AS long as people have been heading to the workplace, there have been workplace accidents. According to OSHA, some 4 million non-fatal injuries and illnesses occur each year in workplaces across the United States, which is why it is essential for facilities with potential hazards to provide the right emergency fixtures as protection against serious injury or fatalities.
TRUE, the construction industry's disabling injury rate is steadily declining, but there is still room for improvement. Providing a safe work environment is the right thing to do and requires focusing on and developing practical safety program elements to address the causes of disabling injury.
OF course, we're not talking about your training sessions. And we're not talking about mine, either. It's those other guys--it's their safety training sessions we're talking about.
DID you know foot and toe injuries typically take longer to heal than many other common workplace injuries? In fact, according to the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, employees who suffer a foot or toe injury miss an average of seven days of work.
THE last time Jencast Inc. experienced a lost-time accident, Ken Starr's "Report" was a work in progress, Viagra was on the verge of getting FDA approval, and fears of the so-called Y2K bug were starting to gain national attention. The Spice Girls were still on the charts.
ERGONOMIC furniture is not a new concept, but among many office workers--from secretaries to CEOs--it remains unknown or misunderstood. According to a recent survey conducted by our company, only about one in four American office workers is at least somewhat familiar with the usage and benefits of ergonomic furnishings in the workplace.
IN September 2001, the AZF Chemical plant in Toulouse, France, was destroyed by a massive explosion, killing 30 people in the country's worst-ever industrial accident. It was determined the accident was caused by negligent storage of incompatible materials.
THE American Industrial Hygiene Association's president, Roy Buchan, sent a letter Aug. 22 urging OSHA's acting chief to accelerate work on a hearing conservation rule for construction workers. Buchan's letter noted AIHA had taken an active role in OSHA's consideration of this rule since May 2000.
ON the heels of yet another federal investigation attributing chemical-related deaths and injuries to defective hazard communications systems in the workplace, few would question that a public health crisis is afoot. More than 30 million American workers are exposed each day to hazardous chemicals at the workplace, with upwards of a half-million chemicals being stored and used in today's hospitals, manufacturing plants, and industrial facilities.
THE seeds for creating safer workplaces were sown in the early 1900s. In 1912, the Bureau of Labor Statistics fielded its first full-scale survey of safety and health conditions in the American workplace, with its study of industrial accidents in the iron and steel industry. Today, the focus on workplace safety is tightly woven through the fabric of nearly every American industry.
STUDIES confirm that most workplace injuries are preventable. The level of prevention achieved, however, will depend upon the manufacturer's commitment to safety and also employees' willingness to become involved in injury prevention.
IT is a tough, competitive world out there. Every day, the news reminds us that capital is footloose and labor is fungible: For the price of group health benefits for a single American worker, a firm can hire a Ph.D. engineer offshore. And many do.
FIRE, smoke, explosion, medical trauma, and injury present obvious threats to health and safety. But when chemical or biological toxins are floating invisibly as "aerosols" in the air we breathe, the presence and nature of the hazard are much harder to determine and the consequences potentially far reaching.
THIS paper considers the different safety risks present in modern foodservice, the impact of these risks on stakeholders of foodservice, and suggests an evaluation protocol called SARA, safety analysis risk assessment. Personal safety is one of the most basic concerns of the human species.
DURING the past decade, the methamphetamine (meth) situation in the United States has changed dramatically. What was known primarily as a West Coast problem has quickly spread throughout the country, posing a serious occupational hazard for probation and parole officers, cleanup workers, and others.