"This long-overdue update will save nearly 20 lives and prevent 118 serious injuries annually," said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health. "Electric utilities, electrical contractors, and labor organizations have persistently championed these much-needed measures to better protect the men and women who work on or near electrical power lines."
OSHA is revising the 40-year-old construction standard for electric power line work to make it more consistent with the corresponding general industry standard and is also making some revisions to the construction and general industry requirements. The updated standards for general industry and construction include new or revised provisions for host and contract employers to share safety-related information with each other and with employees, as well as for improved fall protection for employees working from aerial lifts and on overhead line structures. In addition, the standards adopt revised approach-distance requirements to better ensure that unprotected workers do not get dangerously close to energized lines and equipment. The final rule also adds new requirements to protect workers from electric arcs.
General industry and construction standards for electrical protective equipment are also revised under the final rule. The new standard for electrical protective equipment applies to all construction work and replaces the existing construction standard, which was based on out-of-date information, with a set of performance-oriented requirements consistent with the latest revisions of the relevant consensus standards. The new standards address the safe use and care of electrical protective equipment, including new requirements that equipment made of materials other than rubber provide adequate protection from electrical hazards.
The final rule becomes effective 90 days after publication in the Federal Register. OSHA adopted delayed compliance deadlines for certain requirements.
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?
Did You Miss OSHA’s December 1 GHS Hazard Communication Training Deadline? Use Environmental Resource Center’s GHS OSHA Hazard Communication Training PowerPoint
With OSHA’s adoption of the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) for the classification and labeling of hazardous chemicals, virtually every chemical label, MSDS—now called Safety Data Sheet (SDS), and written hazard communication plan must be revised to meet the new standard.
OSHA’s December 1, 2013, deadline under the revised Hazard Communication Standard required that all employees at your site who work with, or are exposed to, hazardous chemicals be trained to understand the new classification system, labels, warning statements, precautions, pictograms, and safety data sheets for chemicals at your worksite.
Environmental Resource Center is making available a PDF presentation or a customizable PowerPoint that you can use for on-site worker training. The training program, which is designed to cover your site’s GHS Hazard Communication training requirements, is in a format that is easy to understand.
Price and options:
Multiple PDF copies can be purchased for $99/copy (1–10), $79/copy (11–20), or $69/copy (21+).
Multiple PowerPoint copies can be purchased for $199/copy (1–10), $179/copy (11–20), or $169/copy (21+).
Options*:
1. Customized PowerPoint: Send us your written GHS hazard communication plan and 10–20 safety data sheets. We’ll create a custom training program for your site: $899
2. If you have not updated your hazard communication plan, let Environmental Resource Center update it for you: $799
3. Customized PowerPoint and hazard communication plan: $1600
*Call 800-537-2372 for Spanish pricing
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.
Virginia Beach RCRA and DOT Training
Cary HAZWOPER Refresher and IATA/IMO Training
Atlanta RCRA and DOT Refresher, Advanced RCRA, and OSHA GHS Hazard Communication Training
Five Chemicals Removed from California’s Proposition 65 List
Effective April 4, 2014, California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) is removing n-butyl glycidyl ether, diglyciyl ether, phenyl glycidyl ether, methyl isopropyl ketone, and α-methyl styrene from the list of chemicals known to the State to cause reproductive toxicity for purposes of Proposition 65.
These five chemicals were originally added to the Proposition 65 list as causing reproductive toxicity pursuant to Labor Code Section 6382(d), which is incorporated by reference in Health and Safety Code Section 25249.8(a). Based on changes to certain federal regulations that affect the bases for the original listings, OEHHA referred these chemicals to the Developmental and Reproductive Toxicant Identification Committee (DARTIC) for reconsideration. Regulations governing the listing of chemicals by the DARTIC are set out in Title 27, California Code of Regulations, section 25305(b)(1).
Olivet Management Faces $2.3M Fine after Knowingly Exposing Workers to Asbestos and Lead
Olivet Management, LLC, a real estate development and management company that owns the former Harlem Valley Psychiatric Center in the Wingdale section of Dover Plains, New York, faces a total of $2,359,000 in proposed fines from OSHA.
"Olivet knew that asbestos and lead were present at this site, yet the company chose to ignore its responsibility to protect its own workers and contractors," said US Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez. "The intolerable choice this company made put not only workers, but also their families, in danger."
An inspection by OSHA’s Albany Area Office conducted in response to a complaint began October 23, 2013. The inspection found that Olivet employees and contractors were exposed to asbestos and lead while performing renovation and cleanup activities. The work, which was directed and overseen by Olivet supervisors, included removing: asbestos- and lead-contaminated debris; asbestos-containing floor tiles and insulation; and lead-containing paint from walls, windows, door frames, and other painted surfaces.
OSHA determined that Olivet knowingly failed to take basic safety precautions. The company neither informed their own employees nor the contractors about the presence of asbestos and lead, despite knowing that both hazards existed. As a result, Olivet did not: train employees in the hazards of asbestos and lead and the need and nature of required safeguards; monitor workers’ exposure levels; provide appropriate respiratory protection; post notices, warning signs, and labels to alert workers and contractors to the presence of asbestos and lead. The company also did not provide clean changing and decontamination areas for workers, many of whom wore their contaminated clothing home to households with small children.
As a result of these conditions, Olivet was cited for 45 willful violations, with $2,352,000 in proposed fines. Twenty-four of the willful citations address instance-by-instance exposure of workers to asbestos and lead hazards. A willful violation is one committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law's requirement, or plain indifference to employee safety and health. Olivet was also issued one serious citation, with a $7,000 fine, for failing to inform waste haulers of the presence of asbestos and asbestos-containing materials, meaning asbestos from the site may have been disposed of improperly at an unknown location. 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.
Renovation and cleanup activities can generate airborne concentrations of asbestos and lead. Workers can be exposed to both through inhalation or ingestion. Exposure to asbestos can cause disabling or fatal diseases, such as asbestosis, lung cancer, mesothelioma, and gastrointestinal cancer. While lead exposure can cause damage to the nervous system, kidneys, blood forming organs, and reproductive system.
EPA’s investigation is ongoing.
Under the program, OSHA may inspect any of the employer's facilities or job sites.
OSHA Fines Fischer Excavating $58,100 for Trenching Hazards
OSHA has cited Fischer Excavating, Inc., for four safety violations, including one willful, for exposing workers to trenching hazards at a work site in Rockford. Proposed penalties total $58,100.
"Trenching hazards result in numerous fatalities and injuries every year," said Kathy Webb, OSHA's area director in North Aurora. "OSHA implemented a trenching and excavation special emphasis program in the 1980s. Companies like Fisher Excavating should be well aware of the safety regulations for trenching operations and the potentially catastrophic hazards for workers."
One willful violation was cited for failing to provide cave-in protection to workers installing a sewer line in a trench approximately 11-feet deep.
Three serious violations were issued for failing to have a ladder extend 3 feet above the landing area to provide an exit for workers in a trench, failing to support a section of curb to prevent collapse into the trench and for failing to require workers to wear high-visibility vests near traffic.
Fischer Excavating, in Freeport, employs about 30 workers.
New Jersey Masonry Contractor Repeatedly Exposes Workers to Falls and Scaffolding Hazards
OSHA has cited Garfield-based East Coast Stucco & Construction, Inc., for fall and scaffolding hazards found at a work site in North Brunswick, where a two-story restaurant was under construction. OSHA's November 2013 inspection was prompted by safety and health complaints regarding lack of fall protection at the site. Proposed penalties total $58,520 and include four violations for repeatedly putting workers at risk.
"This employer is well aware that the chief scaffolding hazard involves falls, yet it continues to jeopardize worker safety by failing to provide proper fall protection and ensuring scaffolding safeguards are in place," said Patricia Jones, director of OSHA's Avenel Area Office. "Changes must be made immediately to prevent serious injury or death."
Four repeat violations, with a $52,360 penalty, were cited for not bracing scaffolds properly, lack of fall protection, incomplete work platforms and unsafe access to scaffolds. A repeat violation is issued 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.
Information on fall protection standards is available in English and Spanish.
Salko Kitchens Inc. Exposes Workers to Combustible Dust, Chemical Hazards
OSHA has found that workers at Salko Kitchens, Inc., were exposed to fire and explosion hazards and a potential occupational carcinogen due to deficient required safeguards. Proposed fines total $51,800.
"These workers face both immediate and long-term health and safety hazards from on-site conditions," said Kimberly Castillon, OSHA's area director in Albany. "The combustible dust can ignite and explode in seconds, and the methylene chloride is cancerous. For the health and well-being of its employees, it's imperative that this employer correct these hazards and take effective steps to prevent them from happening again."
OSHA cited the New Windsor, New York, plant that manufactures cabinetry and countertops for 13 serious violations of workplace health and safety standards following a December 2013 inspection by OSHA's Albany Area Office.
Overexposure to methylene chloride may result in mental confusion, lightheadedness, nausea, vomiting, headaches, and eye and respiratory tract irritation. Long-term exposure may cause cancer and damage to the central nervous system.
OSHA's inspection determined that feasible administrative and engineering controls were not in place to reduce methylene chloride exposure levels. Workers lacked adequate respiratory protection, protective gloves, eye protection, training, and medical evaluations and information on methylene chloride. In addition, employees were exposed to electric shock from exposed wiring and crushing injuries from powered industrial trucks driven by untrained operators.
Grede Fined Over $50,000 for Repeatedly Exposing Workers to Respirable Silica Dust
OSHA initiated the complaint inspection in November 2013. Proposed penalties total $50,600.
"Grede Wisconsin compromised the health of its workers by failing to monitor properly for inhalation of crystalline silica dust, a known hazard," said Kim Stille, OSHA's area director in Madison. "Employers have a responsibility to monitor worker exposure to known hazards and to take precautions to limit exposure to potentially fatal elements."
A similar violation was cited at the Browntown plant in 2012.
Two serious violations include improper ladder caging and failing to provide proper eye protection.
The 2012 inspection at the Browntown plant cited 28 violations. Because of the inspection, the company paid $133,000 in penalties.
Once implemented, OSHA estimates that the rule will save nearly 700 lives and prevent 1,600 new cases of silicosis annually. The rule is not final, and OSHA welcomes public participation.
Grede Wisconsin employs about 200 workers at the Browntown facility, which specializes in producing castings in ductile and gray iron. It is operated by Southfield, Michigan-based Grede Holdings, LLC, which has 21 facilities in the US, Europe, and Japan.
OSHA Announces Safety Stand-Down at Georgia Highway Work Zone Sites
OSHA is partnering with construction contractors, the Federal Highway Administration, the state of Georgia, and local government organizations to sponsor a one-hour safety stand-down at construction sites around Georgia during National Highway Work Zone Awareness Week from April 7-11.
Workers will voluntarily stop work at construction sites from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. EDT to conduct work zone safety training focused on the prevention of worker fatalities and injuries from traffic objects and vehicles. Objects and vehicles striking workers are a leading cause of construction-related deaths. Approximately 75% of struck-by fatalities involve heavy equipment, such as trucks or cranes.
The stand-down is being organized by the Georgia Struck-By Alliance, which includes representatives from OSHA; the Associated General Contractors of Georgia; 3M Visibility & Insulation Solutions; Georgia Department of Transportation; the Federal Highway Administration's Georgia Division; and the Georgia Highway Contractors Association. It also includes the Georgia Utility Contractors Association; the Association County Commissioners of Georgia; the Georgia Tech Research Institute; Lamar Signs; and the Construction Education Foundation of Georgia. Additional participants are Georgia Power, Pike Electric, the National Safety Council – Georgia Chapter, Ansco & Associates and the Governor's Office of Highway Safety.
"Alliance members have demonstrated initiative and leadership organizing this industry wide safety stand-down throughout Georgia, which emphasizes the importance of work zone safety. The stand-down will heighten construction workers' awareness and ability to identify and help eliminate work-related hazards," said Teresa Harrison, OSHA's acting regional administrator for the Southeast.
For more information, contact Christi Griffin in OSHA's Atlanta-West Area Office at 678-903-7301, Bill Fulcher in the Atlanta-East Area Office at 770-493-6644, or Robert Vazzi in the Savannah Area Office at 912-652-4393.
These groups include unions, consulates, trade and professional organizations, faith- and community-based organizations, businesses, and educational institutions. OSHA and the groups work together to develop compliance assistance tools and resources, and educate workers and employers about their rights and responsibilities. Alliance Program participants do not receive exemptions from OSHA programmed inspections.
IOSHA and Mid America Sound Corporation Settle on State Fair Safety Order
As a result of the settlement, Mid America Sound Corporation conducted a comprehensive temporary roof structures training course for designated employees, and has prepared a safety operations management plan for future stage erections. Additionally, Mid America employees attended a comprehensive 5-day safety training course conducted by an outside organization on the erection of temporary roof structures. Mid America also committed to providing similar safety training for other employees hired for these jobs in the future.
Mid America also agreed to payment of $50,000 in violation penalties. These will be made through four periodic payments of $12,500.
“This agreement is a resolution requiring both extensive safety improvements for the construction or erection of temporary roof structures and specifically related employee safety training that will create a safer workplace for Indiana event production workers,” said Labor Commissioner Rick Ruble. “The agreement produces a positive outcome for everyone involved.”
OSHA Schedules Meeting of the Maritime Advisory Committee for Occupational Safety and Health
OSHA will hold a meeting of the Maritime Advisory Committee for Occupational Safety and Health April 15-16, 2014, in Washington, D.C. The Longshoring and Shipyard work group meetings will be held on April 15 and the full committee will meet on April 16.
MACOSH advises Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels on worker safety and health issues in the maritime industries. The April meeting agenda will include OSHA updates from the Directorates of Standards and Guidance, Enforcement, Cooperative and State Programs, and Technical Support and Emergency Management, discussions on the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Advisory Committee ethics, administrative procedures (travel) and committee items of interest proposed at the meeting.
The committee and work group meetings will be held at the US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2 Massachusetts Ave., NE, Rooms 4 and 8, Washington, DC 20210. Longshoring and Shipyard work groups will meet 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, April 15 in Conference Rooms 4 and 8. The full committee will meet 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Wednesday, April 16 in Conference Rooms 7 and 8.
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