The proposed revisions will reflect current national consensus standards and ensure that employers use up-to-date eye and face protection during hazardous workplace operations.
This Notice of Proposed Rulemaking incorporates the latest American National Standards Institute eye and face protection standard, which was adopted after OSHA issued the final rule on personal protective equipment in 2009. The 2009 final rule did not modify the construction standard. This NPRM also updates language in the construction eye and face protection standard to make it more consistent with general industry and maritime standards.
Unlike earlier versions, the 2010 version of ANSI Z87.1 focuses on a hazard, such as droplet and splash, impact, optical radiation, dust, fine dust, and mist, and specifies the type of equipment needed to protect from that hazard. Earlier versions focused on protector type, such as spectacles, goggles, faceshields, or welding hats. It contains general requirements for all protector types, which assess optical qualities, minimum robustness, ignition, corrosion resistance, and minimum coverage. It also includes performance assessments that are unique to a specific protector configuration such as welding devices or prescription safety eyewear. Finally, it defines the number of samples to be tested when assessing a protector’s ability to meet applicable performance criteria.
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.
UL Announces New Standard for Products Using Lithium Button or Coin Cell Batteries
UL (Underwriters Laboratories) has announced the creation of a new Standard for Safety for products that incorporate button or coin cell batteries using lithium technology.
The standard is intended to help reduce the risk of children removing button and coin cell batteries from a product and ingesting the batteries. These lithium batteries can cause serious injury and even death to a child, so keeping them securely within a toy or household item is a needed safety precaution.
Incidents involving button battery deaths and severe injuries have been increasingly prevalent. The incidents most often involve children under 4 years old. Severe problems can arise when one becomes lodged in the digestive tract or elsewhere in the body. The electric current produced by the battery can ionize saliva, forming a corrosive alkaline that damages surrounding tissues.
The strength of lithium batteries makes them a common choice to provide power in small-sized products. To help make their use safer, UL created the standard to help demonstrate that any product containing a button cell battery will maintain the battery inside the product during normal use.
Products that contain a removable battery are required by UL 4200A to defined methods to prevent the battery from being liberated. The standard details performance tests, including abuse tests, geared to probe a product’s potential for an accidental release of a battery.
UL 4200A also addresses how the product should be marked, including warnings about the potential hazard and that batteries should be kept away from children. The standard contains the specific language describing the harm batteries can cause if swallowed and the need for immediate medical attention.
UL 4200A is scheduled to take effect November 10, 2015.
Cal/OSHA Cautions Employers to Avoid Using Unsafe Steam Boilers
Cal/OSHA is reminding employers to avoid steam boilers that do not meet safety standards. Steam boilers are used for industrial applications including medical sterilization or parts cleaning.
“Employers are required to prevent potential hazards to workers, and using equipment that meets required safety standards is essential,” said Christine Baker, Director of the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR). Cal/OSHA, formally known as the Division of Occupational Safety and Health, is a division of DIR.
Failures occur when thinning, cracking, scale build-up, poor design, or insufficient water can no longer contain the boiler pressure or when unburned fuel unexpectedly ignites. Defective operational controls that maintain appropriate pressure, water level, and burner fuel flow can also cause the vessel to explode if not properly used and maintained. These hazards can cause severe injury or death to employees resulting from furnace explosions or over-pressure steam release.
“Cal/OSHA has specific regulations relating to equipment’s design and construction, inspection, and operation,” said Cal/OSHA Chief Juliann Sum. “Using steam boilers that are not up to code can cause an over-pressurized release of steam or an explosion. This poses a serious risk to workers.”
Since 1917 ASME has been the international standard for the safe building and operation of boilers which are commonly utilized in wineries and other facilities to sterilize equipment. All steam boilers are required to meet the ASME Section I Power Boiler Code regarding construction, engineering, testing, and installation of safety controls for such vessels. Larger boilers may require a Cal/OSHA permit to operate and only by a knowledgeable attendant familiar with such equipment.
Failure to comply with the workplace health and safety requirements can constitute a misdemeanor or felony under California Labor Code sections 7750, 7770 and 7771.
Behr Iron & Steel Faces $366,000 Fine for Continued Exposure of Workers to Machine, Fall, and Confined Space Hazards
“Behr Iron & Steel continues to fail its workers by not implementing required safety procedures at its facilities, despite repeated OSHA violations and serious injuries to workers,” said Nick Walters, regional administrator for OSHA in Chicago. “OSHA’s investigation found that safety training within the company remains inefficient and employees are exposed to amputation and other serious hazards when operating metal shredding equipment. Behr must make immediate health and safety program improvements. No worker should be subject to such conditions to earn a living.”
The company received two willful violations for exposing workers to operating parts of dangerous machinery during service and maintenance at its Rockford Yard and Quaker Road facility in Rockford. Behr also failed to conduct annual inspections of these procedures for effectiveness. The company had similar violations in 2014 and 2010.
To process scrap metal at its Peoria facility, workers must enter a sorting house conveyor to use the shredder. A confined space is one large enough for workers to enter and perform certain jobs, such as the sorting house, but it has limited or restricted means for entry or exit and is not designed for continuous occupancy.
A willful violation is one committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirement, or with plain indifference to employee safety and health.
This practice and confined space hazards were cited in the 2014 employee death in South Beloit.
In 2013, fatal falls, slips, or trips took the lives of 699 workers, with falls to a lower level accounting for 574 of those fatalities.
An OSHA violation is serious if death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard an employer knew or should have known exists.
Prior to the current OSHA inspections, the company had been inspected seven times in the previous five years and cited for machine hazards at various locations in Illinois and Iowa. After receiving a complaint, OSHA conducted an investigation and issued multiple citations in September 2010 to the company’s Peoria, Illinois, shredding facility.
Rockford, Illinois-based Behr Iron & Steel is a wholly owned subsidiary of Joseph Behr & Sons, Inc., a recycling company founded in 1906. The company employs approximately 450 employees at 14 operating facilities in Illinois, Wisconsin, and Iowa. In 2011, Behr Iron & Steel changed the advertised name of all of its operating locations to Behr Iron & Metal.
World Kitchen Fined $108,000 for Exposing Employees to Fire, Fall, Electrical, Mechanical, and other Hazards
World Kitchen, LLC, makes dinnerware for well-known brand names, such as Corelle and CorningWare. Less well known is that workers at the company’s Corning, NY manufacturing plant have been exposed to a variety of hazards that put their health and safety at risk.
Inspectors from OSHA’s Syracuse office visited the World Kitchen plant in September 2014 after employees complained. An OSHA investigation found that employees faced the dangers of fire, laceration, amputation, crushing, electric shock, falling, and hearing loss due to absent or deficient safeguards. As a result, the company received 25 violations of workplace health and safety standards with fines totaling $108,000.
“Any of these conditions could have cost World Kitchen employees their lives or their livelihoods,” said Christopher Adams, OSHA’s area director in Syracuse. “It’s imperative that World Kitchen take swift, comprehensive and effective action to eliminate these hazards and prevent them from happening again.”
The potential hazards faced by the plant’s employees included:
- Laceration or amputation caused by exposed moving parts, such as belts, pulleys, sprocket wheels and chains, that could engage unexpectedly or cause injury in motion as they lacked shields to prevent employees from coming in contact with them
- Falls off open-sided floors, from platforms and stairways without railings, and into open floor holes
- Burns and fire caused by improper use of flammable liquids and disposal of rags and waste, and lack of worker training on how to use fire extinguishers
- Electrical shock resulting from misused and mislabeled electrical equipment
- Exposure to bloodborne hazards due to a lack of annual employee training, and a failure to update the plant’s bloodborne exposure control plan
- Eye and face injuries suffered by employees working with corrosive chemicals because no emergency eyewash was present
- Hearing damage and loss caused by a failure to retrain employees who experienced noise-induced hearing loss
“It’s imperative that World Kitchen and other employers correctly record all on-the-job injuries and illnesses. Failure to do so can mask underlying hazards that can have serious consequences for employees,” said Adams.
Union Pacific Railroad Disciplines Locomotive Engineer for Reporting Workplace Injury
Since 2001, the company has faced more than 200 whistleblower complaints nationwide.
In the most recent case, OSHA investigators determined that Union Pacific disciplined a 35-year-employee after the locomotive freight engineer reported injuries sustained in a December 22, 2013 collision and received medical attention. The company has been ordered to pay the engineer $350,000 in punitive and compensatory damages and reasonable attorney’s fees, remove disciplinary information from the employee’s personnel record and provide information about whistleblower rights to all its employees. Prior to this incident, the employee had never been disciplined.
“It is disheartening that this employee, a loyal railroad worker for 35 years, faced disciplinary action because he sought needed medical attention for a work-related injury. Union Pacific’s actions and the repeated complaints filed by their employees are indicative of a culture that doesn’t show that same loyalty to their workers or concern for their safety,” said Marcia P. Drumm, OSHA’s regional administrator in Kansas City, Missouri. “Whistleblower protections play an important role in keeping workplaces safe. It is not only illegal to discipline an employee for reporting an injury and seeking medical attention, it puts everyone at risk.”
Any of the parties in this case can file an appeal with the department’s Office of Administrative Law Judges.
Based in Omaha, Union Pacific Corporation is one of America’s leading transportation companies. Its principal operating company, Union Pacific Railroad, is North America’s premier railroad franchise, in 23 states across the western two-thirds of the United States. It has 47,000 employees and operates 8,000 locomotives over 32,000 route miles.
Safety Stand-Down Puts the Brakes on Injuries at Georgia Road Sites
The Federal Highway Administration, the state of Georgia and local government organizations are partnering with OSHA to sponsor a one-hour Safety Stand-Down at construction sites in Georgia in conjunction with National Highway Work Zone Awareness Week from March 23–27.
Employers will voluntarily stop work on one designated day at construction sites that week from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. EDT to provide work zone safety training to road workers so they can protect themselves from the dangers of distracted drivers and injuries caused by passing vehicles, flying debris and other objects.
“This alliance is about the mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers who died on-the-job because a driver was distracted by a text message, a phone call or other activity,” said Kurt Petermeyer, OSHA’s regional administrator for the Southeast. “This event will help employers identify hazards and how employees can avoid them and remind the industry of the importance of safety in these work zones.”
The Stand-Down is being organized by the Georgia Struck-By Alliance, which includes OSHA; the Associated General Contractors of Georgia Inc.; 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 Inc.; the Association County Commissioners of Georgia; Georgia Tech Research Institute; Lamar Advertising; Georgia Power; Pike Corporation; Ansco & Associates LLC; and the National Safety Council, Georgia Chapter.
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.
Mt. Vernon Barge Services Fined $77,400 for Exposing Workers to Electrical, Respiratory Hazards
The local emphasis program was established in October 2014 to address an increase in injuries and fatalities at maritime industries.
“Electrical safety violations, improper storage of potentially hazardous materials and a failure to plan for emergency situations are immediate safety needs that MVBS must address by to prevent injury and illness in the workplace,” said Vanessa Martin, OSHA’s area director in Indianapolis.
- OSHA’s investigation found employees were exposed to electrical hazards because circuits were overloaded and flexible cords were used where permanent wiring should have been installed.
- Crane controls were not properly labeled and the crane’s swing radius was not protected in order to prevent employees from being struck by the moving part.
Additionally, 9 serious health violations were cited for:
- Failure to establish a shipyard rescue team
- Lack of a written fire safety plan and failure to train employees
- Not properly storing compressed gas
Located on the Ohio River, Mt. Vernon Barge Services provides harbor services for the Port Of Indiana at Mt. Vernon and other barge terminals. The company also performs topside, pumping and fiberglass repairs. Proposed penalties total $77,400.
Pregis Corp. Faces $73,000 in Fines for 13 Serious Violations
OSHA’s inspection found several serious deficiencies in the plant’s PSM program. These included incomplete analysis of hazards; inaccurate diagrams of the piping system; not conducting inspections and testing of the PSM covered systems; not correcting deficiencies; not addressing recommendations in a timely manner; not updating safety information when changes occurred in the manufacturing process; and not investigating incidents that could have resulted in a catastrophic chemical release. The inspection also determined that the plant allowed accumulations of combustible dust to build up in the workplace; did not provide training and personal protective equipment to employees working with live electricity; and located exit routes near hazardous areas. These conditions resulted in Pregis Corp., being cited for 13 serious violations of workplace health and safety standards.
Proposed penalties total $73,000.
“Numerous deficiencies in the plant’s process safety management program exposed its employees to the dangers of potentially fatal fires and explosions and an increased risk of a catastrophic release of this highly hazardous chemical,” said Kim Castillon, OSHA’s area director in Albany. “While no release occurred, the hazard was real and present. Pregis must strengthen and improve its chemical safeguards to absolutely minimize the possibility of a life-threatening incident.”
Bowling Center Worker Dies after his Hooded Sweatshirt Catches in Pinsetter
A 53-year-old bowling alley worker was asphyxiated when his hooded sweatshirt was caught in a pinsetter at Northwest Lanes in Fairfield, Ohio because the machine’s operating parts were improperly exposed, an investigation by OSHA found.
The fatality occurred on November 5, 2014, while the man was retrieving a bowling ball. As a result, OSHA issued eight serious safety violations to the alley’s owner.
“A wife, children and a grandchild lost a loved one in a preventable workplace tragedy,” said Bill Wilkerson, OSHA’s area director in Cincinnati. “Northwest Lanes had identified issues with its 1970s-era equipment, but it did not ensure workers were protected from dangerous parts. Those in the recreation industry must remember unsafe operation of machines used to entertain people can put a worker’s life at risk.”
The agency noted that equipment, including pulleys, belts and shafts, lacked guards to prevent workers from coming near operating parts.
OSHA has proposed penalties of $45,500 for the recreational center, which employs 26 workers.
Worker Dies after Fall at Missouri Dairy Farm
A 35-year-old worker doing maintenance on an overhead door’s pulleys died after he fell off a 12-foot ladder onto a concrete floor at a dairy farm in La Belle, Missouri, OSHA has concluded.
It was the second fatality reported since 2012 at a business owned by Sharpe Holdings, Inc., based in Bethel.
“This is the second employee death since 2012. Sharpe Holdings’ injury and illness rate raises a serious concern that safety and health is not its priority,” said Bill McDonald, OSHA’s area director in St. Louis. “Agricultural facilities can be dangerous work environments, and employers must ensure that workers are trained to recognize and avoid preventable hazards.”
OSHA’s inspection found that power to the overhead door had not been turned off, which exposed employees to electrical and struck-by hazards during maintenance. A 20-stall animal carousel was also not powered down during maintenance, and electrical boxes lacked covers, putting workers at risk of electrocution.
The agency determined that Sharpe Holdings lacked adequate safety procedures for entering permit-required confined spaces for cleaning and maintenance. By doing so, workers were exposed to dangerous chemicals, including hydrogen sulfide, ammonia, carbon monoxide, and decomposition products from grain, silage, and manure stored in grain and feed bins and storage tanks. Oxygen levels in confined spaces can be depleted due to organic breakdown of feed, grain, silage, and manure.
Inspectors also noted that Sharpe Holdings had an inadequate respiratory protection program for workers exposed to hazardous chemicals, such as formaldehyde. The company also failed to train workers on hazardous chemicals, using personal protective equipment to limit exposure and properly labeling chemical containers.
Eight serious citations were issued for these and other violations. Proposed penalties total $54,500.
In October 2012, an auto mechanic at a Sharpe Holdings repair shop in La Belle died when he was struck-by a tire rim. The inspection resulting from that fatality found multiple violations of OSHA regulations.
Sharpe Holdings comprises an array of businesses in northeast Missouri, including a dairy and creamery, farm, concrete plant, auto repair, welding shop, restaurants and lodging, a telecommunications company, graphic design firm, and a convenience store.
Nova Southeastern University Fined for Exposing Faculty to High Levels of Formaldehyde
OSHA initiated an investigation of Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on November 5, 2014, after receiving a complaint about faculty in the anatomy lab being exposed to formaldehyde.
Additionally, the employer failed to provide the employees who were over the exposure limit their sampling results and neglected to take the necessary steps to reduce or eliminate the exposure.
“Nova Southeastern University failed to protect its workers from the hazards of over-exposure to formaldehyde,” said Beatriz Cabrera acting area director of OSHA’s Fort Lauderdale Area Office. “Formaldehyde can irritate the eyes and nose, and cause coughing and wheezing. It is a sensitizer, which means that it can cause allergic reactions of the lungs, skin and eyes, such as asthma, rashes and itching. It also has been linked to cancer.”
Proposed penalties total $50,000.
USPS Cited for Using Defective Forklift at Main Post Office in Des Moines
On October 2, 2014, OSHA initiated an inspection of the main post office in Des Moines after receiving an employee complaint alleging that unsafe forklifts were being used at the facility.
OSHA issued one repeated and two serious safety violations involving standards for powered industrial vehicles, tugs, and forklifts being the most commonly used.
“The Postal Service has a responsibility to make sure equipment is maintained in good working order,” said Larry Davidson, OSHA’s area director in Des Moines. “Each year hundreds of workers are injured after being hit by forklifts. Having operating lights and other safety equipment helps to prevent such incidents.”
OSHA’s investigation found one forklift and two tugs were operating without such functioning flashing lights. OSHA previously cited the same facility for this violation in 2010. OSHA issues repeated violations when an employer has been previously cited for the same or a similar violation in the past five years.
Two serious violations were cited for failing to make repairs on a forklift and to remove it from service until fully functioning.
Proposed penalties total $49,500.
Health Care Products Inc. Exposes Production Workers to Amputation Hazards
On November 25, 2014, OSHA’s Toledo Area Office initiated an inspection of the feminine hygiene product manufacturer, Health Care Products, Inc., in Coldwater, Ohio, after receiving a complaint alleging unsafe working conductions.
One willful citation was issued for exposing workers to ingoing nip points, rotating rollers, and other dangerous machinery.
“Each shift workers on the production line were exposed to operating points of machinery that can lead to serious injuries such as amputations, lacerations and cuts,” said Kim Nelson, OSHA’s area director in Toledo. “Amputation hazards are among the most frequently cited by OSHA. By installing and properly using required safety mechanisms these hazards can be avoided. No worker should be asked to compromise their safety for their livelihood.”
Proposed penalties total $53,900.
K.W. McAvoy & Son Inc. Exposes Workers to Fire, Amputation, and Unprotected Equipment Hazards
OSHA initiated the investigation of K.W. McAvoy & Son in Washington, Georgia, on November 5, 2014, after the agency received a complaint related to safety and health hazards at the facility.
“Employers cannot wait for an injury, illness or OSHA inspection to begin protecting employees from workplace hazards,” said William Fulcher director of OSHA’s Atlanta-East Area Office. “There is plenty of free help available to employers who need to improve their workplaces and prevent workers’ injuries or illnesses.”
Proposed penalties total $45,500.
OSHA Cites Bruegger’s Bagels after Three Workers Overexposed to Carbon Monoxide
On September 14, 2014, an exhaust fan in the baking area at Bruegger’s Bagels in Huntsville, Alabama, burned out, allowing carbon monoxide fumes from the bagel oven to exceed the safe exposure level.
“The effects of carbon monoxide can overcome workers in a matter of minutes, causing headache, fatigue, dizziness, chest pain, loss of consciousness and suffocation,” said Ramona Morris director of OSHA’s Birmingham Area Office. “Employers must have protective procedures in place along with properly functioning safety equipment to protect workers from this toxic gas. In this case, workers were exposed to carbon monoxide levels that were three to five times the safe limits, requiring hospitalization.”
Proposed penalties total $26,000.
Perry Ridge Landfill and Panther City Hauling Wrongfully Terminate Truck Driver
A truck driver, who was fired the morning after he filed a complaint with OSHA alleging unsafe working conditions, will receive $33,000 under terms of a settlement agreement.
“No worker should need to ask repeatedly for adequate safety protection or face termination for reporting health and safety violations and exercising their whistleblower rights,” said Nick A. Walters, OSHA’s regional administrator in Chicago. “OSHA is committed to protecting the rights of America’s workers, including those who suffer retaliation for filing complaints seeking to improve the safety and health of their work environment.”
On July 26, 2011, the driver hauled a load of leachate, a fluid that seeps from a landfill into a system of pipes, from the Perry Ridge Landfill to the City of Du Quoin’s treatment facility. As he transferred the fluid from the trailer, the driver slipped atop the trailer. Later that morning, he filed a complaint with OSHA alleging the company failed to provide adequate fall protection. The driver had, on several other occasions, requested additional fall protection equipment from Perry Ridge Landfill and Panther City Hauling, his direct employer, after similar slips. When he reported for work the next day, the driver was dismissed.
Pinckneyville-based Panther City performs hauling services for Perry Ridge Landfill, located in Du Quoin. The companies had shared corporate officers and other combined services, such as payroll and human resources. Perry Ridge Landfill will pay $28,250 to the driver immediately. Panther City will pay the driver a total of $4,750 in monthly installments beginning March 1, 2015. Under the agreement, both companies will remove derogatory information related to the dismissal from the worker’s employment record and comply with the Occupational Safety and Health Act in the future.
Seven Hoosier Companies Honored with Workplace Safety Awards
These companies were honored for their proactive efforts to eliminate and reduce worker exposure to occupational safety and health hazards.
The Governor’s Workplace Safety Awards Luncheon took place at the 2015 Indiana Safety and Health Conference and Expo at the Indiana Convention Center. The annual event is hosted by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce and Central Indiana Chapter of the American Society of Safety Engineers in partnership with the Indiana Department of Labor.
“Employees deserve a safe and healthy work environment,” said Commissioner Ruble. “Today, I have been privileged to recognize seven Indiana companies and their employees for their efforts to safeguard our greatest resource—the Hoosier worker. These businesses have demonstrated what can be done when Hoosier ingenuity and hard work is put to good use,” Ruble added.
Indiana companies were recognized in the following categories: Education and outreach, innovations, and partnerships.
The 2015 Governor’s Workplace Safety Award recipients are:
- Gribbins Insulation Co., Inc., Evansville—Innovations in Construction
- BMWC Constructors, Indianapolis—Partnerships in Construction
- My-te Products, Inc., Indianapolis—Innovations in General Industry for a Small-Sized Company
- Toyota Logistics Services, Princeton—Innovations in General Industry for a Medium-Sized Company
- Subaru of Indiana Automotive, Inc., Lafayette—Innovations in General Industry for a Large-Sized Company
- MacLellan Integrated Services, Princeton—Education and Outreach – Internal for a Medium-Sized Company
- Mead Johnson Nutrition, Evansville—Education and Outreach – Internal for a Large-sized Company
“The Indiana Chamber strongly believes that occupational safety is one of the most important factors to operating an efficient and profitable workplace,” said Indiana Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Kevin Brinegar. “We are pleased that these companies understand and embrace that a healthier workplace is a more productive workplace.”
Pfizer Global Supply Named Star Site a Third Time for Exemplary Worker Safety
Pfizer, Inc., Global Supply in Kalamazoo was awarded the state’s highest workplace safety and health award, the Michigan Voluntary Protection Program (MVPP) Star Award, from the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA). The MIOSHA program is part of the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA).
“MIOSHA commends Pfizer Global Supply for achieving star status for its third time since 2008,” said MIOSHA Director Martha Yoder. “The agency is thrilled to continue this cooperative relationship with the Pfizer team, whose commitment to worker protection goes far beyond what is required by MIOSHA standards.”
MIOSHA Director Martha Yoder at Pfizer Global Supply in KalamazooYoder met with Pfizer staff, including acting site leader Bob Betzig, to congratulate them on their continued star status and talk about the importance of workplace safety and health.
The group later attended a Pfizer Kalamazoo Safety Committee Expo where more than 40 safety committees showcased their safety accomplishments from the past year.
“Here at Pfizer, Kalamazoo we are proud of our safety culture and we find great value in the MIOSHA MVPP certification process, as it provides an ongoing platform for our colleagues and contractors to partner in lifting our safety culture to new and innovative levels,” said Bob Betzig, interim site leader. “Thank you for recognizing our efforts.”
MIOSHA established the MVPP in 1996 to recognize employers actively working toward achieving excellence in workplace safety and health. This is the most prestigious safety and health award given in Michigan.
“National VPP sites experience 60 to 80 percent less lost work day injuries than would be expected of an average site in their industry,” said Yoder. “In addition to significantly reducing injuries and illnesses, this program has a tremendous impact on the bottom line.”
The MIOSHA MVPP Review Team consisted of Doug Kimmel, team leader and safety specialist; Kristin Osterkamp, senior industrial hygienist; and Brian Kellogg, safety specialist. During the review, the team examined various elements of the safety and health management system and found them to effectively address the scope and complexity of the hazards at the site.
Pfizer Global Supply employs approximately 2,500 employees and hosts several hundred skilled trades contractors at its Kalamazoo facility and is a manufacturer of active pharmaceutical ingredients and finished life-saving drug products.
The MVPP assists employers and employees by providing a mechanism and a set of criteria designed to evaluate and recognize outstanding safety and health management systems. The program is designed to establish a cooperative relationship between management, labor, and MIOSHA. MVPP participants implement safety and health management systems that provide protections beyond what is required by MIOSHA standards.
There are two levels of recognition in the MVPP. The Michigan Star program is designed for workplaces that have an exemplary safety and health management system with injury and illness incidence rates below the industry average for the last three years. The Rising Star program provides the “stepping stone” for those establishments that have the desire and potential to achieve Star Status within one to three years. Rising Star participants have a good safety and health management system and have incidence rates at or below the industry average for two out of the last three years.
Mentors inform, counsel, train, and strive to achieve excellence in safety and health through the MVPP.
$10 Million Civil Penalty Against Child Car Seat Manufacturer
US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx announced that Graco Children’s Products has been fined $10 million after the company failed to provide timely notification of a defect in more than 4 million car seats. Graco must pay a fine of $3 million immediately to the Federal Government and an additional $7 million is due in five years unless they spend at least the same amount on new steps to improve child safety.
The penalties close an investigation launched last year by the Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) into whether the company failed its obligations, under the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act, to begin what ended up as the largest ever recall of child seats. The seats had buckles that could stick or become stuck in a latched position, potentially placing child occupants at risk in an emergency.
“Parents need to know that the seats they trust to protect their children are safe, and that when there’s a problem, the manufacturer will meet its obligations to fix the defect quickly,” Secretary Foxx said. “Today’s action reinforces that responsibility in a way that will make our kids safer for decades to come.”
Graco will create a plan and procedures for addressing certain targeted performance requirements, which may include methods to increase effectiveness of consumer product registration of car seats, which allows parents to be notified of defects, identifying potential safety trends affecting car seats industry wide and launching a child safety awareness campaign. According to NHTSA, on average, only 40% of people who have recalled car seats get them fixed. That’s in comparison to an average of 75% of people who have recalled light vehicles, for which registration is required by law.
The company also must provide certification from an independent, third-party that it has met its cost obligations; if Graco fails to meet those obligations, it must pay the balance of the $10 million civil penalty.
“Today’s action uses NHTSA’s enforcement authority to not only hold a manufacturer accountable, but to keep our kids safe,” said NHTSA Administrator Mark Rosekind. “It’s another example of our commitment to use every tool available to save lives on our highways, and to use those tools in an innovative and more effective way.”
The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act states that once a manufacturer knows or should reasonably know that an item of motor vehicle equipment, such as a car seat, contains a safety related defect, the manufacturer has a maximum of five business days to notify the agency. Once it notifies NHTSA of a defect, it is required to launch a recall.
Under the consent order, Graco admits that it did not provide the required defect notice. Under pressure from NHTSA, Graco recalled more than 4 million convertible and booster seats with defective buckles in February 2014, and nearly an additional 2 million rear facing infant seats in June. NHTSA launched an investigation into the timeliness of Graco’s decision making and reporting of a defect in those recalls in December.
Those obligations may include:
- Improving its assessment and identification of potential safety defects
- Creating a scientifically tested program to increase effectiveness of child seat registration programs
- Revising its procedures for addressing consumer safety complaints and speed the recall of defective products
- Launching a campaign to disseminate safety messages to parents and caregivers by producing media products to incorporate in child safety campaigns
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