30
2015
OSHA Says Ringling Bros. Agrees to Enhance Safety for Aerial Acts
Hundreds watched as an aerial act at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus performance in Providence, R.I., went badly wrong on May 4, 2014. A group of aerialists plummeted to the ground, injuring nine of them. Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus will implement ongoing safety enhancements in aerial acts to protect employees against injuries like those sustained by its aerialists during…
29
2015
OSHA Issues $260K After Worker is Disciplined for Reporting Injury
Federal officials have levied the largest penalty of its kind against an employer following an investigation that showed the company taking action against an employee who reported a workplace injury. The Metro-North Commuter Railroad, based in Hartford, CT, has been ordered to pay the employee $250,000 in punitive damages, $10,000 in compensatory damages and “reasonable attorney fees.” OSHA investigated following a complaint filed by a…
24
2015OSHA Blasts Productivity Over Safety Focus By Steel Firm
OSHA blasted a large steel company for putting workers at risk in order to maintain production at an Alabama manufacturing site. Concerns about time and money cost two employees their lives and resulted in serious burns for a third according to the agency. The employees were working on a malfunctioning valve on a furnace at the site when it erupted. At the hospital, two of…
22
2015OSHA Makes $3.5 Million in Training Grants Available
OSHA now is accepting 2015 applications for training grants under the Susan Harwood Training Grant Program, with a total of $3.5 million available for nonprofit organizations, including community and faith-based organizations, employer associations, labor unions, joint labor/management associations, tribal organizations, and colleges and universities. The program honors the late Susan Harwood, a former director in OSHA’s Office of Risk Assessment whose 17-year tenure with the…
20
2015Construction: OSHA 10 Hour and OSHA 30 Hour Training Sharing
Illinois OSHA Training Sharing Series #1 Focus Four is a major part of OSHA 10 Hour and OSHA 30 Training for Construction workers. What Are the Focus Four Hazards? Electrocution – First of four series Struck-by – Second of four series Caught-in between – Third of four series Fall – Fourth of series Fatality & Statistical Analysis 85% of all citations and 90% of dollars applied…
06
2015
Owner could go to jail for not reporting worker’s injury
Weekly Safety Tip: Keep injury and illness Records. Report severe work-related injuries and illnesses to OSHA. The owner of a construction company could go to jail for not reporting an employee’s foot injury that resulted in an amputation. Harry Minassian of Granada Hills, CA, faces four felony counts of workers’ compensation insurance fraud for failing to report the injury. Minassian owns Pacific Construction. An employee…
02
2015
7 tips to ensure that a close call doesn’t become something worse
Are employees at your site encouraged to report near misses? Do you share lessons learned from these close calls to prevent actual incidents? Read on to find out why, and how, you should be doing this. According to the National Safety Council (NSC), a near miss is an unplanned event that did not result in an injury, illness, or damage. But it could have. “Only…
30
2015
24
2014
What are the hazards in a confined space?
All hazards found in a regular workspace can also be found in a confined space. However, they can be even more hazardous in a confined space than in a regular worksite. Hazards in confined spaces can include: •Poor air quality: There may be an insufficient amount of oxygen for the worker to breathe. The atmosphere might contain a poisonous substance that could make the worker…
23
2014
Warning signs that your workplace may be too noisy?
Noise may be a problem in your workplace if: ◾You hear ringing or humming in your ears when you leave work. ◾You have to shout to be heard by a coworker an arm’s length away. ◾You experience temporary hearing loss when leaving work. OSHA sets legal limits on noise exposure in the workplace. These limits are based on a worker’s time weighted average over an…