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In 2005 I completed a dissertation on the effectiveness of safety awards on reducing at-risk behaviors. Although not primarily directed at safety, I was surprised to learn that there is a goodly amount of literature on the subject; particularly within the behavioral sciences.

Human error is often cited as the main cause for up to 80 percent of all incidents and accidents in complex high-risk systems that exist in the aviation, petrochemical, healthcare, construction, mining, and nuclear power industries, according to the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (www.nerc.com).

W.S. Bellows Construction Corp. will tackle its biggest project to date in partnership with OSHA, under a plan designed to reduce occupational fatalities, injuries and illnesses.

Better late than never seems to be the National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) reaction to new Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rules regarding pilot training. NTSB Chairman Deborah Hersman commended the FAA for finalizing the long-awaited rule, “which addresses recommendations stemming from accidents dating back more than two decades.”

FERC is the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (www.ferc.gov). In EPAct 2005 Congress granted the Commission enhanced authority to assess civil penalties for violations of the Federal Power Act (FPA), Natural Gas Act (NGA), and the Natural Gas Policy Act (NGPA). EPAct 2005 made three major changes to the Commission's civil penalty authority.

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) released the latest edition of its U.S. Firefighter Injury Report, highlighting data on injuries sustained by firefighters on duty that was collected from fire departments responding to the 2012 National Fire Experience Survey.

A physician at Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions who is paid – by coal companies – ten times the amount to interpret x-rays that other doctors charge for the service has not found a single case of severe black lung disease in more than 1,500 x-rays – findings used to deny miners black lung benefits.

This checklist covers regulations issued by OSHA under the general industry standard 29 CFR 1910.335. It applies to persons who are at risk of electrical shock. This checklist does not apply to qualified persons working on generation, transmission, and distribution installations; communications installations; installations in vehicles; and railway installations.

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has produced a new version of Remembering When™:  A Fire and Fall Prevention Program for Older Adults. Program materials, available for download at no cost, are widely used by fire departments and other safety educators interested in reaching older adults with fire and fall prevention messages developed especially for them.

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has announced the new Certified Electrical Safety Compliance Professional (CESCP) certification program, created to encourage electrical safety within the industry.