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The 2016 case of a worker killed by an electric shock while repairing a ceiling light fixture came to a close recently, with an administrative law judge affirming OSHA citations issued to the man’s employer. The fatality involved a worker who was untrained in electrical safety work practices. The Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC) judge ruled that Jersey City Medical Center willfully failed to train the employee for the hazardous electrical work he was directed to perform.

Patrick Pizella, the man who’ll become acting Labor Secretary tomorrow, is “hard-working and no-nonsense” and will likely push for more employer-friendly safety standards, according to a former colleague. Deputy U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) secretary since April 2018, Pizella will fill the vacancy left by the recent departure of Alexander Acosta, who resigned amid controversy over his role in a lenient 2008 plea deal with convicted sex offender – and billionaire – Jeffrey Epstein. Pizella held positions in several agencies during four different Administrations, including on the Federal Labor Relations Authority, to which he was appointed by President Barack Obama.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is developing new guidance intended to help make people fully aware of the abuse or addiction possibilities of the prescriptions they’re taking. Drug Abuse and Dependence Section of Labeling for Human Prescription Drug and Biological Products - Content and Format doesn’t just deal with prescription medications that are scheduled under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). Medications not scheduled under the CSA that have dependence potential are also addressed.

Once again, fall-related violations were behind most of the biggest fines OSHA issued to construction companies in the second quarter of 2019. One of the contractors, Shawn D. Purvis, has been charged criminally in relation to a death that occurred on one of his company's jobsites.

Two major health organizations are suing the EPA over the agency’s repeal of the Clean Power Plan – the first-ever federal policy aimed at reducing harmful carbon pollution from power plants – and the move to replace it with the “Affordable Clean Energy” rule. The American Lung Association and the American Public Health Association, represented by attorneys from the Clean Air Task Force, claim that the EPA has abdicated its legal duties and obligations to protect public health.

OSHA is urging vigilance among employers and employees to address the types of workplace hazards that tend to peak in the summer months. Hazards related to heat exposure, falls, trenching and excavation, struck-by objects and vehicles, electrical safety, workplace violence, grain bin engulfment and other risks in agricultural operations have been at their highest in Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, and Nebraska in July, August, and September in the past three years.