Today's Safety News

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Labels prepared under the European Union’s regulation for classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures (EC/1272/2008), which adopted criteria based on the UN's Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS), are considered to comply with OSHA's Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) requirements if the EU GHS labels comply with all of the provisions of the HCS, according to an OSHA letter of interpretation posted on the agency’s Web site Nov. 2, reports ORC Worldwide, a Washington, DC-based occupational safety, health and environmental consultantancy.

OSHA has prepared a fact sheet providing crowd control guidelines for retailers to protect workers during major sales events.

Surveys from the National Retail Federation and Information Resources, Inc. suggest that “uber-competitive bargain-hunting” will dominate as this year's trend among families who have spent the year making only purchases of necessity. But if cost is the only concern for spending-savvy "frugalistas," it could mean they may compromise safety, warn Underwriters Laboratories and the National Fire Protection Association.

China's Ministry of Health and State Administration of Work Safety have agreed to upgrade the country's mine medical rescue center to part of the national emergency rescue system, according to a post on the People’s Republic of China official government web portal.

OSHA has issued a guidance document, Best Practices for Protecting EMS Responders During Treatment and Transport of Victims of Hazardous Substance Releases, that addresses adequate training and personal protective equipment for emergency medical services responders who assist victims of hazardous substance release incidents, according to an agency press release.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in a press statement, is warning consumers to beware of unscrupulous vendors who may market ineffective and unregistered products or services that claim to disinfect surfaces or entire rooms against the H1N1 influenza virus. In the current flu-conscious climate, heightened anxiety about the spread of the H1N1 virus has bred false claims in the marketplace.

OSHA announced in a press release that the agency has issued citations to Cambria Contracting Inc. for 11 alleged willful violations of the OSHA construction asbestos standard for failing to train and protect its workers at a Buffalo, N.Y., jobsite. The Lockport, N.Y., demolition contractor faces a total of $484,000 in proposed penalties.

Yesterday marked the official end of the 2009 Atlantic Hurricane season which ran from June 1st to November 30th. Although it was a quiet season along the Atlantic coast, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in a press statement, continues to urge citizens across the country to stay prepared, as disasters are not limited to hurricanes or a specific time of year — they can occur anytime, anywhere.

NIOSH is soliciting public comments on a proposed project to assess the current and future professional occupational safety and health workforce, according to a notice published in the Federal Register.

According to a recent American Society of Safety Engineers’ (ASSE) webcast “Sustainability: An Emerging Force in Business & Its Impact Upon the Safety Profession” presented by Kathy A. Seabrook, CSP, CMIOSH (UK), safety and health are considered by many companies to be integral to their organizations’ corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability plans.