For the past 10-20 years industry has been able to turn a deaf ear to OSHA by and large, as the agency was muzzled by the Bush administration and has its mission muddled by the Clinton administrations attempts at “reinventing” OSHA into a friendlier, more consultative agency.
You need go no further than to read these excerpts from acting OSHA chief Jordan Barab’s August speech at the national safety and health conference of the United Steelworkers to understand which way the wind is now blowing in Washington:
To educate, develop and mentor future professionals in the field of occupational safety, health and the environment (SH&E) and to help them transition into the working world after school, the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) is sponsoring its 5th annual Future Safety Leaders Conference (FSLC) at the Hyatt Regency in Indianapolis, IN, this November 12-13.
OSHA has published today in the Federal Register a final rule revising the personal protective equipment (PPE) sections of its general industry, shipyard employment, longshoring and marine terminals standards concerning requirements for eye- and face-protective devices, and head and foot protection, according to an agency press release.
As the nation prepares to mark the eighth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks and the subsequent anthrax attacks, Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joe Lieberman, ID-Conn., and Ranking Member Susan Collins, R-Me., introduced legislation on Tuesday to prevent and prepare for terrorist attacks from biological weapons and other weapons of mass destruction (WMD), according to a press release from the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
In a recent press release, the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), the largest and oldest safety society with more than 32,000 occupational safety, health and environmental professional members, expressed its support of the selection of Dr. John Howard as the new director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), a position he held from 2002-2008.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is seeking public comment on a new strategy that would make cleanups at hazardous waste sites greener, according to an EPA press release. The Superfund Green Remediation Strategy is an initial effort to outline key actions and related activities that can be undertaken to promote green remediation and to reduce energy use.
To support and encourage future occupational safety and health educators and more evidence-based research in the economic and financial analysis of safety-related programs and interventions, the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) Foundation, along with Oregon State University (OSU), recently announced the establishment of a new doctoral fellowship program, the “PhD Fellowship for Future Safety Educators”.
Citing comments in opposition from worker advocacy organizations, labor unions, and risk assessment experts, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has withdrawn a controversial risk assessment rule that critics charged would have unnecessarily delayed rulemaking to protect workers from toxic substances, according to a press statement from the American Industrial Hygiene Association®. AIHA opposed both the substance of the rule and the DOL’s determination to proceed without allowing additional public comment.
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