A video that shows how safety gear saved a worker’s life. A regulatory break from OSHA. The top causes of accidental death. And the “hash brown defense.” These are the stories that top Safety News Alert’s Year in Safety 2019.
Here’s the list:
- Top 10 causes of accidental death: Preventable deaths now claim 466 lives per day in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
- Video: Worker saved because he was tied off; truck crash sent him flying: This video provides an example of how wearing proper safety gear can prevent injury or death.
- Killed in company vehicle crash on the way home: Does widow get death benefits? An estimator, who traveled as part of his job, died when his work vehicle was involved in a crash on the way home. Did his widow get workers’ comp death benefits?
- OSHA recordkeeping break: Now only 1 electronic file required: OSHA scaled back the number of forms larger employers have to submit electronically.
- Injured in car crash while driving to work: Settlement awards employee $2 million: The coming and going rule usually prohibits workers’ comp from covering injuries suffered while an employee is traveling to or from work. Why was this case an exception?
- Subcontractor didn’t have workers’ comp insurance: Is general contractor responsible? Six employees were injured at a construction site. The general contractor found out the subcontractor that employed the injured workers didn’t have workers’ comp insurance. Did the injured workers get benefits from the general contractor’s policy?
- Worker blinded in screwdriver attack – will he get workers’ comp? A former co-worker stabbed a rest area overnight attendant in the face, permanently blinding him. He applied for workers’ comp benefits, but his employer denied the claim. How did a court rule?
- Fell asleep at wheel, crashed in company vehicle: Will he get workers’ comp? An employee fell asleep at the wheel of a company vehicle on his way home from work. Was there enough connection between his trip and his work duties to get workers’ comp benefits?
- Distracted driving defense: ‘I was holding a hash brown, not a cell phone’: After getting a ticket for alleged distracted driving while talking on a cell phone, this Connecticut resident went to court and was able to get his ticket thrown out by arguing he was actually eating a hash brown at the time.
- Active shooter training worked: Walmart employee helps lead 150 people to safety: Unlike other types of safety training employees use every day, active shooter instructions are the kind you hope they’ll never need. In the case of the mass shooting at the Walmart in El Paso, TX, this year, active shooter training may have saved dozens of lives.
Thank you for reading Safety News Alert in 2019. Check back for more stories like these and a major update on the website in 2020.
