The U.S. Government Accountability Office issued a report titled, "Whistleblower Protection: Sustained Management Attention Needed to Address Long-standing Program Weaknesses." In response, OSHA Assistant Secretary of Labor Dr. David Michaels, issued the following statement:
OSHA has cited Porta-King Building Systems in Montgomery City, Mo., for workplace safety and health violations, according to an agency press release. Proposed penalties total $124,000.
As documented cases of residential mold contamination and related health problems continue to rise across the nation, the indoor air quality industry is on a crusade to educate homeowners about the serious consequences of mold in the home. (September 5 – October 5) has been deemed Mold Awareness Month by the industry because mold spores that commonly grow in summer humidity are often trapped as people close up homes and foundation vents in the fall, according to a press release from AdvantaClean, a national mold remediation company. Just a few of these spores can make a family sick.
September 15, 2010, was the 10th anniversary of National School Backpack Awareness Day and an ongoing effort to make parents and students more aware of safety concerns related to carrying heavy backpacks, according to a press release from the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress. Research published in the Journal of Pediatric Orthopedics, found that students carrying excessive weight in their backpacks may develop long-term back pain and other serious health conditions including numbness of the shoulder, muscle spasms and posture deterioration.
A Ronkonkoma, N.Y., painting and stucco contractor faces a total of $225,200 in proposed fines from OSHA for failing to properly erect scaffolds and provide fall protection for its workers at two Kings Point, N.Y., jobsites.
This just in from Harvard Medical School’s HealthBeat:
“Age affects every nook and cranny of the body. Along with the wisdom, experience, and accomplishments that come with getting older, there are changes that occur in our outward appearance. Changes in our faces are most at the forefront. Dozens of changes take place as the years add up, some of them obvious and familiar:
Foreheads expand as hairlines retreat
Ears often get a bit longer because the cartilage in them grows
Tips of noses may droop because connective tissue supporting nasal cartilage weakens.
OSHA is seeking nominations for individuals to serve on the Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health (ACCSH). The committee advises the Secretary of Labor on developing standards and policies that affect the safety and health of construction workers.
“In 2008, there were 36,130 occupational musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) cases in private industry where the source of injury or illness was a health care patient or resident of a health care facility. This accounted for 11 percent of the 317,440 total cases of MSDs that resulted in a least one lost day from work in 2008. Almost all (98 percent) of the cases involving patient handling occurred within the health care and social assistance industry, composing 55 percent of the 64,300 total MSD cases in that industry.
“Mass shootings receive a great deal of coverage in the media, as we saw with the Orlando, Fla., office shootings in November 2009 and in the shootings at the manufacturing plant in Albuquerque, N.M., in July 2010. Out of 421 workplace shootings recorded in 2008 (eight percent of total fatal injuries), 99 (24 percent) occurred in retail trade. Workplace shootings in manufacturing were less common, with 17 shootings reported in 2008. Workplace shooting events account for only a small portion of nonfatal workplace injuries.
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