Getting Ready for GHS

Recently, OSHA held a public hearing to propose a new rule that would align their Hazard Communication System (HCS), with the United Nation’s Globally Harmonized System (GHS).  Like most companies adapting to the new OSHA, you are probably wondering what this will mean for you.
First, you should understand that the GHS is broken down into [...]

Reporting: Separate OSHA logs from Workers Comp

This time of year companies are reviewing and preparing their injuries and incidents reports in order to complete their OSHA logs, which must be posted by February 1. Don’t forget these things.

OSHA Smackdown: $1.4 million in Fines to CES

One January 4th OSHA issued citations against Chemical & Environmental Services LLC, a Houston-based waste management and transportation services company for a series of incidents dating back to December 2008 involving several fatalities at the company’s Griggs Road and Port Arthur facilities.

OSHA Secretary Lays Out Five Green Reform Principles

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently participated in a special workshop organized by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) on the subject of ‘Going Green.’ More specifically, the emphasis of the meeting was on the idea that new government initiatives surround the creation of environmentally-friendly or ‘green’ jobs also offered an opportunity for OSHA to get in on the ground floor of a brand new industry and ensure that employee safety is built in from the bottom up.

OSHA Reverses, Won’t Fine Company

Last week OSHA had issued a statement making clear their intent of citing and fining Vos Electric after an employee was killed on a construction site in April of this year. However, after a meeting with company officials, OSHA has reversed course and deleted the citation and fine.

OSHA Releases Regulatory Priorities for 2010 – Part 2

Continuing our examination of the Occupational Health and Safety Administration’s (OSHA) Fall 2009 Regulatory Priorities, we now turn our attention to several of the more targeted initiatives that the Administration plans to set in motion in 2010.
Several hazardous materials – specifically, how they are handled in the workplace and how to control employee exposure to [...]

OSHA Levies Fines For Worker Amputation

From OSHA. gov, Crespac Inc. in Tucker, Ga., has been cited with 34 safety and health violations by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Proposed penalties total $266,400.

OSHA Provides Guidance for EMS Workers and HazMat

Most workers who are routinely exposed to hazardous substances during the course of their jobs receive the type of training necessary to help protect themselves from the negative effects associated with accidental exposure or improper procedures.  However, there is another class of workers who are only occasionally foisted into situations where they may come into [...]

Top 10 OSHA Standard Violations 2009

When viewed from the inside over a long period of time, it can be difficult for risk managers to remain objective about evaluating new hazards that may have presented themselves in the workplace, or to notice dangers that have always been present but which have yet to come to the fore. It is always helpful to approach the task of worker safety from a fresh perspective from time to time in order to pick up on issues that may not have been apparent from a previous viewpoint.

GAO Report On Workplace Injury Reporting Stuns OSHA

The Occupational Safety and Healthy Administration (OSHA) has again been forced to confront the fact that injury and illness reporting are just not at the level they need to be in order to ensure the highest level of worker protections across all industries. The Government Accountability Office (GAO), which is a specific branch of the government dedicated to auditing data for various federal agencies, has just provided a report which confirmed the fact that it is all too common for companies to under-report the incidence of injury in the workplace.

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