NIOSH, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and the Center for Construction Research and Training are promoting a national campaign to prevent workplace falls. March 2021 marks the Fifth Annual National Ladder Safety Month. 

Modern day portable gas detectors are quite reliable and accurate. For enhanced worker safety and to be fully compliant there is a little known concept called bump testing. Bump tests are crucial when it comes to protecting your workers from hazardous gases and other air-borne toxins.

I have found that the companies that do not really ‘get’ safety and health measure their entire program on the OSHA rate (recordable injuries and illnesses). That is all they care about,” says a former OSHA official.

This article highlights six key misconceptions about machine safeguarding. ANSI / ISO 12100:2012 Safety of machinery – General principles for design – Risk assessment and risk reduction is the primary reference.

Although we talk about a company’s bottom line as the reason to implement engineering controls to reduce or eliminate respiratory hazards in the workplace, that doesn’t mean most organizations put profit above worker safety.

OSHA’s fall protection standard was the No. 1 most-frequently cited agency standard in fiscal year 2019. Falls are among the most common causes of serious work related injuries and deaths. Employers must set up the work place to prevent employees from falling off of overhead platforms, elevated work stations or into holes in the floor and walls.

OSHA’s hazard communication standard was the second most-frequently cited agency standard in FY 2019. The Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) is now aligned with the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS).

Scaffolding was the third most-frequently cited agency standard in FY 2019.

Lockout/Tagout was the fourth most-frequently cited agency standard in FY 2019. The standard outlines measures for controlling hazardous energies — electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, chemical, thermal, and other energy sources.