The following statement was issued by Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez to recognize the June 2 National Safety Stand-Down:
Falls are the leading cause of death in the construction industry. Almost 300 construction workers died in falls in 2012—that's nearly one every day. Thousands more were seriously injured. These are senseless tragedies that are preventable—through planning at the worksite and by providing proper fall protection and training on how to use it.
This week, the Labor Department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration is partnering with tens of thousands of businesses for a national safety "stand-down" to stop fatal falls. During Stand-Down events, a record number of companies and workers nationwide will voluntarily pause work to raise awareness about fall hazards and how to prevent them.
These events will run throughout the week all across the country. We estimate that more than a million workers and over 25,000 businesses will participate. This is an unprecedented effort and we want the outcome—in the form of fewer fatal accidents—to be unprecedented as well. Never before have we been able to reach such a large number of people with a single worker safety initiative, and it couldn't come at a more vital time.
With the economy recovering and housing starts on the rise, this is the moment to ensure that no one has to lose their life in order to make a living. The summer construction season is underway as we speak. Now is the moment to make sure those who build our homes are able to return safe and sound to their own homes every night.
And this isn't just about the construction industry. Fatal falls and injuries touch workers in all kinds of jobs across the country. It's a widespread problem that has a devastating impact not only on workers and their families, but on our economy. The record number of people mobilizing for this Stand-Down just underscores what we can all accomplish when we work together.
The US Air Force will be hosting fall stand-down events at their bases worldwide—so we can ensure the job safety of the men and women who keep us safe every day. At the Daytona Speedway, where a massive renovation project is currently underway, NASCAR driver Greg Biffle will emphasize the importance of fall safety by strapping on a fall arrest system rather than strapping into his car.
These are just a few examples of innovative stand-down activities taking place this week. Working with labor unions, business leaders, community groups, universities, and safety and health professionals, we can make a real difference in preventing falls. We can Stand-Down for Safety and we can save lives.
EPA’s New Solvent Wipe, Shop Towel Rule Demystified
- Does the rule apply to both cloth and paper wipes and rags?
- What solvents can be on the towels, and which are prohibited?
- Does the rule also apply to towels that contain characteristic hazardous waste?
- Can P or U-listed wastes be on the towels?
- How must the towels be stored on-site?
- Do they need to be tested for anything?
- How long can they be stored?
- How must the containers be marked or labeled?
- How must they be prepared for transportation?
- Where can you ship them and what are the disposal and recycling options?
- What are the documentation requirements?
- How is the new rule impacted by current state regulations?
How to Implement OSHA’s Globally Harmonized Hazard Communication Standard (GHS)
OSHA has issued a final rule revising its Hazard Communication Standard, aligning it with the United Nations’ globally harmonized system (GHS) for the classification and labeling of hazardous chemicals. This means that virtually every product label, safety data sheet (formerly called “material safety data sheet” or MSDS), and written hazard communication plan must be revised to meet the new standard. Worker training must be updated so that workers can recognize and understand the symbols and pictograms on the new labels as well as the new hazard statements and precautions on safety data sheets.
Dayton RCRA and DOT Training
Raleigh RCRA, DOT, and EHS Training
Macon RCRA and DOT Training
CSB Releases New Computer Animation of 2010 Deepwater Horizon Blowout
. The video depicts how high-pressure oil and gas from the Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico caused an explosion on the drilling rig that killed 11 workers and seriously injured 17 others. The rig burned for two days, eventually sinking and triggering the largest oil spill in US history.
The 11-minute animation illustrates how the Deepwater Horizon’s blowout preventer failed to seal the well on the night of the accident because drill pipe buckled due to a mechanism known as “effective compression.” The video shows that the blowout preventer’s blind shear ram—an emergency hydraulic device with two sharp cutting blades meant to cut the drill pipe and seal the well—likely did activate on the night of the accident. However, because the drill pipe was buckled and off-center inside the blowout preventer, it was trapped and only partially cut. The video explains how this failure directly led to the massive oil spill and contributed to the severity of the incident on the drilling rig.
The video notes that although effective compression has previously been identified as a hazard in other drilling operations, it has never before been recognized as a problem affecting drill pipe during well operations. CSB investigators say this is an important finding because the same conditions that buckled the drill pipe during the Deepwater Horizon accident could occur at other drilling rigs—even if a crew successfully shuts in a well. The video warns this could make existing blowout preventer designs less effective in emergency situations.
Continental Manufacturing Co. Fined $286,200 for Exposing Workers to Serious Hazards
Proposed penalties total $286,200.
"By failing to identify and correct these numerous safety and health violations, Continental Mixer has exposed its workers to needless and unnecessary hazards, jeopardizing employees' safety," said Mark Briggs, OSHA's area director in the Houston South Area Office.
The 22 serious safety and health violations, with a penalty of $122,300, include failure to indicate the identity of the employee applying a lockout/tagout device and to keep hand tools in safe working condition. Additionally, the company was cited for lack of maintaining personal protective equipment in a sanitary and reliable condition; failure to evaluate workers medically for physical fitness and to use air purifying respirators; and failure to maintain or replace breathing air filters, as instructed by the manufacturer. A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.
A repeat violation exists when an employer previously has been cited for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule, or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years. Similar violations were cited at a related facility in Springfield, Ohio.
Nine other violations, with $9,900 in penalties, were issued for failure to store compressed gas cylinders properly; record injuries and illnesses; identify and evaluate respiratory hazards; and fit test facepiece respirators before employee use.
The program focuses on recalcitrant employers that endanger workers by committing willful, repeat or failure-to-abate violations.
OSHA Schedules Stakeholder Meeting to Consider Proposed Standard to Protect Safety, Health of Emergency Responders
OSHA has scheduled an informal stakeholder meeting to gather information as it considers developing a proposed standard for emergency response and preparedness. The meeting will be held July 30, 2014, in Washington, D.C.
OSHA issued a Request for Information on September 11, 2007, that requested comments from the public to evaluate what action, if any, the agency should take to further address emergency response and preparedness. Recent events, including the West, Texas, explosion that killed several emergency responders, and additional information gathered in response to the RFI show that responder health and safety continues to be an area of ongoing concern.
The meeting will convene at 9 a.m., July 30, 2014, at the US Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20210. If needed, a second session will be held July 31. The registration deadline is July 2, 2014.
The meeting will not include formal presentations but instead will be conducted as a group discussion. OSHA will focus on issues such as scope and approach surrounding emergency response and preparedness.
OSHA Fines Dollar Tree $217,000 for Willfully Putting Missoula Workers at Risk
OSHA began its inspection in November 2013 after receiving a complaint about dangerous conditions at a store located in Missoula.
"This employer's extensive history of ignoring basic safety standards establishes a clear pattern of intentional and complete disregard for employee safety," said Jeff Funke, OSHA's area director in Billings. "Employers have an obligation to keep their workers safe, and Dollar Tree keeps failing to do that."
OSHA cited Dollar Tree Stores with four violations of safety standards, including three willful and one repeat, with proposed penalties totaling $217,000. The willful violations involve the employer's failure to keep exit routes free and unobstructed, storing materials in unstable and unsecured ways and for using space around electrical equipment for storage. A willful violation is one committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law's requirements, or with plain indifference to worker safety and health.
The company was cited with one repeat violation for failure to handle and store compressed helium gas cylinders securely. OSHA has cited Dollar Tree Stores for this exact violation at several stores throughout the country. In addition, OSHA's area office in Wilmington, Delaware, cited Dollar Tree Stores in April with three similar willful safety violations, with penalties totaling $143,000.
Tanner Timber Services’ Safety Violations Lead to Worker Fatality
An employee was struck and killed by a piece of lumber in excess of 800 lb that kicked out of a machine at the company's Kountze facility.
"It is the employer's responsibility to rectify hazards that expose workers to injuries and to not wait until loss of life occurs," said David Doucet, OSHA's area director in the Houston North Area Office.
The sawmill employer was cited for one willful violation, with a penalty of $70,000, for failing to provide an approved method to prevent lumber from kicking back and striking a worker.
The program focuses on recalcitrant employers that endanger workers by committing willful, repeat or failure-to-abate violations.
The proposed penalties total $91,300.
KWS Manufacturing Co. Ltd. Cited for 17 Violations for a Variety of Safety Hazards
KWS Manufacturing Co., Ltd., was cited by OSHA for 17 safety and health violations after a worker was killed at the Burleson-based company in December 2013.
The worker died when his left arm was caught in the unguarded rotating parts of a machine he operated. Subsequently, he became entangled and was flipped several times before the machine was turned off. An employee working nearby was not able to turn off the machinery in time because it was unequipped with an emergency stop device.
"The employer's disregard for OSHA's machine guarding standards ultimately led to this employee's death," said Jack Rector, OSHA's area director in Fort Worth. "It is unacceptable that KWS failed to evaluate working conditions and provide guarding on its machines. This type of negligence will not be tolerated."
The 14 serious safety violations include failure to provide required machine guarding, including a reamer machine that was involved in the fatality; failure to inspect overhead cranes, hoists, hooks, and slings regularly; failure to rate job fabricated lifting devices; failure to guard belts and pulley's; and failure to provide training to overhead crane and forklift operators.
Proposed penalties total $77,000.
Boston Bridge & Steel Inc. Fined over $70,000 Following Employee Death
A 46-year-old worker at a Boston steel fabrication shop died on December 9, 2013, when a 12,000-pound steel bridge arch beam that he was spray painting fell and crushed him. An investigation by OSHA found that his employer, Boston Bridge & Steel, Inc., failed to ensure that the fallen beam and three similar beams were adequately braced or supported to prevent them from falling while workers painted them.
"This death should not have happened-and would not have happened-if these beams had been properly secured," said Brenda Gordon, OSHA's area director for Boston and southeastern Massachusetts. "An incident such as this, and the incalculable loss of life that results, can be prevented only if employers provide and maintain effective safeguards for their workers."
The employees, who were cleaning and spray-painting the beams, also lacked adequate respiratory protection against vapors generated during the spray painting. The workers, who wore half-face respirators, had not been evaluated to determine their medical fitness to use respirators and had not been supplied with the correct respirator filters. The employees had not been informed and trained about the hazards associated with chemicals used during spray painting.
Additional hazards at the Marginal Street workplace included flying debris from an unguarded grinder and the use of a cleaning hose with excess air pressure; flash burns due to missing screens where welding was performed; electric shock and fire hazards from misused electrical cords and missing electrical knockouts; falls from a damaged access ladder; and slips and trips from accumulated ice and snow on an emergency exit route.
The company was cited for 13 serious violations for these conditions. Two repeat violations were cited for conditions similar to those cited by OSHA during 2010 and 2011 inspections, when the plant was known as Tuckerman Steel Fabrication, Inc. These included fall hazards from an unguarded crane access platform and electrical hazards from running a flexible power cord through the wall to power equipment located outside the building. The company faces $72,450 in proposed fines.
Bronx Contractor Exposes Workers to Serious Fall Hazards, Fined over $66,000
OSHA initiated its December 2013 investigation after an imminent danger complaint was made and has proposed $66,600 in penalties.
"Falls remain the deadliest hazard in the construction industry. The safety and well-being of employees depends on effective fall protection on all job sites," said Lisa Levy, director of OSHA's Hasbrouck Heights Area Office. "Employers are responsible for ensuring safe and healthful workplaces and will be held accountable when they fail to do so."
Other cited violations included the failure of the company to provide eye protection for employees chipping and cutting masonry; provide hard hats where overhead hazards existed; ensure equipment had an electrical grounding pin and was properly guarded and protected; and ensure ladders were used for the designed purpose and were not defective.
OSHA Cites Anderson Farms after Worker Fatally Injured at Cattle Feed Mixing Facility
After becoming entangled in mixing equipment used for cattle feed, an Anderson Farms employee died from mass trauma in Heyburn on February 11, 2014. OSHA investigated the facility after the incident and found five safety violations, including three serious.
"This terrible tragedy sadly demonstrates that a worker's life can be lost in an instant because of an employer's failure to implement required safety measures," said David Kearns, area director of OSHA's Boise office. "There are easy safeguards to ensure that workers do not get caught in live machines during servicing and maintenance, and employers have the responsibility to take protective steps."
The employer failed to provide hardware, such as locks, to prevent the unexpected or sudden start-up of equipment during these activities. Other violations relate to failure to follow permit-required confined space entry regulations.
Two other-than-serious violations were cited including the company's failure to report the death of a worker and to keep an OSHA injury and illness log. An other-than-serious violation is one that has a direct relationship to job safety and health, but probably would not cause death or serious physical harm.
Anderson Farms faces $25,200 in proposed penalties for the violations.
Railroad Ordered to Pay Damages and Attorneys' Fees to 7 Connecticut Employees
"Metro-North's policy of making employees ignore a treating physician's medical instructions or face discipline is unacceptable," said Robert B. Hooper, OSHA's acting regional administrator for New England. "While Metro-North says it has since changed this policy, this type of procedure, which endangers employees and the public and is illegal under the FRSA, should not exist."
OSHA's investigations found that, between 2011 and 2013, the employees with duty stations in New Haven or Stamford, were issued written warnings under the railroad's attendance policy when they each followed the orders of their physician to stay out of work. Five were carmen, one an electrician, and one a foreman. The FRSA prohibits railroad carriers from disciplining or threatening to discipline employees who follow a physician's orders or treatment plan.
The employees filed complaints with OSHA, which found merit to the complaints, and ordered Metro-North to pay each employee $1,000 in compensatory damages and reasonable attorneys' fees. The railroad must also expunge the written warnings from each employee's personnel record and post a workplace notice informing employees of their FRSA anti-discrimination rights. Either party in these cases can file an appeal with the department's Office of Administrative Law Judges.
These laws, enacted by Congress, prohibit employers from retaliating against employees who raise various protected concerns or provide protected information to the employer or to the government.
Alaska Governor Proclaims June is Safety Month
Governor Sean Parnell has proclaimed June as Safety Month in Alaska to coincide with the National Safety Council’s National Safety Month. The annual event focuses on prevention of injuries and deaths at work, at home, and on the road.
“We live and work in one of the most beautiful yet dangerous places on the planet, so safety is critical to every Alaskan,” Labor and Workforce Development Commissioner Dianne Blumer said. “NSC’s national theme is ‘Safety: It takes all of us,’ and focuses on preventing prescription drug abuse, preventing falls, being aware of surroundings and ending distracted driving.”
To recognize Safety Month in Alaska, the Alaska Occupational Safety and Health Section will host a free seminar on How to Establish a Workplace Violence Prevention Plan on Wednesday, June 25 from 9–11 a.m. at the Anchorage Midtown Job Center, 3301 Eagle Street, Room 201.
Although it is open to all, the two-hour seminar is targeted to companies that are youth-friendly employers. Space is limited and registration is required, call 907-269-4955.
“Stand-Down provides the opportunity to remind all employers and employees to be particularly cognizant of fall hazards,” said Al Nagel, acting director of the Labor Standards and Safety Division. “Over the past five years, AKOSH has conducted 178 inspections where fall protection was an issue. AKOSH investigated eight fall hazard injuries that very sadly included one fatality.”
Nagel said the injuries equate to months of lost time, not to mention the pain and suffering of the injured workers and their families, their co-workers and their employers.
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