The agency's Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking includes several questions for public comment related to current employer practices, along with tasks, tools, equipment, machines, vehicles, processes, controls, and procedures involved in tree care operations. Comments must be submitted by Dec. 17.
The organization recommends notifying employees and visitors of denied or restricted areas, and notifying supervisors and responders of contact lens wearers working in eye-hazardous areas.
OSHA's inspection found that the office did not provide the injured employee with no-cost, post-exposure medical evaluation and follow-up, and did not have the blood of the source individual tested, as required under OSHA's bloodborne pathogens standard.
"After agreeing to correct problems found during our previous inspection, management's admitted failure to make those changes seriously jeopardizes the safety and health of the people working in their plant," said Roberto Sanchez, OSHA's area director in Birmingham.
"This funding will help the New York metropolitan area to acquire equipment, training, and support to further our mission of preventing dangerous radiological and nuclear materials from entering a high-risk urban area."
Charges of six willful and 10 serious citations follow a March 2008 explosion that caused serious injuries to two employees at the facility in Spooner, Wis.
Although it functions solely as an advisory body, the committee assists OSHA on matters relevant to the safety and health of employees in the maritime industry, including shipbuilding, ship-repair, shipbreaking, longshoring, and marine-terminal industries.
The event will take place next year in Toronto, with the slogan "Discoveries Beyond Borders," but the deadline for presenters is Oct. 6, 2008.
"If we can provide these employers and their employees with the knowledge and ability to anticipate, identify, and eliminate work-related hazards, we will get that much closer to eliminating job-related injuries," said Deborah Zubaty, OSHA's area director in Columbus.
Industrial hygienists and environmental health and safety professionals will gather in Tampa, Fla., for the Professional Conference on Industrial Hygiene (PCIH), November 8–11. PCIH will host more than 350 colleagues who want to stay current with trends, find solutions to everyday issues, and network with peers.
Ergonomists use the NIOSH equation and other sophisticated tools to analyze tasks and stressors, but the committees use injury reports and workers' complaints instead.
Specifically, the agencies signed partnerships with the Rocky Hill, Conn.-based Independent Electrical Contractors of New England Inc. (IECNE) and the Wethersfield-based Connecticut Office of Apprenticeship and Training (CTOAT).
The proposed total penalty includes $92,500 in fines for five repeat citations involving unguarded elevated work areas, untrained forklift operators, storing a forklift in front of a marked exit, exposed wiring in a heater and an electrical junction box, and not providing hazard communication training to new employees.
Contractors say the proposal, which OSHA issued to clarify that certain respiratory and training standards apply on a per-employee basis, is a threat. And the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's comments predict a court will strike it down.
Included in the latest revision is a cost-justification chapter that reviews the economic impact of the program on the 10 charter cities by calculating occupational claims and costs.
More than 9,000 postal facilities are getting educational materials that explain how injuries and death can result when children get too close to delivery vehicles.
The Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans, known as the ERISA Advisory Council, will convene by teleconference Sept. 29 to discuss reports and recommendations by its working groups to be submitted to the secretary of labor.
"This case illustrates in stark terms that failure to follow required procedures can have wide-ranging and catastrophic consequences," said OSHA chief Edwin G. Foulke Jr.
Courses include a Demolition-Specific OSHA 10-Hour Certification, offered in both English and Spanish on Oct. 15 and training in confined space rescue and aerial lift equipment safety.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation gave the first round of grants to 15 junior faculty nurses to develop the next generation of academic nurse leaders and strengthen the academic productivity and overall excellence of schools of nursing.