Depending upon the scope, complexity, and hazards associated with an incident, FEMA can activate OSHA to coordinate federal worker safety and health resources and technical assistance.
The National Safety Council (NSC) is introducing two new versions of its OSHA Walkthrough for Industry training program. Like the original program, these versions are designed for educating new employees or refreshing the expertise of seasoned staff.
The alleged violations include everything from the illegal transportation, treatment, and disposal of hazardous waste and other pollutants to conspiracy and mail fraud.
The Federal Railroad Administration filed a final rule to adjust its ordinary maximum and aggravated maximum penalties to amounts authorized by the Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008.
The final rule will take effect Jan. 30. It ends a long period when the 24-hour response requirement was suspended and the industry was expected to develop salvage and firefighting capabilities on its own.
Liggett Mining Company LLC agreed to pay assessments for at least 300 citations in the biggest settlement since the agency said it might close mines for such deliquencies.
OSHA has cited Lloyd Industries Inc. for violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, and has proposed a total of $140,760 in penalties. The Montgomery facility, which manufactures fire and smoke dampers, has 50 employees.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc. have signed a Universal Agreement to Mediate (UAM) to informally resolve workplace disputes through Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) prior to an EEOC investigation or potential litigation. The UAM applies to 56 Cracker Barrel establishments throughout Florida.
John A. Rapanos and related defendants have agreed to pay a civil penalty and recreate about 100 acres of wetlands and buffer areas to resolve Clean Water Act violations at three sites in Michigan.
"This year's inspection numbers show that the strategic approach used by OSHA--targeting highest hazard workplaces for aggressive enforcement while also using education, training, and cooperative programs to improve overall compliance--can help achieve significant reductions in workplace injuries, illnesses, and fatalities," said acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Thomas M. Stohler.
A proposal out for comments will allow for the enforcement of the European Regulation on the Classification, Labelling and Packaging of Substances and Mixtures, which adopts the internationally agreed Global Harmonized System on the classification and labeling of chemicals.
211 counties and parts of counties in the U.S. do not meet the agency’s PM 2.5 standards.
Under the new rule, DOL may debar for up to three years employers, attorneys, and agents found to have committed fraud or willful misrepresentation concerning the H-2B employment-based immigration program, or failed to cooperate with labor department audits or investigations.
The Health and Safety Executive said 455 agricultural workers have died in the past decade, and the annual death toll has remained high.
This four-hour event will cover major topics like SPCC plan basics, integrity testing, applicability, secondary containment, and recent rule revisions and will include a one-hour live question-and-answer session.
OSHA recently announced a final rule on improving the safety of longshoring employees who work with vertical tandem lifts (VTLs). The final rule will reduce hazards related to lifting two containers at a time using cranes by ensuring that safe work practices are followed. The rule was published in the December 10 Federal Register.
The new permit incorporates the Coast Guard’s mandatory ballast water management and exchange standards, and provides technology-based and water-quality-based effluent limits for other types of discharges.
"Our common goal is a continuous and effective safety and health emphasis that will eliminate injuries and illnesses and their associated human and financial costs," said Marthe Kent, OSHA's New England regional administrator.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is joining Target, of Minneapolis, Minn., in announcing a new notification system for communicating product recalls in Target stores nationwide. Target's safety and recall notification program involves posting signs throughout its stores that direct guests to gift registry kiosks near the Guest Service desk to learn about recalled products.
As director of NIOSH from July 2002 to July 2008, Dr. John Howard's accomplishments were numerous, noted GCAC Chair John T. Steele in a letter to U.S. Secretary of Labor Designate Rep. Hilda Solis.