phone.

On his Twitter feed, Schwarzenegger wrote to TMZ, “Thanks for bringing her violations to my attention. There’s going to be swift action.”

The governor’s office clarified that “swift action” meant he’ll ask his wife not to hold the phone while driving.

Schwarzenegger signed a law that took effect in July 2008 that requires California drivers to use a hands-free device when talking on cell phones in vehicles.

Since then, the California Highway Patrol has issued more than 150,000 citations. That doesn’t include tickets from local police departments.

If she’d been caught by police, Shriver would have owed about $300 for two violations.

Schwarzenegger has praised the cell phone law, saying he warned his teenage daughter that if she ever violated it, “she’ll be taking the bus.”

Schwarzenegger’s restatement of support for the law comes within a week of President Obama’s signing of an Executive Order prohibiting federal employees from using hand-held electronic devices while driving on the job.

Let us know what you think in the Comments Box below.

Police in Port Panama City say the explosion happened in two dust collectors. An investigation will determine what triggered it.

Authorities say it started in an area where a coating is put on pipes.

The facility will be shut down for several days while OSHA investigates.

After going from three shifts to one and briefly shutting down in December, Monday — the day of the blast — was the first time that all three shifts were up and running again.

Federal statistics show, in a 25-year period, 281 combustible dust explosions and fires killed 119 workers and injured 718.

This week, our SafetyNewsAlert.com Quick Poll was on combustible dust. We asked: Do you think OSHA needs a new standard on combustible dust?

• 51% said no, OSHA should use its existing regulations, and
• 49% said yes, current regulations aren’t enough.

A total of 430 readers voted. Check our home page for a new poll later this week.

In April, Charles Sittig was killed at the CES Environmental Services facility in Port Arthur, TX.

Three men have died at CES plants since December 2008.

OSHA cited the company for 34 violations, including a willful citation for failure to establish a rescue team capable of assisting a worker who becomes incapacitated while cleaning out chemicals tanks.

Other citations include raised platforms without railings, poorly maintained ladders and failure to develop decontamination procedures.

The company has 15 days to decide whether to contest the citations.

Two workers died recently at CES’ Houston plant. In December 2008, one worker died in an explosion that sent metal debris into nearby properties. In July 2009, a CES employee died when an explosion and flash fire at the Houston plant knocked him from the top of a mobile tank he was filling with water. OSHA is still investigating that death.

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An OSHA investigation says Ismael Octtaviani-Mercado died from a 31-foot fall at the Palm Beach International Airport.

Octtaviani-Mercado had jury-rigged a stool to remove a light fixture, then tumbled over a rail and fell three stories.

Using the stool placed him higher than the nearby rail. Investigators believe he lost his footing and went over the rail.

Octtaviani-Mercado was working on an air surveillance radar tower that had been decommissioned after heavy damage caused by hurricanes in 2004.

He decided on his own to go to the third level to salvage light fixtures for use on an active tower. The fixtures are expensive, and it was common practice to salvage them for use elsewhere.

He was working alone when he fell.

OSHA doesn’t have the authority to fine other federal agencies, but it can perform investigations like this one.

President Obama has signed an Executive Order banning 4.5 million employees from texting while driving.

Whose employees? The federal government’s, including the military.

Federal workers are banned, effective immediately, from text messaging when they are behind the wheel of government vehicles and from texting in their own cars if they use government-issued phones or are on official business.

The order also encourages federal contractors and others doing business with the government to do the same.

The measure comes in the wake of a meeting in Washington of 300 federal and state officials to discuss growing safety concerns about cell phone use while driving.

Along with the federal employee ban, the Obama administration plans to ban texting by bus drivers and truckers who travel across state lines and may also make it illegal for them to use cell phones while driving, except in emergencies.

Some in the trucking industry are concerned about what effect this will have on the computers thousands of long-haul truckers use in their cabs to communicate with dispatchers and do other work.

However, both Federal Express and UPS already prohibit their drivers from using these devices or other hand-held communication devices while their vehicles are in motion.

When UPS trucks are moving, they can’t receive two-way messages, according to the company.

The District of Columbia and 18 states ban texting while driving to different degrees.

One option the federal government could use to encourage more states to enact these types of laws would be to threaten their federal highway funding. The federal government used that tactic to get states to lower the legal blood-alcohol limit while driving to .08 and to increase the drinking age to 21.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 11% of drivers on the road at any given moment are using hand-held cell phones.

The Harvard Center of Risk Analysis says cell phone use is contributing to 6% of all crashes a year, resulting in 2,600 deaths and 342,000 injuries.

The National Safety Council reports several hundred companies have banned employees from using their cell phones while driving.

What should government do – or not do – to regulate use of cell phones while driving? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

Workers were cleaning and dismantling old gasoline storage tanks at a Miami, FL, convenience store when the explosion occurred.

Rescue workers rushed the 38-year-old man to the hospital in hopes doctors may be able to reattach the leg, which was severed below the knee.

Two workers were cleaning and dismantling two 3,000-gallon gas tanks after they were dug up at the store.

While cutting through one tank, a spark from a saw ignited fumes. The tanks hadn’t been used for 20 years.

Part of one tank struck the one worker’s leg.

Last week, OSHA announced a National Emphasis Program (NEP) on recordkeeping.

The agency wants to find out whether the nation’s workplace injury rate is really at its lowest point ever as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

BLS uses reports issued by employers to tabulate the injury rate.

OSHA’s targets in this NEP: Facilities in high-injury industries that have much lower-than-average injuries. The theory: Some of these employers are under-reporting injuries.

OSHA told it’s inspectors on this NEP to ask employees about their company’s safety incentive programs, specifically if they may discourage reporting of injuries. The inspectors will interview a minimum of 10 employees, more if the facility has over 100 workers.

Inspectors have been told to obtain copies of these incentive programs and note their existence in their reports.

While the guidelines say most recordkeeping violations uncovered through this NEP will be classified as “other-than-serious” violations, the citations may also be raised to the willful level when inspectors can document deliberate under-reporting.

Existence of incentive programs may be used to back up raising a recordkeeping violation to the willful level.

What’s your theory on safety incentive programs? How can a company develop an incentive program that reduces injuries yet doesn’t discourage reporting of incidents? Let us know what you think in the Comments Box below.

Our current Quick Poll asks about safety incentive programs. You can take our Quick Poll on our home page.