How one supermarket chain is preventing MSDs among its warehouse workers
OSHA is hoping that other companies follow suit
Before consumers get to choose products in the supermarket, workers in warehouses nationwide pack bulk quantities of merchandise onto wooden pallets and load them onto delivery trucks. The nature of this work puts the people who do it at risk for serious sprains, strains and other musculoskeletal injuries. One supermarket chain, Maine-based Hannaford Supermarkets, has chosen to address the issue.
After inspections in 2013 and 2014, OSHA cited Hannaford for failing to keep its Schodack Landing, New York, and South Portland, Maine, distribution centers free from recognized hazards likely to cause musculoskeletal disorders, or MSDs. Hannaford initially contested its citations, but has now reached a settlement with the department in which the company agrees to institute ongoing and effective worker protection safeguards at both distribution centers.