According to the fiscal year 2013 Congressional Budget Justification for OSHA, the agency will be more transparent in divulging information to the next-of-kin of workplace fatality victims. OSHA has long been criticized by activists such as Alabama’s Ron Hayes, whose son was killed in a grain silo, of frustrating victims’ families by leaving them out of the information loop.
The Washington Post’s Wonk Blog has a piece this week on the burgeoning costs of regulations. WaPo’s Jim Tankersley writes, “If you’re a business leader or conservative economist who worries that the federal government is strangling the economy in red tape, 2012 was a banner year. If you’re a consumer advocate or an environmentalist anxious for the government to do more to boost public health … ditto.”
The American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) met with Abu Dhabi Environment, Health and Safety Center officials in the United Arab Emirates recently to assist them in developing the country’s first Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Strategy aimed at reducing work-related injuries and fatalities and building a preventative safety culture.
When winter cold brings snowy or icy conditions all outdoor work—even walking—can become treacherous. Workers need serious traction to prevent dangerous and costly injuries, and nothing delivers traction like Diamond GripÔfrom ICEtrekkers. In just seconds, Diamond Grip attaches dozens of case hardened, alloy steel grippers to the bottom of a shoe or boot.
Two papers published in the January issue of Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene (JOEH) address noise hazards in a work environment not usually studied for noise hazards: sports venues. Noise controls are often enforced only when workers have been exposed to noise levels beyond recognized standards, and only in workplaces and industries known for frequent noise exposure, such as manufacturing and construction.
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory (NPPTL),has added sweating thermal manikins to its research efforts aimed at measuring heat transfer through various fabric ensembles of specific types of garments worn in occupations such as firefighting, healthcare, and mining.
A new compilation, ASTM Standards for Accident and Disaster Control, is now available on CD-ROM from ASTM International. The compilation includes 185 of the latest ASTM standards for accident and emergency management from ASTM Committees E54 on Homeland Security; F12 on Security Systems; F32 on Search and Rescue; and F30 on Emergency Medical Services.
Susan Jordan Sikes may be relatively new to the Voluntary Protection Program Participants Association (VPPPA), but she’s had 27 years of experience in occupational safety and health.
The Cadmium Biological Monitoring Advisor, a new online tool from OSHA, analyzes biological monitoring results provided by the user. These data, along with a series of answers to questions generated by the cadmium advisor, are used to determine the biological monitoring and medical surveillance requirements that must be met under the general industry cadmium standard (29 CFR 1910.1027).
A new American Petroleum Institute (API) report shows that operational injuries and illness for the oil and natural gas industry occur at a rate substantially below the private sector average. The Workplace Safety Report also shows the oil and gas industry rate has been steadily declining.
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