This page is dedicated to providing our readers information about OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration). We’re tracking regulatory topics and compliance standards like signage requirements and the safe handling of hazardous materials. We’re also writing analytically, posting informative pieces about workplace safety, its relationship to consumer satisfaction and productivity, and considering OSHA’s implications and effectiveness. Our posts aim to simplify technical jargon, explain regulatory contexts, and help both workers and employers understand issues of compliance and federally mandated safe work practices.
OSHA
OSHA v. SeaWorld: the saga continues
Last week, the Associated Press reported on the latest development in a long battle between SeaWorld Orlando and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), stemming from the 2010 death of a trainer drowned by one of the park’s killer whales. In the recent ruling, an administrative law judge determined that SeaWorld had made a […]
OSHA cites the US Army for safety violations after fatalities at the super pond
OSHA issued a notice to the U.S. Army’s Aberdeen Test Center (ATC) for violating nearly a dozen commercial diving safety standards. The U.S. Department of Labor found seven serious and four other than-serious violations at the weapon-testing pond near Baltimore. The investigation, the first at the weapon-testing center, looked into the death of a civil engineer at […]
PPE on a near-atomic level: are workers safe from nanomaterials?
Advancements in science allow us to see more of the world around us, but often raise more questions than answers. Such is the case with engineered nanoparticles, and the dilemma of how “standard industrial hygiene practices” apply to a potential hazard that isn’t yet fully understood. Little particles, big question marks Nanomaterials are defined by […]
USPS will improve electrical safety under settlement with OSHA
Initially cited by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) with $3 million in fines for electrical hazards, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) authorities have now managed to reduce the amount by reaching a settlement with the Department of Labor and the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) and agreeing to improve electrical safety in the […]
Why the health care industry has the most on-the-job injuries
Fatal falls in the construction industry and manufacturing injuries due to falling objects can cause dramatic on-the-job injuries that grab headlines and incite safety campaigns and stricter regulations. But one type of workplace-related injury is so chronic in one industry that it has gone almost unnoticed – and unregulated. According to a new report from […]
Are OSHA’s safety citations of Midland Davis Corp. unfair?
Midland Davis Corp., a Moline, IL based scrap metal recycling company, has decided to contest the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) safety citations for 19 violations. OSHA inspected the Moline scrap metal recycling center in April as a part of its Site-Specific Targeting Program, targeting employers who have recorded a higher than average illness and injury […]
Will the ANSI designs save more lives?
The ANSI Z535 sign designs are now sanctioned alternatives to OSHA’s traditional, straightforward templates. But, will they save lives? It depends! In some environments, the ANSI designs are far superior. For others, the directness and historical familiarity with the traditional OSHA Danger and OSHA Caution signs, we believe, are far better. The safety sign market, […]
Craft breweries overlook workplace safety
Serious beer drinkers increasingly turn to craft breweries for more nuanced taste, wider variety and the cachet of supporting small, possibly local businesses. But while taste standards are top priority, beer drinkers, and it seems the breweries themselves, seldom think about standards for workplace safety. In 2009, welder Mark Moynihan died from severe burns suffered […]
What crane construction hazards do you see? #HazardSpotting
#HazardSpotting is a community safety initiative that helps raise awareness about dangerous workplace safety violations. Our audience submits pictures, and we write an article with insight from featured safety professionals. In our eighth installment, we’re highlighting the crane hazards in a building construction zone. Cranes often inspire passersby to nervously look up, but when we took […]
Witt Plumbing Inc. fined $157,000 after a trench cave-in kills worker
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Witt Plumbing Inc. for trenching hazards after an unprotected trench collapsed at a residential construction site on Jan 16, killing a worker. The worker was locating a sewage drainpipe at the site in Hastings, Neb. when the trench cave-in occurred. The company has been charged with […]
OSHA calls for improvements in retail employee safety
As retail customers, we’re used to being greeted by well-lit, clean and clear walkways. But that neat façade might be concealing a potentially deadly hazard, and several agencies with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are launching campaigns to improve retail employee safety. Over the last three years, “blocked egress” – exit routes or doors […]
