Preliminary results from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries released recently show a reduction in the number of fatal work injuries in 2012 compared with 2011. Last year, 4,383 workers died from work-related injuries, down from a final count of 4,693 fatal work injuries in 2011. Based on preliminary counts, the rate of fatal workplace injuries in 2012 was 3.2 per 100,000 full-time equivalent workers, down from a rate of 3.5 per 100,000 in 2011. In response, Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez issued the following statement:
Workers in this country have the right to return home safe and healthy at the end of a work day. Despite that right, poor safety conditions cause thousands of people each year to lose their lives at work.
I am greatly encouraged by the reduction in workplace fatalities, even in a growing economy. It is a testament to the hard work of employers, unions, health and safety professionals and the Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Mine Safety and Health Administration. Through collaborative education and outreach efforts, and effective law enforcement, these numbers indicate that we are absolutely moving in the right direction.
But to me these aren’t just numbers and data—they are fathers and mothers, brothers and sisters, who will never come home again.
We can and must to better. Job gains in oil and gas and construction have come with more fatalities, and that is unacceptable. That’s why OSHA has undertaken a number of outreach and educational initiatives, including a campaign to prevent falls in construction and the National Voluntary Stand Down of US Onshore Oil and Gas Exploration and Production, co-sponsored by oil and gas industry employers and planned for November 14. Employers must take job hazards seriously and live up to their legal and moral obligation to send their workers home safe every single day. The Labor Department is committed to preventing these needless deaths, and we will continue to engage with employers to make sure that these fatality numbers go down further.
No worker should lose their life for a paycheck.
GHS OSHA Hazard Communication Training PowerPoint Now Available
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.
By December 1, 2013, all employees at your site that work with, or are exposed to, hazardous chemicals must 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 covers all of OSHA’s required GHS Hazard Communication training requirements, is in a format that is easy to understand.
Pricing and options:
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
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 SDSs.
FAA Issues Policy to Improve Workplace Safety for Aircraft Cabin Crewmembers
The US Department of Transportation’s Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), working with OSHA, recently issued a final policy for improving workplace safety for aircraft cabin crewmembers.
While the FAA’s aviation safety regulations take precedence, OSHA will be able to enforce certain occupational safety and health standards currently not covered by FAA oversight.
“Safety is our number one priority—for both the traveling public and the dedicated men and women who work in the transportation industry,” said US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “It’s important that cabin crewmembers on our nation’s airlines benefit from OSHA protections, including information about potential on-the-job hazards and other measures to keep them healthy and safe.”
“This policy shows the strength of agencies working together and will enhance the safety of cabin crewmembers and passengers alike,” said Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez. “It is imperative that cabin crewmembers have the same level of safety assurances they provide the public.”
Aircraft cabin safety issues that fall under OSHA standards include information on hazardous chemicals, exposure to blood-borne pathogens, and hearing conservation programs, as well as rules on record-keeping and access to employee exposure and medical records. The FAA and OSHA will develop procedures to ensure that OSHA does not apply any requirements that could adversely affect aviation safety.
“Our cabin crewmembers contribute to the safe operation of every flight each day,” said FAA Administrator Michael Huerta. “We’re taking an important step toward establishing procedures for resolving cabin crew workplace health and safety concerns.”
“We look forward to working with the FAA and through our alliance with the aviation industry and labor organizations to improve the safety of cabin crewmembers,” said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health.
Through the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, Congress required the FAA to develop a policy statement to outline the circumstances in which OSHA requirements could apply to crewmembers while they are working onboard aircraft.
The policy will be effective 30 days after publication in the Federal Register. OSHA will conduct outreach and then begin enforcement activities after the first six months from the effective date.
Nashville RCRA and DOT Training
Pittsburgh RCRA and DOT Training
Columbus RCRA and DOT Training
Canadian National Railway Subsidiaries to Pay Damages in Whistleblower Case
OSHA has ordered two subsidiaries of Canadian National Railway to pay over $263,000 in back wages, interest, attorney’s fees, compensatory and punitive damages to two employees who were disciplined for reporting work-related injuries, which is in violation of the Federal Railroad Safety Act. One employee will also be reinstated to his position.
The employees worked for Illinois Central Railroad Co., and Wisconsin Central Ltd., wholly owned subsidiaries of Canadian National Railway, which is headquartered in Montreal and provides rail service throughout Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota, and Canada.
“An employer does not have the right to retaliate against employees who report work-related injuries,” said Nick Walters, OSHA’s regional administrator in Chicago. “When workers can’t report safety concerns on the job without fear of retaliation, worker safety and health suffer, which costs working families and businesses.”
An OSHA investigation upheld the allegations of a Wisconsin Central Ltd., conductor, who was terminated from employment in retaliation for reporting his work-related injury. The employee was hired as a conductor trainee in October 2011 and was injured the following month while working a night shift at the Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, rail yard. He reported the injury at the end of his shift. Upon being cleared to return to work, the employee was terminated by Wisconsin Central for not formerly reporting his injury immediately after it occurred.
Wisconsin Central Ltd., was ordered to reinstate the conductor, pay $85,170 in lost wages and interest, and $100,000 in punitive damages. The company must also remove disciplinary information from the employee’s personnel record and provide whistle-blower rights information to its employees.
An OSHA investigation also upheld the allegations of an Illinois Central Railroad Co., engineer, who was disciplined with a 20-day deferred suspension after reporting an injury that occurred in the company’s Urbana Yard in March 2011. The engineer strained his lower back while securing a hand brake on a locomotive. He reported the injury to his supervisor three hours later, after his back began to stiffen while waiting for clearance to complete his next movement in the yard. The company’s investigation alleged the engineer violated policy by delaying the injury report.
Illinois Central Railroad Co., has been ordered to pay the worker $100,000 in punitive damages, as well as $5,000 in compensatory damages. The company must also remove disciplinary information from the employee’s personnel record and provide whistle-blower rights information to its employees.
The punitive damages for each case were $100,000 because both subsidiaries were repeat offenders for violating the FRSA.
In each case, either party may file an appeal with the department’s Office of Administrative Law Judges.
On July 16, 2012, OSHA and the US Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration signed a memorandum of agreement to facilitate coordination and cooperation for enforcing the FRSA’s whistle-blower provisions. The number of whistle-blower complaints that OSHA currently receives under the FRSA surpasses the number it receives under any of the other 21 whistle-blower protection statutes it enforces, except for Section 11(c) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. More than 60% of the FRSA complaints filed with OSHA involve an allegation that a railroad worker has been retaliated against for reporting an on-the-job injury.
OSHA enforces the whistle-blower provisions of the FRSA and 21 other statutes protecting employees who report violations of various airline, commercial motor carrier, consumer product, environmental, financial reform, food safety, health care reform, nuclear, pipeline, worker safety, public transportation agency, maritime, and securities laws.
Employers are prohibited from retaliating against employees who raise various protected concerns or provide protected information to the employer or to the government. Employees who believe that they have been retaliated against for engaging in protected conduct may file a complaint with the secretary of labor to request an investigation by OSHA’s Whistle-blower Protection Program.
OSHA Cites Metal Fabricator after Worker Fatally Crushed by Unguarded Machine
During the investigation, workers made formal complaints, which prompted two additional OSHA inspections at the East Peoria, Illinois, metal manufacturing plant.
“The company failed to implement the most basic of safety precautions—and the result was a terrible tragedy. This case demonstrates an egregious disregard of worker safety and health,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels. “Employers have a responsibility to provide a safe workplace.”
Three willful violations include: bypassing machine safeguards on two laser-cutting machines and the failures to lock out sources of hazardous machine energy. These safeguards were designed to prevent employees from being in areas of the machine where they could be struck and crushed by moving parts. Two additional serious violations include unguarded open-sided floors and platforms causing a fall hazard. 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. 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.
“This tragedy could have been prevented if the company ensured adequate machine guarding, effective lockout-tagout procedures and worker training on hazards,” said Tom Bielema, OSHA’s area director in Peoria. “The company willfully violated OSHA’s Machine Guarding Standard, compromising worker safety and well-being.”
After the incident, OSHA found other employees exposed to amputation hazards while operating a power press brake because the guard had not been set up properly. OSHA issued a willful violation for this hazard.
Six serious citations were also issued for failing to: inspect powered industrial trucks before service and to remove them if they are damaged, mark the load capacity of lifting devices, provide training on hazardous energy control procedures, and implement an effective lockout/tagout program to protect workers during machine servicing. OSHA also cited the company for work areas with potentially hazardous accumulations of powder coating dusts and for failing to implement an effective respiratory protection program with worksite-specific procedures.
OSHA’s SVEP focuses on recalcitrant employers that endanger workers by committing willful, repeat, or failure-to-abate violations. Under the program, OSHA may inspect any of the employer’s facilities if it has reasonable grounds to believe there are similar violations.
Hagel Metal Fabrication has been inspected by OSHA on seven previous occasions since 1989, resulting in the issuance of 23 citations including willful and serious citations for exposing workers to amputation injuries and machine guarding hazards. There are approximately 90 workers at the company.
Georgia’s Dayton Superior Corp. Fined Over $80,000 for Serious Safety and Health Violations
OSHA has cited Dayton Superior Corp., for seven safety and health violations following an inspection at its manufacturing facility in Braselton, Georgia. OSHA initiated the July inspection after receiving a complaint concerning workplace hazards. Proposed penalties total $80,025.
Two repeat safety violations, with $66,000 in penalties, involves the employer failing to provide machine guarding against in-going nip points on the press machine and on the point of operation on several pieces of equipment throughout the facility. A repeat violation exists when an employer previously has been cited for the same or similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years. The company received a citation for these same violations in 2011.
The four serious safety and health violations, with $14,025 in penalties, include allowing the presses to have an opening greater than the maximum allowable width given the distance between the openings to the point of operation. The company also failed to protect workers against sparks; perform periodic inspections of the energy control procedures with authorized workers; and complete the required information on the confined space entry permit including the name of the attendant, method of communication between entrants and attendants, personal protective equipment, and the equipment that needs to be locked out upon entry.
One other-than-serious violation involves not maintaining a certification of inspection for the presses. No monetary penalty has been assessed. 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.
“Employers need to be proactive in identifying and removing workplace hazards rather than waiting for OSHA inspectors to address them,” said Bill Fulcher, director of OSHA’s Atlanta-East Area Office. “Employers are responsible for ensuring that their workers have a safe and healthful work environment.”
Dayton Superior Corp., specializes in the design, manufacturing and distribution of concrete construction products. Corporate offices are in Miamisburg, Ohio.
New York Manufacturer Fined $69,244 for Repeat and Serious Violations
OSHA has cited Solve Composites, LLC, a maker of Fiberglas-reinforced plastic panels, for recurring and new violations of workplace safety and health standards at its Plattsburgh, New York, manufacturing plant. Proposed penalties total $69,244 after OSHA’s Albany Area Office opened the inspection on February 11 to verify correction of hazards cited during a 2010 OSHA inspection.
“Unfortunately, we found several recurring hazards that expose employees to explosion and fire hazards, hearing loss, hazardous chemicals, and electric shock,” said Kimberly Castillon, OSHA’s area director in Albany. “This employer must take prompt, effective, and ongoing action to ensure these hazards are corrected for good. The safety and well-being of its workers depend on it.”
The recurring conditions include explosion and deflagration hazards due to an inadequately designed, installed, and maintained system to collect and dispose of combustible dust generated during the manufacturing process; fire hazards from inadequate ventilation and procedures for the storage and dispensing of flammable liquids; and failing to train workers in the use of fire extinguishers. Other recurring hazards include not providing training and a hearing conservation program for workers exposed to high noise levels, workers being overexposed to hazardous chemicals, lack of chemical hazard communication training, and a misused electrical cord.
These conditions, which were cited in April 2011, resulted in the current issuance of seven repeat citations carrying $53,074 in fines.
Three serious citations, with $16,170 in fines, were issued for not providing annual audiometric testing to workers exposed to high noise levels and not informing workers of excessive noise and noise-level monitoring results.
Texas Salt Manufacturing Plant Cited for Exposing Workers to Chemical Hazards
OSHA has cited Cooper Natural Resources for 13 safety violations and proposed penalties of $58,100 for exposing workers to chemical hazards at its Loop, Texas, salt manufacturing plant.
The complaint inspection, which began in March, was initiated under the agency’s complaint process and expanded to the Process Safety Management Covered Chemical Facilities National Emphasis Program. In this case, the use of anhydrous ammonia.
Seven of the 12 serious violations involve deficiencies in PSM, including failing to compile process safety information for the safety systems, such as relief systems; ensure equipment complies with recognized and good engineering practices, such as discharge pipe locations; and perform a hazard analysis using methodology appropriate to the complexity of the system. They also include failing to establish a system to promptly address the process hazard analysis team’s findings with a written schedule to assure that the deficiencies were corrected in a timely manner; inspect and test equipment, such as piping or compressors; and establish and implement procedures to manage changes to the process.
The remaining serious violations include failing to guard sprocket wheels, chains, and clutch pulleys; identify the equipment that is used for damp or wet locations and subject to exposure to corrosive salt atmosphere; and ensuring that flexible cords and cables were connected to devices and fittings. The penalty for the serious violations total $49,700.
One repeat violation, with a penalty of $8,400, was cited for failing to keep workroom floors clean and dry. A similar violation was cited in 2010.
“Process safety management prevents the unexpected release of toxic, reactive or flammable liquids and gases in processes involving highly hazardous chemicals,” said Joann Figueroa, OSHA’s area director in Lubbock. “It’s vital that Cooper Natural Resources ensure safeguards are in place to protect workers.”
Texas Candy Manufacturer Fined $44,005 for Eight Serious Violations
OSHA cited Russell Stover Candies, Inc., for eight serious safety violations with proposed penalties totaling $44,005 for exposing workers to chemical hazards at its candy manufacturing plant in Corsicana, Texas.
The inspection by OSHA’s Fort Worth Area Office began in May under the agency’s Process Safety Management Covered Chemicals National Emphasis Program. In this case, the violations stemmed from the company’s refrigeration system.
“This company jeopardized the safety of its employees by failing to effectively implement OSHA’s process safety management regulations,” said Jack Rector, OSHA’s Fort Worth area director. “OSHA requires employers to fully implement their written PSM program and provide safe and healthful working conditions.”
Six of the eight serious violations involve deficiencies in the PSM program, including failing to: confirm that process equipment complies with recognized and generally accepted good engineering practices, compile written process safety information for ammonia relief system header and emergency cutouts, ensure recommendations contained in the 2010 process hazard analysis were resolved and documented, establish and implement written procedures to maintain the ongoing mechanical integrity of the process equipment, inspect and test ammonia refrigeration equipment cutouts annually, and failing to determine and document responses to each of the findings in the 2010 compliance audit. The two remaining violations involve failing to ensure confined spaces are identified by signage and ensure extension cords are used only in continuous length and not spliced.
Russell Stover Candies, headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, employs about 2,500 workers nationwide, 700 of which work in Corsicana.
Vinyl Window Manufacturer Exposes Workers to Noise, Other Hazards
OSHA has cited Royal Aluminum Co., Inc., a vinyl window manufacturer, for 18 alleged safety and health violations, including three repeat, at its Newark, New Jersey, facility. Proposed penalties total $57,400 following OSHA’s inspection that was opened in June in response to a complaint alleging the hazards.
Three repeat violations, with $11,200 in penalties, were cited due to the company’s failure to implement a hearing conservation program for workers exposed to noise above 85 decibels, implement a written hazard communication program for workers using hazardous chemicals, and train workers on the hazards of the chemicals involved in their duties. Similar violations were cited in 2010.
Fourteen serious violations, with $45,500 in penalties, include the company’s failure to label containers of hazardous chemicals, provide lavatories with hand soap, keep exit routes free and unobstructed, and post exit signs. They also include providing workers with the appropriate eye or face protection when required, take powered industrial trucks out of service when determined to be in unsafe operating condition, use permanent wiring to power a 120-volt light switch, and effectively close unused openings in electrical boxes.
The company also was cited for one other-than-serious violation, carrying a $700 penalty, for failing to properly complete the OSHA 300 log.
“This company is aware of the necessary corrections that must be in place based on its previous OSHA citations, but failed to comply at the expense of protecting its workers,” said Kris Hoffman, director of OSHA’s Parsippany Area Office. “Employers are responsible for ensuring safe and healthful workplaces and will be held accountable when they fail to do so.”
Dallas Area Senior Living Center Fined $46,000 for Exposing Workers to Hazards
OSHA has cited Williamsburg Village Healthcare Campus, a senior living center in DeSoto, Texas, for seven serious safety violations and proposed penalties totaling $46,000. A variety of safety hazards were found at the campus’ York Drive facility during a programmed inspection begun on June 6 conducted under OSHA’s national emphasis program for nursing and residential care facilities.
“Healthcare workers perform an important service and should be protected from preventable injuries while caring for others,” said Stephen Boyd, OSHA’s area director in Dallas. “It is the employer’s responsibility to provide a safe and healthy workplace for its workers, and OSHA will hold employers accountable.”
The seven serious violations cited involve the company’s failure to assess if workplace hazards were present or likely to be present; ensure that each affected worker uses appropriate eye or face protection; ensure that energy control programs consist of appropriate procedures, training, and periodic inspections; provide suitable facilities for quick drenching or flushing of the eyes and body; provide a written exposure control plan designed to eliminate or minimize exposure to hazards; train and provide workers with information on hazardous chemicals in the workplace; and ensure that a written schedule for cleaning and method of decontamination is based upon the location within the facility and type of surface to be cleaned.
Through this program, OSHA is targeting nursing homes and residential care facilities to reduce occupational illnesses and injuries from exposure to blood and other potentially infectious material; exposure to hazardous chemicals; slips, trips, and falls; communicable diseases; ergonomic stressors; and workplace violence.
Texas Corn Mill Worker Engulfed and Fatally Asphyxiated in Grain Bin Silo
OSHA has cited Azteca Milling LP, in Edinburg, Texas, for seven serious safety violations following a February incident when a worker inside a grain silo, attempting to move clumped corn byproducts, was engulfed, asphyxiated, and then died. Proposed penalties total $49,000.
“The tragedy was preventable. The employer should have known that entering grain bins is extremely dangerous and should not be done unless absolutely necessary, and then only when hazard control measures have been properly implemented,” said Michael Rivera, OSHA’s area director in Corpus Christi. “Suffocation can occur very quickly when a worker becomes buried by grain. Moving grain acts like quicksand and can bury a worker in seconds.”
The serious violations include failing to provide an adequate emergency action plan; train workers about entering the grain silo; issue a permit for silo entry; test the atmosphere condition prior to silo entry; provide a body harness or lifelines that limit the worker from sinking further than waist-deep; provide an observer stationed outside of the grain silo for assistance; and provide suitable equipment for rescue operations.
OSHA is working with the grain and agricultural industries and the agricultural community to educate employers and workers about the six major hazards of the grain and feed industry. Through training, decals, brochures, websites, and other communication, OSHA will continue to work to improve awareness of these hazards and the safety and health of workers on farms and in grain-handling facilities.
Ohio Vinyl Automotive Products Plant Fined for Machine Guarding, Other Violations
Okamoto Sandusky Manufacturing, LLC, has been cited for 15 health and safety violations at its Sandusky, Ohio, vinyl automotive products manufacturing facility. OSHA initiated an inspection after receiving a complaint and has proposed fines of $58,500.
“Failing to have adequate machine guarding and train workers in adequate lockout/tagout procedures to control the unexpected activation of machinery can result in severe injuries,” said Kim Nelson, OSHA’s area director in Toledo. “As an employer, Okamoto Sandusky Manufacturing has the responsibility to maintain a safe and healthful workplace for all its workers and to train them on hazards that exist in the plant.”
A total of 14 serious violations cited include failing to conduct periodic inspections or training for the lockout/tagout program; not developing an emergency response plan and training; lack of machine guarding on rollers and conveyors; use of non-approved electrical equipment in areas where flammable vapors may be present; inadequate labeling of hazardous chemical containers; and failing to provide information and train employees on the use of hazardous chemicals.
Additionally, the company was cited for failing to implement a comprehensive respiratory protection program and hearing conservation program.
One other-than-serious violation was cited for failing to retain noise exposure monitoring records.
Georgia Lumber Manufacturer Fined for Combustible Dust and Other Hazards
Keadle Lumber Enterprises, Inc., has been cited by OSHA for 10 safety and health violations, carrying proposed penalties of $46,970, following an inspection at the manufacturer in Thomaston, Georgia. OSHA initiated its inspection in April as part of the agency’s national emphasis program on amputations and a regional emphasis program on noise hazards.
The serious violations include the employer failing to train workers on the hazards associated with combustible dust; ensure that shavings, dust, and wood chips did not accumulate in the work area; implement a monitoring program and audiometer testing where workers were exposed to noise over the permissible exposure limit; ensure the dust collector system was grounded and bonded to prevent an explosion hazard; post danger signage to warn workers of a confined space; immediately clean up a leaking 100-gallon tank of diesel fuel; provide machine guarding on sprockets, chains, and gears; ensure forklift operators were wearing seat belts while operating the equipment; and exposing workers to tripping hazards.
“Employers need to be proactive in identifying and removing workplace hazards rather than waiting for OSHA inspectors to address them,” said Christi Griffin, director of OSHA’s Atlanta-West Area Office. “Employers are responsible for ensuring that their workers have a safe and healthful work environment.”
Keadle Lumber Enterprises is a manufacturer of Southern Yellow Pine, which supplies the lumber to the construction and housing industry.
OSHA Fines Pennsylvania Pipefitting Manufacturer $48,000 for Safety and Health Hazards
OSHA has cited pipefitting manufacturer Flowline with 12 alleged serious safety and health violations at the company’s New Castle, Pennsylvania, facility. OSHA’s February inspection was prompted by a complaint and resulted in $48,000 in proposed penalties.
The serious violations include the company’s failure to provide workers with personal protective equipment for the eyes, face, hands, and body; maintain good housekeeping in the lunchrooms and work areas to prevent lead ingestion hazards; reduce the pressure in a compressed air device to less than 30 lb. per square inch; establish procedures for identifying hazards requiring respiratory protection; label dip tanks holding sulfuric acid; and perform adequate maintenance on forklift trucks creating carbon monoxide exposures. The company was also cited for inadequate machine guarding, hazards related to egress, compressed gas cylinders stored near exits, no annual crane inspections, a lack of lockout/tagout procedures to prevent inadvertent machine activation, and confined space entry procedures.
“It is imperative that the cited hazards are immediately addressed to ensure a safe and healthful workplace,” said Theresa A. Naim, director of OSHA’s Area Office in Erie. “OSHA will continue to hold employers legally accountable when they fail to uphold their responsibility to protect workers.”
Flowline, a division of Ezeflow USA, Inc., manufactures stainless steel, aluminum, and nickel alloy corrosion resistant butt weld pipe fittings.
West Virginia Logging Company Cited Following Tree Felling Fatality
OSHA has cited Best Logging, a company based in Ripley, West Virginia, for 14 alleged serious and four other-than-serious violations—including tree felling hazards—found at a Rock Castle, West Virginia, work site.
The serious violations were due to the company’s failure to ensure employees wore leg protection; heavy duty cut-resistant boots; and head, eye, and face protection while operating a chain saw and performing logging operations; ensure employees were within visual or audible contact with each other at all times; provide first aid kits with all required items on each piece of equipment or at the cutting area; train employees in first aid/CPR; provide training to employees involved in logging operations; consider the location of surrounding trees prior to felling a tree; properly fell and remove a danger tree; fell trees with a sufficient hinge; and maintain fire extinguishers on each machine.
The other-than-serious violations include failing to develop and implement a written Hazard Communication Program, maintain Material Safety Data Sheets, identify container of diesel fuel with labeling, and provide employees with training on hazardous materials in the work area.
“By many measures, logging is the most dangerous occupation in the United States and is considered a high-hazard industry by OSHA. In West Virginia alone, there have already been five fatalities this year, all involving improper felling of trees,” said Prentice Cline, director of OSHA’s Area Office in Charleston. “Employers, such as Best Logging, that put employees’ lives in danger by not complying with federal logging safety laws will continue to be held legally responsible.”
Best Logging faces $39,000 in proposed penalties.
Transportation Security Administration Cited for Worker Hazards at Boston’s Logan International Airport
“Employees who work daily to protect the traveling public also deserve protection against on-the-job hazards, each and every day,” said Brenda Gordon, OSHA’s area director for Boston and Southeastern Massachusetts. “We will meet with TSA to see what steps it will take to abate these hazards and enhance safeguards for its employees at Logan Airport.”
The inspection by OSHA’s Braintree Area Office identified several instances where TSA employees at Logan were exposed to finger crushing and amputation hazards from unguarded nip points on baggage conveyors in inspection rooms where TSA employees work; electrical hazards from misused electrical equipment at checkpoints and inspection rooms; and fire-related hazards from unsecured fire extinguishers as well as improper storage of flammable materials. Between 2008 and 2012, OSHA issued notices of unsafe and unhealthful conditions for similar hazards at Logan International Airport and at airports in Anchorage and Fairbanks, Alaska; Manchester, New Hampshire; Portland, Oregon; and Bellingham, Washington.
TSA employees were also exposed to fall hazards from defective or deficient ladders; slip, trip, and fall hazards from unsecured floor mats; lack of protective clothes and eyewashes for employees handling corrosive liquids; an inadequately marked exit route; and aisles that were too narrow.
The hazardous conditions were primarily found at baggage conveyors, baggage inspection rooms, security checkpoints, and break rooms.
Biolab Inc. Faces Fines for Multiple Safety and Health Violations
OSHA has cited Biolab, Inc., with one repeat and six serious safety violations following a March inspection at the company’s facility in Conyers, Georgia. The agency initiated the inspection upon receiving a complaint, and has proposed penalties of $46,250.
The repeat violation, with $25,000 in penalties, involves the employer exposing workers to chlorine above the ceiling limit. A similar violation was cited in September 2009.
Six serious safety violations, with $21,250 in penalties, involve worker exposure to electrical hazards from openings in a junction box and electrical panels; failure to provide machine guarding on a chain and sprocket; and exposure to pinch point and fall hazards. Additionally, the employer failed to provide training for workers required to operate powered industrial trucks, and provide access to eyewash stations for workers whose duties involve corrosive materials.
“This employer continues to expose its workers to hazards that have been previously identified, and remain unaddressed,” said Bill Fulcher, director of OSHA’s Atlanta-East Area Office. “It’s imperative that management immediately eliminate workplace hazards.”
Lead Abatement Company Exposes Workers to Lead at Pittsburgh Worksite
An April inspection was prompted by a referral from the Pennsylvania Department of Health, and conducted by OSHA under its National Emphasis Program on Lead. Proposed penalties total $16,800.
The violations include exposure to lead above the permissible exposure limit, a lack of adequate engineering and administrative controls, lack of a lead compliance program, failure to conduct initial biological monitoring, conduct initial lead sampling, implement the required respiratory protection program elements, and post lead warning signs. The company also failed to provide adequate personal protective equipment, shower facilities, and change areas, medical surveillance to workers exposed to lead, and fit tests respirator usage.
“Overexposure to lead is a leading cause of workplace illness and can result in a wide range of debilitating medical conditions,” said Christopher Robinson, director of the OSHA Pittsburgh Area Office. “The most effective way to minimize worker exposure is through engineering controls, best safety practices, training, and the use of personal protective clothing and equipment such as respirators where required.”
OSHA and The Joint Commission Renew Alliance to Protect Health Care Workers
OSHA recently renewed its alliance with The Joint Commission (TJC) to provide information and training resources that will help protect the safety and health of health care workers. Through the alliance, OSHA and TJC will address ways to reduce and prevent worker exposure to physical, chemical, biological, and airborne hazards in health care and address emergency preparedness.
“Health care workers face serious risk of work-related injury and illness,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels. “Through this Alliance, we will continue to work together with TJC to provide information and education to the health care industry on preventing worker injuries and illnesses in hospitals and nursing homes. The alliance will also focus on helping the health care industry recognize the close link between improving patient safety and improving worker safety.”
TJC evaluates and accredits more than 20,000 health care organizations and programs in the United States. As part of the alliance, OSHA will work with Joint Commission Resources, the official publisher and educator of TJC, to provide members and others with information, guidance, and access to training resources that will help them protect the health and safety of workers and understand the responsibilities of employers under the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
OSHA and TJC will work together to raise awareness of the agency’s rulemaking and enforcement initiatives, and share information on occupational safety health laws and standards, including the rights and responsibilities of workers and employers. Outreach and communication resources will focus on the recognition and prevention of workplace hazards in the health care industry.
The agreement will remain in effect for five years.
The purpose of each alliance is to develop compliance assistance tools and resources and to educate workers and employers about their rights and responsibilities. Alliance Program participants do not receive exemptions from OSHA inspections or any other enforcement benefits.
OSHA Signs Alliance, Creates Web Page to Protect Safety and Health of Female Construction Workers
OSHA has signed an alliance with the National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) to develop training resources to protect women in the construction industry. The alliance will focus on musculoskeletal and sanitation hazards and issues related to poorly fitting personal protective equipment.
“Safety and health problems in construction create barriers to women entering and remaining in this field,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels. “Through this alliance, we will work together to forge innovative solutions to improve the safety, health, and working conditions for women in the construction trades and retain female workers during a critical time of job shortages in this industry.”
During the two-year agreement, the alliance intends to develop training programs, fact sheets, and other outreach resources on musculoskeletal hazards, sanitation, and PPE selection. The alliance will focus on these and other safety and health issues specific to female construction workers.
OSHA has also unveiled its new Women in Construction Web page, a site that outlines and addresses safety and health issues specific to female construction workers, including PPE, sanitary facilities, and other resources.
NAWIC, founded in 1955 as a support network for women working in the construction industry, has more than 150 chapters and represents 4,500 members nationwide. As of 2010, there were about 800,000 women working in the construction industry, roughly nine percent of the industry workforce.
Hoosier Worker Deaths Reach Historic Low
Recently the Indiana Department of Labor (IDOL) released its annual preliminary Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) report for 2012. The IDOL reported 113 worker deaths in 2012, the lowest experienced since the CFOI report was introduced in 1992.
The most significant improvement was in manufacturing, which saw a 28% decrease in fatalities in 2012. Decreases in fatalities were seen in eight of ten major Hoosier industries.
“While we celebrate this achievement, we are reminded that Hoosier workers deserve a safe and healthy workplace, and the Indiana Department of Labor continues to push to achieve that goal.” said Indiana Department of Labor Commissioner Sean M. Keefer. “The record low number of workplace deaths means everyone, employers and employees alike, are doing a better job of protecting the Hoosier workforce. But we still have work to do to achieve a fully safe workplace environment statewide.”
- Indiana experienced 113 worker deaths in 2012, the lowest reported fatalities since the CFOI report was introduced in 1992.
- Approximately half (56) of the occupational fatalities reported in 2012 were a result of a transportation-related incident. More than half (53%) of the workplace transportation-related deaths reported in 2012 were attributed to a roadway incident involving motorized land vehicles.
- Nearly all major Hoosier industry categories experienced a reduction in workplace fatalities in 2012.
- The Hoosier manufacturing industry experienced a major decrease (28%) in workplace deaths in 2012. Hoosier manufacturing experienced the highest one-year decline of any other major Indiana industry.
This review of workplace deaths demonstrates the number one cause of worker fatality in Indiana in 2012 was vehicle crashes. Early in 2013, the IDOL began executing strategies to help companies reduce transportation-related worker deaths.
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