At last year’s National Safety Council Congress
and Expo, OSHA presenters noted that fall protection
was the agency’s second-most cited violation
category. That’s no surprise — fall protection
consistently ranks among OSHA’s highest number of
inspections and total fines.
Today, our nation’s workforce is comprised of the highest percentage of workers aged 55 and older since the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) began reporting labor force data in 1948.
Heads up! The International Safety Equipment Association’s (ISEA) Head Protection Group is laying groundwork to update the ANSI/ ISEA Z89.1-2009 American National Standard for Industrial Head Protection. ISEA anticipates a revised document sometime in 2013.
Technically speaking, an arc flash is an electrical breakdown of the resistance of air resulting in an electric arc that can occur where there is sufficient voltage in an electrical system and a path to ground or lower voltage.
Significant developments within OSHA and ANSI safety standards will have a considerable effect on fall protection requirements throughout general industry.
When OSHA published its proposed rule for Walking-Working Surfaces and Fall Protection last year, it was the culmination of a regulatory project that’s been brewing for decades. For the members of the Fall Protection Group of the International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA), it was a mark of success in efforts to get the agency to focus on protecting workers from falls.
Beyond following the regulations mandated by OSHA and your state, safety in welding is largely based on understanding hazards and awareness of your surroundings.
Approximately ten percent of all occupational deaths are from struck-by accidents, and that number increases to 26 percent in the construction industry, according to OSHA. With the weather getting warmer and the layers of clothing coming off, it’s important to make sure that the layer of high-visibility apparel stays on.
The next time you drive by a highway work zone, try to envision how it differs from one that existed a decade ago. Is there more equipment on site? Maybe. Are the barrels and barriers still orange? Most likely.
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