– Safety Fest TN announces that registration is now open for Safety Fest TN 2019. The annual community event offers over 100 free safety classes, sessions, and demonstrations to residents and companies from April 29-May 3. This year’s training will be offered at Y-12’s New Hope Center, ORAU’s Pollard Technical Center, and other venues in Oak Ridge and Knoxville, TN. Registration and a complete list of classes can be found at www.safetyfesttn.org.

There's a new safety orientation program for contractors in the oil and gas industry that aims to save time and money for employers. Thousands of contractors have to attend safety orientation for each company they work for each year. That leads to a lot of repetition and lost hours they could be working. Safety is one of the number one concerns for workers in the oil and gas industry.

A long-term silicosis study yields valuable results; an OSHA trainer makes thousands selling fake training cards and a risk from wearable tech you may not have thought of. These were among the top occupational safety and health stories featured on ISHN.com this week.

A certified OSHA trainer who plead guilty to selling fake OSHA training cards faces up to five years in prison and $250,000 in fines. According to the Department of Justice, training agent Mark Dropal sold more than 100 fraudulent training cards for about $200 each to carpenters in New York and New Jersey between Feb. 21 and March 11, 2018.

Compressed air is integral in nearly every industry, from powering tools and providing pressure for robotic assembly arms to inflating tires and even cleaning off dusty surfaces. Companies might offer training on how to use compressed air and its related tools, but does any of this include how to use them safely? Why should companies offer compressed air safety training, and what negative repercussions could they face for not providing it?

While the extent of responsibility under the law of staffing agencies and host employers is dependent on the specific facts of each case, staffing agencies and host employers are jointly responsible for maintaining a safe work environment for temporary workers - including, for example, ensuring that OSHA's training, hazard communication, and recordkeeping requirements are fulfilled.

In its continued effort to help companies comply with government regulations, J. J. Keller & Associates, Inc. is hosting nearly 30 complimentary seminars in the first quarter of 2019 alone. “What’s great about these seminars is not only that our subject-matter experts provide attendees with in-person guidance to better understand and comply with complex regulatory requirements, but also that attendees get to hear about real life best practices from their peers,” said Tom Reader, senior director of marketing at J. J. Keller.

OSHA is using alliances formed recently with both private and public sector organizations across the U.S. to get out in front of potential safety issues and focus on injury prevention rather than enforcement. In Erie, Pennsylvania, OSHA and Turner Construction have formed a strategic partnership to promote workplace safety during the construction of a 200,000 square-foot, seven-floor hospital building.