In another sign of OSHA’s pumped up enforcement posture, the agency last week banged Milk Specialties Co. in Whitehall, Wisc., with multiple violations of federal workplace safety and health standards and proposed $1,145,200 in penalties.
OSHA has announced it will address problems identified in its Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) in response to a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, “OSHA's Voluntary Protection Programs: Improved Oversight and Controls Would Better Ensure Program Quality,” issued this past May.
Even prior to last year’s presidential election, many OSHA watchers were saying no matter the outcome, the new OSHA leadership regime shouldn’t touch the hot-button ergonomics standard issue with a ten-foot pole. It’s politically radioactive, they warned.
Despite Secretary Solis declaring earlier this year that, under her leadership in the Department of Labor, "There's a new sheriff in town" regarding how OSHA operates, there’s scan evidence as to what that new sheriff intends to do, or in fact who that new sheriff is.
OK, in a few days it will be the Fourth of July. The Obama administration is near six months in office. And there is no news, even juicy rumors, as to the appointment of a permanent head of OSHA.
Former NIOSH Director John Howard, MD, MPH, JD, LLM, who was reported to be on the short list of candidates for the OSHA chief job in the Obama administration before dropping from contention, perhaps in part due to his service in the Bush administration, is still alive and well in Washington. Dr. Howard still mans a desk at NIOSH/Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and according to some sources, is interested in returning to his old NIOSH post.
EPA has released the latest version of a state-of-the-science tool that estimates health risks from breathing air toxics in the United States. The National Air Toxics Assessment (NATA), based on 2002 air emissions data, helps federal, state, local and tribal governments identify areas and specific pollutants for further evaluation to better understand risks they may pose.
OSHA has announced that it is continuing its nationwide program to emphasize workplace safety and health for federal workers and for those contractors whose work is supervised on a daily basis by federal agency personnel.
A new ISO standard addresses the major safety considerations to be taken into account when designing, packaging and installing gas turbine applications.
Ensuring that all pilots receive adequate rest is key to maintaining a safe aviation system, according to a press release issued by the Federal Aviation Administration. While current FAA rules are fundamentally sound and have contributed to an excellent safety record, fatigue remains a very real aviation safety issue, according to the FAA. The FAA is interested in any new fatigue research that would assist the agency with enhancing its rules and that promotes industry best practices for fatigue risk management.