Hazard Communication


FDA Alerts Consumers to Pistachio Recall

The Food and Drug Administration and the California Department of Public Health are investigating Salmonella contamination in pistachio products sold by Setton Pistachio of Terra Bella Inc., Calif.

cover page of "Expert Forecast on Emerging Chemical Risks" report

Major EU Report Cites Emerging Chemical Risks to Workers

Issued by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, the 197-page report estimates 74,000 deaths per year are linked to hazardous substances encountered at work -- 10 times more people than are dying in workplace accidents.

OSHA, BOCES Form Safety Training Alliance

OSHA has formed an alliance with the Wayne Finger Lakes Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) to provide students in Wayne, Seneca, Ontario, and Yates counties with information and training to reduce workplace hazards.

NIST, DHS Program Evaluates Labs for Emergency Communications Tests

To help ensure that first responders, public safety officers, and military personnel can always talk with each other no matter what communications equipment they are using--a characteristic known as interoperability--the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have teamed up to create the Project 25 Conformity Assessment Program (P25 CAP).

CSB Letter Encourages Florida to Adopt Safety Rules for Public Employees

In a letter released on March 26 by the Chemical Safety Board (CSB), Chairman John Bresland urged Florida Gov. Charlie Crist to support worker-safety legislation to protect state, county, and municipal employees in Florida.

Flight Charter Firm Fires Worker for Raising Aircraft Safety Concerns

The employee had repeatedly informed the company of suspected violations of federal aviation regulations, including ordering an unqualified pilot to perform a test flight while carrying passengers.

NAM Says Consumer Product Safety Law Actually Hindering Safety

"The law's overly broad approach applies to products that that should not be evaluated using the same safety criteria as products that do pose a risk," said NAM President John Engler, adding that the act's "unrealistic compliance deadlines made it impossible for industry or the CPSC to adequately prepare before the law went into effect."

logo for ASSEs 100th anniversary in 2011

ASSE Sets Course for 100th Birthday Celebration

The centennial year is 2011, the 100th year theme is "Your Safety is our Business. Your Future is our Mission," and the 100 logo is shown here.



CIS Centres Preparing for 50th Anniversary

The ILO's International Occupational Safety and Health Information Centre was created in 1959 and now has centers and cooperative ventures spread around the globe. The CIS newsletter plans a special issue in June.

Two Midwest Plants Agree to Clear the Air, Pay Penalties in Separate Settlements

The agreement with one company focuses on leak detection and repair, the other with control of toluene, a hazardous volatile organic air pollutant that was used as a component of a wash-up solvent.

EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson

Latest Toxics Release Inventory Shows Increase in PCBs

"This information underscores the need for fundamental transparency and provides a powerful tool for protecting public health and the environment," said EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson. "Serving the public’s right to know is the crucial first step in reducing toxic chemicals in the places where we live, work, and raise children."

Westco Fruit and Nuts Inc. Added to FDA Peanut Recall List

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning consumers not to consume any peanuts or peanut-derived products sold by Irvington, New Jersey-based Westco Fruit and Nuts Inc. (Westco/Westcott) due to possible Salmonella contamination. Peanuts in such products may have been distributed by the Peanut Corporation of America (PCA), which recalled the peanuts because of concern about Salmonella contamination.

OSHA Renews Biosafety, Shipbuilding Alliances

Two alliances that have worked well have been extended, the agency announced Monday.

Contractor Receives Willful Citation for Niagara Falls Trench Work

"I'm calling upon the region's employers to review their excavation safety procedures to ensure that no employee enters an excavation unless and until it is properly guarded against collapse," said Arthur Dube, OSHA's area director in Buffalo, N.Y.

NIOSH Conducts Review of Firefighter Draft Document

The overall goal, NIOSH said, is to enhance the quality of agency recommendations by ensuring appropriate public review.

Metal Forgings Manufacturer Cited for Serious Safety Violations

A Dec. 23, 2008, incident in which two employees were injured when they were struck by a 700-pound forging that shot up in the air while they were attempting to free it from a malfunctioning die on a power press led to the second of two agency inspections.

MSHA Puts 15 Operators on Notice for Potential Pattern of Violations

MSHA recently announced that 15 mine operators from around the country have received letters putting them on notice that each has a potential pattern of violations of mandatory health or safety standards under Section 104(e) of the Federal Mine Safety and Health Act of 1977 (Mine Act).

FDA Alert: Insulin Pens, Cartridges Must Not Be Shared

FDA is aware of incidents at two undisclosed hospitals involving more than 2,000 people in which the cartridge component of the insulin pens was used to administer insulin to multiple patients, exposing them to the risk of HIV and the hepatitis viruses.

Chemical Releases Spur Investigation, Lead to $44,000 in Penalties

The W. Va.-based company was cited for failing to ensure that operating procedures addressed special or unique hazards of the process, failing to conduct adequate inspections on process equipment, and failing to ensure that proper respiratory protection and personal protective equipment were utilized during an emergency response, among other things.

Get Ready for More Aggressive OSHA, Foulke Warns

The former OSHA chief and Fisher & Phillips LLP colleague Howard A. Mavity presented a webinar today in which they advised employers to review their corporate policies for disciplining workers who violate safety standards. Foulke said employers shouldn't ignore routine areas such as recordkeeping, lockout/tagout, and PPE, job safety analyses.

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