An AT&T technician was assaulted in an attempted robbery during a service call. OSHA says the company didn’t do enough to protect its employee in the field.
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Tags: assault-related death, AT&T, General Duty Clause, OSHA
For the second time in recent weeks, a company says it will contest OSHA fines in connection with the death of an employee due to heat stress.
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Tags: contest OSHA fine, General Duty Clause, heat related death, heat stress
You’ve provided safety training and your workers perform hazard analyses before starting jobs. Then an employee’s action leads to his death. Is it an OSHA violation or unpreventable employee misconduct?
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Tags: General Duty Clause, lockout/tagout, Otis elevator, unpreventable employee misconduct
It’s been four years since a Wal-Mart employee was trampled to death by a Black Friday crowd in Valley Stream, NY. OSHA fined the mega-store $7,000. Wal-Mart has now spent millions fighting the fine.
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Tags: Black Friday, General Duty Clause, trampling death, Wal-Mart
OSHA investigated a chain of four convenience stores after a clerk at one died as result of injuries she suffered in a robbery. The robber dowsed the 76-year-old woman with a flammable liquid and set her on fire.
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Tags: convenience store, General Duty Clause, set on fire, workplace violence
OSHA doesn’t have any regulations specific to making sure workers are protected from heat. But that doesn’t stop the agency from fining companies for failing to protect workers against hot conditions.
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Tags: General Duty Clause, heat related death, heat stress, outdoor workers
An employee at an amusement park was killed by lightning. OSHA says the park could have done more to protect and train its employees.
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Tags: Adventure Island, General Duty Clause, killed by lightning
In cases in which a particular hazard isn’t addressed by any OSHA standard, the General Duty Clause, Section 5(a)(1), may be cited.
The GDC says:
Each employer shall furnish to each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees.
How does OSHA define “recognized hazards”? In its Field Operations Manual (FOM) for inspectors, OSHA lists three ways in which a hazard qualifies as recognized:
OSHA has said it will use the GDC in several areas in which it doesn’t have a standard, including:
One specific example: OSHA used the GDC against Wal-Mart in 2009 after one of its employees was trampled to death by uncontrolled holiday crowds. There is no OSHA regulation for controlling crowds at retail establishments.
Some other cases in which OSHA has used the GDC:
For one serious violation of the GDC, OSHA can issue a maximum $7,000 fine. A willful violation of the GDC carries a maximum $70,000 fine.
GDC fines can add up. GDC citations are in the top 10 highest assessed penalties OSHA levies.
“This is one more example that OSHA can use the General Duty Clause in most situations where we don’t have a standard,” Michaels said. “There are many hazards we don’t have standards for.”
Tags: Field Operations Manual, General Duty Clause, recognized hazards
OSHA has denied a request by several groups to enact an Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) setting a heat threshold level for workers. But OSHA is addressing the issue, including enforcement through the General Duty Clause (GDC).
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Tags: Emergency Temporary Standard, General Duty Clause, heat stress, Public Citizen
(Denver, CO) For safety professionals and the companies they work for, the recent opinion by an administrative law judge upholding fines against SeaWorld Orlando for the death of a trainer pulled underwater by a killer whale upholds a key OSHA power.
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Tags: David Michaels, General Duty Clause, SeaWorld, Wal-Mart
