With a new state bill that raises the height for fall protection requirements, Arizona is pitting itself against the federal government – and the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) is urging OSHA to enforce federal fall hazard standards.
Concrete contractors cited with egregious willful violations
July 25, 2012
OSHA has cited four New Jersey contractors working on a 20-story building in Jersey City for exposing workers to fall hazards following a December 2011 inspection during which inspectors observed employees working on the fourth floor without personal fall protection or fall protection systems.
Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis earlier this year announced a new campaign led by OSHA to prevent deadly falls in the construction industry. The awareness campaign will provide employers and workers with life-saving information and educational materials about working safely from ladders, scaffolds and roofs. In 2010, more than 10,000 construction workers were injured as a result of falling while working from heights, and another 255 workers were killed.
OSHA has issued a request that construction companies ensure their employees working above 6 feet have the proper equipment to protect themselves from falls on the job. OSHA has opened investigations following four unrelated construction accidentsin New Jersey.
OSHA has cited two Florida companies, Major Plumbing LLC and MAPP Construction LLC, for trenching hazards. OSHA opened an inspection after receiving a complaint in January that an excavation sidewall had collapsed and buried a worker, who sustained a broken hip and was hospitalized.
OSHA, the Hispanic Contractors Association De Tejas (HCAT) and the American Sub-Contractors Association held a 10-hour marathon training session last month to promote safety and health for construction workers in the Greater Houston area.
With the summer travel season already underway, the American Roads & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) is urging motorists to drive carefully through roadway work zones.
With a new state bill that raises the height for fall protection requirements, Arizona is pitting itself against the federal government – and the ASSE is urging OSHA to enforce federal fall hazard standards.
OSHA has cited roofing contractor Woodridge Enterprises Inc. in Lemont with four safety violations for failing to protect workers from falls at two separate job sites in Hinsdale and Carol Stream.