Enforcement


OSHA Fines St. Louis Chemical Company $1.2 Million

Eight of its workers were treated for exposure to the organic chemical para-nitroaniline (PNA) in powder form. The penalty is based on 21 alleged willful citations, 20 of them cited on a per-employee basis.

Honolulu Mayor Backs Stronger Texting-While-Driving Ban

The city council voted 4-4 Wednesday, sustaining Mayor Mufi Hannemann's veto of a bill that would have banned texting and playing video games while driving. Hannemann wants a more comprehensive bill enacted.

Warehouse Injury Reduction Focus of New Federal Alliance

The partners said they will work together to develop and distribute safety and health training materials for warehousing to enable employers and employees to implement and follow best practice standards and guidelines.

NY Facility Fined $56,000 Following Confined Space Fatality

The company was issued one willful citation, with a proposed penalty of $35,000 alone, for not providing employees with confined space rescue training at least every 12 months.

sauerkraut up close

Site Inspection Goes 'Sauer,' OSHA Serves $41,400 Fine

Hazards included the lack of a confined space training program for employees whose duties involve entering sauerkraut tanks and numerous instances of moving machine parts not guarded against accidental employee contact.

Flight Crew Member Fired for Raising Safety Concerns to Receive $400,000+

"Employees have a strong and clear right to raise legitimate safety and health concerns about their working conditions without fear of termination or reprisal," said Marthe Kent, OSHA's New England regional administrator.

Illinois Occupational Safety and Health Day Aims to Protect Employees

Making and keeping the workplace safe and healthful will be the focus of the 18th Annual Downstate Illinois Occupational Safety and Health (DIOSH) Day slated for March 4 at the Peoria Civic Center in Peoria, Ill. Workplace safety and health issues will be discussed and information made available to employers, employees and the general public.

OSHA's Hex Chrome PEL Upheld

A 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision on Monday rejected all but one claim against the 5 micrograms per cubic meter PEL set in the February 2006 final rule. The judges told OSHA to state its reasons for requiring employees to be notified when monitored exposures exceed the PEL, rather than being notified of all monitoring results as the agency originally proposed.



CDC Launches RSS Feeds for Emergency Sites

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has just launched RSS feeds for two of the most popular sections of its emergency.CDC.gov Web site.

NEP Unearths Trenching, Excavation Hazards in Arkansas

An investigation found alleged willful violations in the construction company's failure to provide training in avoiding hazards associated with working in trenches eight feet deep or more and failure to provide a means of egress while employees are working at excavation worksites that are four feet deep or more.

Labor secretary-designate Hilda Solis

U.S. Senate Confirms Solis

The U.S. Labor Department's Web site posted the news this afternoon: The new U.S. secretary of Labor is Californian Hilda Solis.

Sanitation Co. Charged with Not Hiring Females Settles for $475,000

According to EEOC's suit, a woman applied for a truck driver position at one of the company's facilities in Georgia, and even though she was more qualified than a number of male applicants who were hired, she was never interviewed and never received an offer. An investigation revealed a class of similarly qualified women who also were rejected despite their qualifications.

Cardinal Health 303 Inc Agrees to Correct GMP Violations

The Food and Drug Administration announced recently that California device manufacturer Cardinal Health 303 Inc., formerly known as Alaris Medical Systems Inc., and three of its top executives have signed an amended consent decree to correct violations of current Good Manufacturing Practice requirements in the company's infusion pumps.

OSHA Whistleblower Investigation Finds Railroad Co. Retaliated Against Worker

OSHA has ordered Union Pacific Railroad Co., headquartered in Omaha, to reassign a Beverly, Iowa, welder to his former position, reimburse the welder for travel expenses, and pay compensatory damages associated with personal hardship following a whistleblower investigation.

EPA Awards $18.6 Million to TCEQ for Pollution Prevention Programs

The commission's programs aim to prevent, reduce, and eliminate water, solid waste, air, and pesticide pollution through standard-setting, monitoring, permitting, and enforcement activities.

Stimulus Allocates $7.22 Billion Toward EPA Projects

The new law is geared for performance and transparency: Preference will be given to projects that can be started and completed expeditiously, and EPA intends to move designated funds to states as quickly as possible.

OSHA, NELTA to Develop Safety Training in New England

"Knowledge is the most portable and the most valuable resource in any worker's toolkit. Laborers and others will be able to carry the information obtained here to any jobsite," said Paul Mangiafico, director for OSHA's Boston North area.

stacks of cash

New York Contractor Agrees to Pay $750,000

OSHA cited 160 Broadway Corp., doing business as Broadway Concrete, for fall hazards at a condominium site last June and issued $877,000 in penalties. Broadway has agreed to improve safety on its sites.

Scrap Metal Co. Settles for $1.6M after Hazwaste Charges

About 62,000 cubic yards of battery casing debris was excavated, treated, and shipped off-site for proper disposal.

Is Injecting Cherry Juice Waste into Deep Disposal Well OK?

After reviewing the request, EPA has tentatively decided that the additional use of the well will not cause significant environmental harm because the waste will remain separated from drinking water sources, but the agency is seeking comments from the public.

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