Why aren’t fatigue and lack of good sleep addressed more often as factors in workplace safety? There are several barriers: lack of awareness and information often not recognized as a safety and health hazard in the workplace, and lack of understanding of the strategies needed to manage it. Workplace culture can also contribute. Are long […]
Sometimes, when safety people go out on a plant floor, other employees go the other way. Why? Because it’s often perceived that safety people find things that are wrong and then fix them. The result: resentment and fear. Addiction to blame often undermines safety programs and employee engagement. Blame often arises from Root Cause Analyses […]
A new study from NIOSH says many workers still don’t use hearing protection devices (HPD) when exposed to noise on the job – and that includes some industries you might not expect. Among all noise-exposed workers, 53% said they didn’t use HPD “always” or “usually.” NIOSH researchers found some of the highest rates of HPD […]
Just as a general rule of safety, workers who are setting up and using ladders should check for overhead power lines before putting a ladder in place – failing to do so could be fatal and is also against some state regulations. Washington State’s Department of Labor & Industries recently released a report on a painting […]
The U.S. Department of Labor and OSHA have announced measures, including enhanced enforcement, to protect workers from the hazards of extreme heat – outdoors and indoors. OSHA is: implementing an enforcement initiative on heat-related hazards developing a National Emphasis Program on heat inspections launching a rulemaking process to develop a workplace heat standard, and forming a […]
A Georgia poultry processing plant that had a fatal liquid nitrogen release in January 2021 was cited by OSHA after the plant experienced another chemical release March 11. Less than two months after the nitrogen leak killed six workers, leading to $1 million in fines for four companies, the plant experienced an ammonia leak. Inspectors found […]
Generators can be real life savers in the wake of a natural disaster such as a hurricane or blizzard. However, they also come with quite a few serious hazards, including: electrocution from improper use of power or accidental energizing of other electrical systems carbon monoxide from the exhaust fires from improper refueling, and noise and […]
A Montana company accused of exposing employees at its Anaconda plant to high levels of arsenic admitted that it had violated the Clean Air Act and has agreed to settle a civil case with OSHA regarding related safety and health violations. U.S. Minerals Inc. pleaded guilty Aug. 23 to one misdemeanor count of negligent endangerment […]
Q: Can OSHA cite a company under the General Duty Clause (GDC) for exposing employees to extreme heat? A: Yes, but a court recently set a high bar for OSHA to use the GDC for this hazard, according to Courtney Malveaux, attorney with Jackson Lewis PC. Historically, OSHA has protected workers against extreme heat by […]
