A bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives yesterday would codify the Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP), a safety and health program overseen by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). VPP prevents workplace injuries and fatalities while increasing productivity, employee engagement and lowering costs for companies and taxpayers.
The American Petroleum Institute (API) is using a major new television, radio, print, and online advertising campaign to urge the Obama administration to keep the current ozone standards rather than implementing new ones.
California is the only state with a law governing minimum nurse-to-patient staffing ratios. The ratios vary depending on the type of hospital service but are in the range of one nurse for every five patients. (The ratios are available on the California Department of Public Health website.) The law went into effect in 2004.
Worker safety advocates and environmentalists are worried that an executive order issued by the governor of Massachusetts will lead to more dangerous workplaces and higher levels of air and water pollution.
Both safety advocates and the railroad industry are expressing disappointment with new rules announced Friday by the U.S. Department of Transportation that are intended improve the safety of rail tank cars carrying crude oil and other flammable liquids.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration today issued a final rule to increase protections for construction workers in confined spaces. “This rule will provide construction workers with protections already afforded to workers in manufacturing and general industry, with some differences tailored to the construction industry,” said OSHA chief David Michaels, who predicted that it will prevent 800 serious injuries and save five lives a year.
1910.138(a): General requirements. Employers shall select and require employees to use appropriate hand protection when employees' hands are exposed to hazards such as those from skin absorption of harmful substances; severe cuts or lacerations; severe abrasions; punctures; chemical burns; thermal burns; and harmful temperature extremes.
A proposed bill that would allow some teenagers to work in the logging industry is drawing opposition from safety advocates. House Bill 1215 was introduced to a congressional committee last month by Sen. James Risch (R-Idaho). The bill, called the “Future Logging Careers Act,” would allow 16- and 17-year-olds to be exempt from child labor laws if they work in logging or mechanized operations under parental supervision.
For chemical and manufacturing companies, safety data is nothing new. Material safety data sheets and container labels have been the core components of OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) since 1983. Most companies managed to comply by way of manual tools—including spreadsheets or homegrown chemical inventory databases.
The White House has reviewed a draft of the rule and signed off on OSHA’s proposal – returning it to the agency with several undisclosed recommendations, according to Aaron Trippler, government affairs director for the American Industrial Hygiene Association.
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