Want fewer injuries at work? Perhaps your company should encourage employees to join weight loss and exercise programs.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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?
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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?
Read the rest of this entry »
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?
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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?
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
OSHA is going postal. No, not like that.
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
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:
Read the rest of this entry »
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.
Read the rest of this entry »
Situations in which a falling item kills a worker aren’t that uncommon. But in this case, the thing that fell was alive.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: bizarre accident, crushed, worker killed
A construction company faces $789,000 in fines and its owner could spend up to six months in jail following a worker fatality.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: criminal charges, fall fatality, jail, per-employee citations
Under their union contract at one company, workers were only paid for their “line time.” They weren’t compensated for the time it took to put on or take off safety gear.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: donning and doffing, FLSA, PPE, safety gear, union contract
Do some of your workers scoff at the idea that work-related noise can permanently damage their hearing? Here’s a first-person account of how that can happen from the drummer for heavy-metal band Metallica.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: hearing protection, Metallica, ringing in ears, tinnitus
Safety pros know that even the best safety gear doesn’t prevent worker injuries all by itself. But do workers know that? Do they feel their PPE makes them invincible?
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Injuries, invincible, PPE, safety gear
Several business groups, including the National Association of Manufacturers, have filed a lawsuit challenging OSHA’s per-employee penalty policy for safety gear violations.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: lawsuit, National Association of Manufacturers, per-employee violation, PPE, safety gear
OSHA has started to update its regulations to match national consensus standards.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: ANSI standards, consensus standards, eye face head foot protection, PPE regulations
Once OSHA finds significant safety violations at one facility, it’s likely to go after other locations owned by the same company.
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: fast moving machinery, OSHA fines, Sims Bark, Sims Stone, struck by equipment
Loading ...
