The latest workplace safety and health information will be showcased at the Southern Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Conference. The annual conference, scheduled for Oct. 21-22, 2009, at the Smullin Center in Medford, will focus on the theme “Celebrating Innovation in Safety and Health.”
Managers at the cited companies in Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi "have displayed a systemic indifference to the safety and health of their own employees, resulting in a dangerous work environment," said Cindy Coe, OSHA's regional administrator in Atlanta.
The Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) recently announced Gerber Products Co. has agreed to settle findings of hiring discrimination against 1,912 rejected minority and female applicants for entry-level positions. The agreement settles the department's allegations that Gerber engaged in hiring discrimination against minority and female applicants for one year.
An Aug. 18 Safety Alert warns construction companies and utilities that machines used to cut trenches may be equipped with safety devices that do not function as designed.
Two panel discussions are planned, covering use of broadband applications by first responders and the impact of the technology on issues such as cyber security, pandemics, bioterrorism, and critical infrastructure vulnerabilities.
Federal law requires that any facility with more than 1,320 gallons of aboveground oil storage capacity and meeting certain other criteria must develop and implement SPCC plans to prevent and contain spills. EPA says it will continue to pay unannounced visits to such facilities throughout the region.
The complaint alleges, among other things, that untreated sewage has flowed into residential yards, basements, streams, and the Tug Fork River.
According to EPA, in 2008, approximately 2,400 companies in the state filed their 2007 biennial hazardous waste reports. These seven did not. The deadline for filing the 2009 report is March 1, 2010.
Construction and general industry vehicles with an "obstructed view to the rear" must have a working and audible backup alarm, or a ground guide must indicate it is safe to back up.
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood kicked off the national "Over the Limit. Under Arrest" anti-drunk driving campaign by releasing a new NHTSA study that backs up FBI data showing a surge in DUI arrests of women.
Among the citations contributing to the proposed penalties totaling $133,000, the firm is charged with two willful violations for failing to electrically test rubber insulated gloves at intervals not exceeding six months and failing to ensure that workers do not approach energized electrical equipment closer than two feet.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission recently announced that TGH International Trading Inc. (TGH), of Los Angeles has agreed to pay a $31,500 civil penalty to settle allegations that the company knowingly imported and sold toys that did not meet the requirements of the Federal Hazardous Substances Act.
"Drug Driving: Your Eyes Will Give You Away" is the theme of a $3.8 million campaign launched Monday by the UK Department of Transport to crack down on drivers who use drugs before getting behind the wheel.
"The safety of workers operating bag conversion machines should not be compromised due to avoidable hazards," said Mark Stelmack, director of OSHA's area office in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., where the investigation was initiated after a complaint was received.
"The sad thing about these fatal events is that they're predictable," said Al Johnson, the First District recreational boating specialist. "What is tragic is that most were preventable."
The Department of Labor has sued defunct Vinyl-Mark Products Inc. of Hueytown, Ala., and the company's pension and profit sharing plan trustees for allegedly misusing $898,259.69 in plan assets to pay the operating expenses of the company.
The Worker Protection Standard, part of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, contains requirements for the provision of pesticide safety training, decontamination supplies, and emergency medical assistance, as well as the notification of recent pesticide applications and the use of protective equipment.
Only manufacturers licensed by the American Petroleum Institute after meeting strict quality control standards, and who are subject to continued monitoring by API, are authorized to manufacture and sell products containing an API certification mark.
On Aug. 14, 2009, new requirements of the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act will take effect that are aimed at making children's products safer and increasing consumer confidence in the marketplace.
DOJ says that once the switch is done, the R.E. Burger plant will be the largest coal-fired electric utility plant in the country to repower with renewable fuels and the first such plant at which greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced under a Clean Air Act consent decree.