OSHA has developed two new videos for healthcare workers that feature training and guidance on respirator safety, according to an agency press release.
In 2008, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), workplace suicides were up 28 percent over 2007, and workplace homicides continued to be one of the top three causes of on-the-job fatalities, noted the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) in a recent press release.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and its Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced a nationwide effort to encourage more Americans to get the H1N1 flu vaccine during National Influenza Vaccination Week, January 10–16, 2010, according to an HHS press release.
EPA has taken a significant step in an effort to help reduce the need for federal taxpayers to fund the cleanup of environmental releases, according to an agency news release. The agency has identified three additional industry sectors for which it will begin the regulatory development process for any necessary financial assurance requirements: the chemical manufacturing industry; the petroleum and coal products manufacturing industry, which primarily includes refineries and not coal mines; and the electric power generation, transmission, and distribution industry.
EPA has proposed the strictest health standards to date for smog. Smog, also known as ground-level ozone, is linked to a number of serious health problems, ranging from aggravation of asthma to increased risk of premature death in people with heart or lung disease. Ozone can even harm healthy people who work and play outdoors. The agency is proposing to replace the standards set by the previous administration, which many believe were not protective enough of human health.
OSHA will hold three informal public hearings to accept comments and testimony on the proposed rule to align the agency’s Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) with the United Nations’ Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS).
OSHA is now posting descriptions of on-the-job fatalities on a weekly basis. Employers must report these incidents to OSHA within eight hours. Here are summaries from November 4 to December 11, the most recent incidents posted on OSHA’s web site.
In an effort to address transportation-related incidents, which are still the number one cause of on-the-job deaths, the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) recently announced the approval of a new voluntary consensus standard, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/ASSE A10.47-2009 “Work Zone Safety for Highway Construction”, according to an ASSE press release.
OSHA is proposing 41 safety and health violations against Birdsong Corp.’s facilities in Sylvester and Blakely, Ga., according to an agency press release.
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