Weekly news round-up
A young temp worker suffers a life-altering injury, outdoor workers at risk from venomous snakes and nurses suffer from sleep deprivation. These were among the occupational safety and health stories featured on ISHN.com this week.
A NIOSH Science Blog post
Does slip-resistant footwear reduce slips, trips, and falls in food service?
Jennifer L. Bell PhD Sharon Chiou PhD Jim Collins PhD, MSME Sydney Webb PhD
July 19, 2019
Slips, trips, and falls are the second most common type of fatal work-related injuries and the third most common type of non-fatal work-related injuries in the United States (1, 2). Although falls from heights are more likely to result in a fatality, falls on the same level (which often start as a slip or trip) occur more frequently and can cause injury. Recent US Bureau of Labor Statistics data show that 50% of all same-level falls resulted in more than 10 days away from work (1, 2, 3).
New acting DOL chief expected to fast track Trump's agenda
July 18, 2019
Patrick Pizella, the man who’ll become acting Labor Secretary tomorrow, is “hard-working and no-nonsense” and will likely push for more employer-friendly safety standards, according to a former colleague. Deputy U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) secretary since April 2018, Pizella will fill the vacancy left by the recent departure of Alexander Acosta, who resigned amid controversy over his role in a lenient 2008 plea deal with convicted sex offender – and billionaire – Jeffrey Epstein. Pizella held positions in several agencies during four different Administrations, including on the Federal Labor Relations Authority, to which he was appointed by President Barack Obama.
OSHA grantees offer online training programs on fall prevention
July 18, 2019
Two Susan Harwood Training Grant Program recipients have developed free training programs to help protect construction workers from fall hazards. The University of Tennessee training program offers three modules on OSHA's role in workplace safety, health and safety standards affecting construction workers, and preventing common types of falls at construction sites.
From NIOSH:
Curriculum improves adolescents’ workplace safety knowledge, attitudes, and intention to engage in safety activities
July 18, 2019
U.S. adolescents (< 18 years) experience a higher rate of job-related injuries compared with adults. Safety education is considered critical to the prevention of these incidents. To prepare middle- and high-school students for safe and healthy employment, NIOSH and its partners developed a free curriculum, Youth@Work—Talking Safety, built on a theoretical framework of foundational workplace safety and health competencies that are fundamental to all jobs.
A FairWarning Story
Staffing firm again cited for safety lapses after young temp worker loses fingers
July 18, 2019
Last October, Erick Solis, a 19-year-old temp worker at a Los Angeles food company, lost two fingers when his hand got caught in an unguarded dough-rolling machine. Cal/OSHA, the state job safety agency, cited the company, JSL Foods Inc., for willful violations because an almost identical accident had happened before.
Worker dies in a fall at Wisconsin Amazon facility construction site
July 17, 2019
A 24-year-old Wisconsin man died last week at an Amazon construction site in suburban Wisconsin after falling approximately 30 to 40 feet, police said. Police received a call at 10:09 a.m. for an industrial accident at the future Amazon site. Zachary Dassow of Kansasville, Wisconsin, was operating a four-wheel ATV on an upper floor and drove it out a window, falling more than 30 feet, according to police.
Falls in construction can lead to traumatic brain injuries
July 17, 2019
According to a report by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), a high number of American workers were seriously injured or died on the job due to traumatic brain injuries. The study found that construction workers sustain more traumatic brain injuries than workers at any other type of workplace in the United States. Between 2003 to 2010, more than 2,200 construction workers died due to a traumatic brain injury.
A NIOSH Science Blog post
Venomous snakes: A neglected hazard for outdoor workers
July 17, 2019
Outdoor workers can experience a number of hazards. One often unexpected hazard is a venomous snakebite. Venomous snakes may be encountered in workplaces throughout the United States. The most likely geographic locations where outdoor workers would encounter venomous snakes is in the American South, Southwest, and West. From 2008-2015, the greatest number of deaths from venomous snakebites occurred in the southern and mid-western United States.
When you pick up your prescription…
You may get extra counseling
July 17, 2019
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is developing new guidance intended to help make people fully aware of the abuse or addiction possibilities of the prescriptions they’re taking. Drug Abuse and Dependence Section of Labeling for Human Prescription Drug and Biological Products - Content and Format doesn’t just deal with prescription medications that are scheduled under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). Medications not scheduled under the CSA that have dependence potential are also addressed.
NTSB closes 8 safety recommendations
"Much more work remains to be done"
July 17, 2019
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) this week published an updated list of the safety recommendations associated with the agency’s 2019 – 2020 Most Wanted List of Transportation Safety Improvements following the recent closure of eight safety recommendations. Of the eight closed safety recommendations; four (P-17-003, H-15-020, A-09-092, and H-09-018) were closed with acceptable action taken, one (P-18-003 ) was closed with acceptable alternate action taken, one (M-16-028) was closed with a status of exceeds recommended action, and safety recommendation H-12-029 was unfortunately closed with unacceptable action taken.
How stressed is your city?
July 16, 2019
Detroiters are the most – according to a new survey. Residents of Fremont, California are the least. We’re talking about being stressed, which was evaluated, city-by-city, by the personal finance website WalletHub. Its report on 2019's Most & Least Stressed Cities in America compared more than 180 cities across 39 key metrics.
AIHA offers info for safe cleanup after wildfires
July 16, 2019
The American Industrial Hygiene Association® (AIHA) has launched Think and Act Fire Smart, a one-stop information center for wildfire preparedness and recovery. The resource center aims to raise awareness about the hidden dangers in the cleanup process that follows a devastating wildfire, especially in urban areas.
EPA approves bee-killing pesticide
July 16, 2019
The EPA has approved the use of a powerful pesticide that the agency’s own research determined was lethal to honeybees. The agency’s approval of the insecticide sulfoxaflor, manufactured by DowDupont, comes just days after the USDA acknowledged that it has stopped tracking the honeybee population. The agency’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) collected statistics on the number of honey bee colonies and U.S. honey production for decades, to help track honey bee mortality. Lack of data going forward will make it difficult to gauge the effect of sulfoxaflor use on the been population.
Prime Day = overworked Amazon employees
July 16, 2019
While consumers participate enthusiastically in Prime Day, a sales bonanza staged each year by Amazon, the company’s workers regard it with something less than enthusiasm. The $5 billion in sales the world’s biggest online retailer is predicted to generate over the 2-day event is expected to exacerbate what are alleged to be already stressful conditions for the company’s employees.
Ten killed, plane destroyed in post-takeoff crash, fire
July 15, 2019
An airplane that crashed right after takeoff in Addison, Texas last month seemed to lack a normal power level as it taxied down the runway, according to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation into the incident, which claimed the lives of ten people. On the morning of June 30, 2019, the plane – which was bound for St. Petersburg, Florida - collided with a hangar and terrain after takeoff from Addison Airport (KADS).
Nurses get less sleep than the rest of us
July 15, 2019
The people who take care of you while you’re in the hospital aren’t getting enough sleep - which could have serious implications for patient safety, according to a study published in Sleep. Sleep deprivation and disorders are believed to contribute significantly to the nearly 100,000 deaths attributable to medical errors that occur in U.S. hospitals each year.
EPA sued over ACE rule
July 15, 2019
Two major health organizations are suing the EPA over the agency’s repeal of the Clean Power Plan – the first-ever federal policy aimed at reducing harmful carbon pollution from power plants – and the move to replace it with the “Affordable Clean Energy” rule. The American Lung Association and the American Public Health Association, represented by attorneys from the Clean Air Task Force, claim that the EPA has abdicated its legal duties and obligations to protect public health.
Workplace hazards that peak in summer
July 15, 2019
OSHA is urging vigilance among employers and employees to address the types of workplace hazards that tend to peak in the summer months. Hazards related to heat exposure, falls, trenching and excavation, struck-by objects and vehicles, electrical safety, workplace violence, grain bin engulfment and other risks in agricultural operations have been at their highest in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska in July, August, and September in the past three years.
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