More than 17,000 contested mine enforcement cases await a decision by the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission, while new cases are arriving at an even faster pace.
The 33 serious violations OSHA found in its inspection include improper machine guarding, inadequate PPE, a deficient hazard communication program, electrical hazards, and deficient use of lockout/tagout devices for energy sources that prevent the inadvertent start-up of machines.
Two workers were burned while applying primer inside a tanker trailer. One worker died and another remains hospitalized with burns to more than 90 percent of his body. A third worker, the attendant monitoring the confined space in the event of an emergency, was blown off the tank when the vapors ignited.
The Reportable Food Registry requires manufacturers, processors, packers, and distributors to immediately report to the government safety problems with food and animal feed that are likely to result in serious health consequences.
When a flight is oversold, DOT regulations require airlines to seek volunteers willing to give up their seats for compensation. DOT's investigation revealed numerous cases in which Comair failed to solicit volunteers to leave overbooked flights and provide passengers with the appropriate denied boarding compensation.
OSHA found that the company had not cleaned the vessel thoroughly enough to ensure the absence of flammable materials or vapors, and had not vented it prior to allowing welding to be performed.
By early 2011, nine states will have laws on their books banning use of hand-held cell phones while driving. Twenty-seven states have primary enforcement texting bans in place or will begin primary enforcement this year.
A maintenance worker was seriously hurt in May 2008 when he entered a robotic work cell, even though the fully automated robot had not been switched to manual mode, because he wanted to watch its operating cycle. That had become common practice at the plant, according to HSE.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 21.7 percent of people with disabilities were in the labor force in June 2010, compared with 70.5 percent of people with no disability. In addition, the unemployment rate for those with disabilities was 14.4 percent, compared with 9.4 percent unemployment for those without a disability.
"The gravity of this type of hazard cannot be overstated," said Paul Mangiafico, OSHA's acting area director in Hartford, Conn. "The collapsing walls of a trench can crush or bury workers in seconds.”
The last of four public hearings about proposed rule changes by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection takes place tonight, and the U.S. Senate HELP Committee holds a field hearing today about safety – both are in Pittsburgh.
Willful violations were issued for failing to develop specific procedures to protect workers from the unexpected release of electrical energy, and for failing to provide adequate machine guarding for employees working around rotating shafts.
According to complaints issued by EPA, Munce’s Superior and Munce’s Superior Petroleum Products of Gorham, and Ryezak Oil Co. of Rumney failed to fully prepare and maintain spill prevention, control, and countermeasure (SPCC) plans.
An investigation found workers were exposed to potential fire and explosion hazards from combustible dust collected in an inadequately designed dust collection system and several electrical safety deficiencies, including unguarded or ungrounded live electrical parts and equipment, and workers not trained in electrical safety-related work practices, among other things.
A then-61-year-old applicant sought an entry-level loss prevention/asset protection position but was turned down, despite his qualifications and 27 years of investigative experience.
The company was cited for 43 safety and health violations for hazards ranging from inadequate PPE and machine guarding to failing to determine employee exposure levels to hexavalent chromium.
The settlement terms include the company paying $22,000 -- $12,000 to the individual who filed the complaint and $10,000 as a civil penalty -- and posting "Service Animals Welcome" signs in all of its more than 3,000 retail stores.
William Rapetti, a rigging contractor who was the only person criminally charged in the March 2008 collapse of a tower crane that killed seven people, was acquitted Thursday by Supreme Court Justice Roger Hayes.
The retail giant received two notices of failure to abate after a new inspection found that workers in the store's painting and plumbing departments still lacked suitable emergency drenching facilities and methylene chloride information and training.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano on July 15 announced more than $1.8 billion in Fiscal Year 2010 Federal Emergency Management Agency preparedness grants designed to help states, urban areas, tribal governments, and non-profit organizations enhance their protection, prevention, response and recovery capabilities for risks associated with potential terrorist attacks and other hazards.