Homicide as the cause of death in the workplace has risen from ninth in 2015 to fourth in 2018. OSHA has increasingly invoked the General Duty Clause to require employers to protect workers from workplace violence from bullying to homicides.
The absence of safety pins in two hydraulic leg stands and the failure to use stationary jacks allowed a mobile medical trailer to fall and fatally crush a 58-year-old electrician on his first day working on the job for an Illinois manufacturer of custom trailers and specialty vehicles.
Recently, I have noticed an increase in statements that some particular safety program or another is required because of the OSHA General Duty Clause. Often, this statement is tied to a pitch for consulting services or to promote a fill-in-the-blank template for whatever safety program is being discussed.
