Safe Workplace and Safety News

ONTARIO SAFETY BLITZ TARGETS INDUSTRIAL WORKPLACES

The Ontario provincial government is cracking down on hazards involving forklifts and lifting devices at industrial workplaces during February, Labour Minister Peter Fonseca announced yesterday.

Inspectors will focus on ensuring employers are inspecting and maintaining lifting devices in good condition, using competent persons to operate the equipment and ensuring that the equipment is being used in a safe work environment.

For each conviction, the court can impose a fine of up to $500,000 against a corporation convicted under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. Individuals face a fine of up to $25,000 or imprisonment of up to 12 months, or both.

This initiative is part of the province’s new Safe At Work Ontario blitz strategy, announced on July 23, 2008. Keeping more workers safe means increased productivity for Ontario’s economy and less strain on the health care system.

“Forklifts and other lifting devices are a significant cause of serious worker injury and deaths,” said Labour Minister Peter Fonseca. “The Government of Ontario and its workplace partners are committed to eliminating all workplace injuries, including those related to these lifting devices. Workers have a right to come home each day to their families, safe and sound.”

QUICK FACTS

* The Ministry of Labour compliance program that ran from April 1, 2004 to March 31, 2008 reduced the workplace injury rate by 20 per cent, or more than 50,000 incidents.

* Thirteen workers died between 2003 and 2007 as a result of industrial incidents involving lift trucks, reach trucks, forklifts and tow motors, according to ministry statistics.

* In total, there were 10,308 forklift–related incidents where there was a lost time injury between 1996 and 2008, an average of 793 incidents a year, according to the data compiled by the Occupational Health and Safety Council of Ontario (OHSCO).

* Because of the drop in the annual rate of lost–time injuries, employers have avoided about $5 billion in direct and indirect costs during the four years ending March 31, 2008. Reduced injuries also result in less strain on the health care system, and fewer workers off the job means increased productivity for Ontario’s economy.

Learn more about Ontario’s new four year plan, Safe at Work Ontario, that will help strengthen workplace safety.

Labels: Canadian Safety Standards, safety management, safety statistics, Vehicle Safety, workplace safety

In discussing occupational safety, health and the environment (SH&E) issues with the new administration’s transition team, American Society of Safety Engineers’ (ASSE) officials reviewed its key concerns and suggestions for the U.S. Department of Labor and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Leadership, standards, risk-based safety and health management approaches, global harmonization rulemaking, third party consultation, ergonomics, workplace transportation fatalities, strengthening support for state OSHA programs, cooperation with the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), and continued support for cooperative programs like the Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) and OSHA alliances with businesses which advance employer understanding of the positive impact of SH&E on an employer’s bottom line were discussed.

As for leadership, ASSE notes federal safety and health agencies should be led by safety, health and environmental professionals who have the leadership capabilities to build relationships across the spectrum of occupational safety and health (OSH) stakeholders. ASSE also noted the following:

- Standards -- An examination of how OSHA standards are pursued must be undertaken. OSHA should lead efforts to develop cooperative mechanisms to help counter the division that has limited OSHA’s ability to update standards and permissible exposure limits (PELs).

- Advance risk-based safety and health management approaches -- OSHA should encourage employers to take proactive responsibility for safety and health through risk-based regulatory approaches and compliance assistance resources. Europe, Japan, China and committed U.S. employers already use such approaches. OSHA is falling behind the world in not incorporating risk-based safety and health management approaches.

- OSHA can help U.S. companies save jobs. Rulemaking on global harmonization of US hazard communications (GHS) will help U.S. employers compete across the globe and should be completed. An engaged OSHA can help ensure OSH issues are addressed fully in US trade agreements.

- Continue to support cooperative programs like VPP and the OSHA alliances, which continue to advance employer understanding that safe workplaces save lives and positively impact an employer’s bottom line.

- Third party consultation -- ASSE supports extending OSHA effectiveness by establishing a program to allow third party safety audits of companies under strict requirements to ensure professionalism and maximize effect, thereby expanding OSHA’s reach beyond the limits of its current enforcement and cooperative programs.

- Ergonomics – If ergonomics emerges as a regulatory goal, ASSE will not be able to support a prescriptive approach. Our members’ knowledge and experience indicate that ergonomic problems are addressed through specific job and workplace fixes. Any approach to ergonomics must be risk-based, encourage cooperation, and avoid prescriptive, one-size-fits-all solutions that cannot work.

- Harmonization with voluntary consensus standards – OSHA should increase its participation level in the voluntary consensus standard community and comply fully with the Technology Transfer Act's mandate to consider consensus standards when engaged in rulemaking. Use of such standards, like ANSI/ASSE Z117 (confined space standard) and ANSI/ASSE Z490.1 (safety training), will help expedite rulemaking and keep pace with current safety practices.

- Transportation-related deaths continue to be the leading cause of workplace fatalities in the U.S. OSHA should examine its current efforts and engage employers, employees and other federal agencies to create a new emphasis on addressing this problem.

- Cooperation with NIOSH – OSHA’s relationship with NIOSH envisioned by the 1970 Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act should be increased so that NIOSH’s work, including key SH&E research, can support and contribute to OSHA’s standards and other activities.

- Improve support for state programs – OSHA’s ability to support and encourage state program effectiveness must be strengthened.

Labels: ASSE, OSHA, politics

A revised Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Field Operations Manual now provides OSHA Compliance Officers with a single source of updated information and guidance to more effectively protect employees from occupational injuries, illnesses, and fatalities.

The Field Operations Manual is the guiding document for OSHA's Compliance Officers, whose mission is to assure the safety and health of America's working men and women. The manual assists Compliance Officers in scheduling and conducting inspections, enforcing regulations, and encouraging continual improvement in workplace safety and health. The manual also guides Compliance Officers on how to inform employers about cooperative programs—such as On-Site Consultation, Strategic Partnerships, and the Voluntary Protection Program—to help them eliminate potential or existing hazards from the workplace.

"The new Field Operations Manual is a comprehensive resource of existing OSHA policy and procedural documents," said Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Thomas M. Stohler. "It gives Compliance Officers important guidance in implementing OSHA's balanced approach to workplace safety and health: enforcement, education and training, and cooperative programs. The Field Operations Manual will also be a resource for employees and employers, giving them a consolidated reference on how OSHA expects workplaces to be made safe and healthy. This is part of OSHA's continuing commitment to make its standards and enforcement activities transparent and understandable to all parties."

The Field Operations Manual (FOM), formerly called the Field Inspection Reference Manual, constitutes OSHA's general enforcement policy and procedures for use by the field offices in conducting inspections, issuing citations and proposing penalties.

Read the OSHA Field Operations Manual here (321 pages).

The significant changes in the new FOM are:
• Cancels and replaces the Field Inspection Reference Manual (FIRM).
• Cancels sections D. and E. of Chapter VI of the prior Field Operations Manual.
• Cancels Chapter XII of the prior Field Operations Manual.
• Will consist of the following chapters:
Chapter 1. Introduction
Chapter 2. Program Planning
Chapter 3. Inspection Procedures
Chapter 4. Violations
Chapter 5. Case File Preparations and Documentation
Chapter 6. Penalties and Debt Collection
Chapter 7. Post-Citation Procedures and Abatement Verification
Chapter 8. Settlements
Chapter 9. Complaint and Referral Processing
Chapter 10. Industry Sectors
• I. Agriculture
• II. Construction [Reserved]
• III. Maritime [Reserved]
Chapter 11. Imminent Danger, Fatality, Catastrophe and Emergency Response
Abstract-4
Chapter 12. Specialized Inspection Procedures
• I. Multi-Employer Workplace/site Policy [Reserved]
• II. Temporary Labor Camps
Chapter 13. Federal Agency Safety and Health Programs [Reserved]
Chapter 14. Health Inspection Enforcement Policy [Reserved]
Chapter 15. Legal Issues
Chapter 16. Disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)

Labels: osha information, OSHA Inspections, OSHA Signs

OSHA formalizes two new ways to participate in the VPP.

On Friday OSHA published the final changes to its Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) in the Federal Register. Among other enhancements, the changes allow participation by companies with mobile workforces.

The VPP, the agency's recognition initiative for workplace safety and health excellence, will provide new options for construction contractors and other employers who may have employees at various locations. Other VPP changes for eligible organizations include a streamlined application process, outreach and mentoring, and onsite workplace evaluations.

"OSHA is proud to recognize the outstanding efforts of employers and employees who have achieved exemplary occupational safety and health," said acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Thomas M. Stohler. "These program revisions will allow more companies to participate in the VPP, which has contributed to improved workplace safety. Since 2001, participation in the VPP has increased almost 200 percent. During that same period, there has been a 14 percent decrease in workplace fatalities. Establishing partnerships and encouraging continual process improvement are part of OSHA's balanced approach to workplace safety and health."

The VPP was established in 1982 to recognize employers and employees who focus on the prevention of injuries, illnesses and fatalities through the implementation of effective safety and health management systems. Currently, there are 2,161 federal and state plan VPP participants.

Changes to the VPP are effective May 9. For more information on the VPP and these latest revisions, contact the nearest OSHA area or regional office or the OSHA National Office, Directorate of Cooperative and State Programs, at 202-693-2213. The Federal Register notice can be found at http://edocket.access.gpo.gov/2009/E9-165.htm.

Labels: OSHA, VPP, VPP Implementation

Graphic Products is offering a free copy of a guide to the Top Ten OSHA Violations In 2008.

This guide provides two top ten lists. The top ten OSHA violations based on the number of violations in fiscal year 2008, and the top ten violations based on the total amount of the assessed fines.

In addition to listing the violations, the guides provides a reference to the OSHA regulations that apply, as well as providing a brief description.

Labels: OSHA, OSHA Citations, OSHA Fines, osha information

With the goal of working together to provide expertise in developing information on prevention and recognition of workplace hazards and ways of communicating this information to employers and employees, the American Society of Safety Engineers' (ASSE) Greater Baton Rouge Chapter and the OSHA Baton Rouge Area Office recently formed a formal alliance. The alliance aims to provide occupational safety, health and environmental professionals' access to additional training resources as they work to enhance employees' safety and health.

The alliance came about following a number of on-the-job deaths the OSHA Baton Rouge Area office investigated within the past three years which involved specific hazards. As such, the new alliance will target these hazards which include falls, combustible dusts, trenching/excavation, 'struck-by' object hazards associated with local petro-chemical and construction industries, and more.

The alliance training and education goals include working together to develop training and education programs for general and construction industries regarding fall hazards, combustible dust, trenching and excavation hazards, as well as struck-by object hazards and to communicate such information to employers and employees in those industries.

To raise awareness of workplace safety and health issues, another goal of the alliance, is to convene or participate in forums, round table discussions or stakeholder meetings on PPE, fall hazards, trenching/excavation, struck-by hazards, forklifts as well as community outreach to help build innovative solutions in the workplace or to provide input on safety and health issues. In the future, these events will be held locally at either OSHA's office in Baton Rouge or an ASSE chapter officer's place of business and will be posted on the ASSE Baton Rouge web site.

"Although we have long had a great working relationship with our local OSHA office, we felt that the alliance formally acknowledges our common goals and will allow us to pool our resources together to accomplish these goals--all aimed at enhancing workplace safety for all," said ASSE Greater Baton Rouge Chapter President Lance Roux, CSP. "We are excited about this milestone in our chapter’s history and look forward to working closely with our local OSHA office during the year ahead."

The two-year alliance agreement will be led by a team of representative from each organization who will meet three times per year to track and share information on activities and status of goals.

The ASSE Greater Baton Rouge (GBR) chapter's 250 members are safety leaders in local industry, small business, and public sectors. The GBR chapter provides professional development to members, safety education to the public, and safety recommendations to legislative bodies. For more information on the alliance or the GBR chapter visit http://gbr.asse.org.

Labels: ASSE, workplace fatalities

I was introduced to Smith Flow Control's family of interlocks today and they look interesting. It's a new approach to valve safety that eliminates human error. Here is what their press release says:

In the oil, gas and chemical processing industries, many routine procedures involving process equipment are potentially dangerous if executed incorrectly or in unsafe conditions. To ensure that these routine procedures are executed correctly, Smith Flow Control's (SFC) valve interlocks systems control the sequence in which process equipment is accessed and operated.

Valve interlock systems are single or dual-keyed mechanical locking devices that control the sequence in which process equipment may be operated. They are widely accepted as an effective safety management tool and are being adopted by many of the world's oil, gas and chemical major companies. Valve interlocks are also recommended in a number of internationally recognized standards for specific process applications.

The Smith Flow Control interlocks systems use a 'key transfer' principle to ensure operational control of safety-critical systems involving worker intervention. The interlock fits all types of lever-operated quarter-turn valves including ball, butterfly and plug valves. The "GL" interlock is made for handwheel-operated valves including gate, globe and gear-operated valves. The "SFC DL3" interlock, made specifically for pigtrap and pressure applications, is adaptable to all types of vessel or access closures.

Smith Flow Control interlocks are constructed of stainless steel and lubricated for life. Each style of interlock is quickly installed on any valve or associated equipment with no modifications required. Smith Flow Control also offers customized solutions to customers with specialized requirements.

More information is available in article in IDS Water or visit the Smith Flow Control web site.

Labels: LOTO

Liberty Mutual has made available a free online system for calculating the percentage of the population that can perform a specified lifting, lowering, pushing or pulling task.

The "Liberty Mutual Manual Materials Handling Tables" can be used to perform ergonomic assessments of lifting, lowering, pushing, pulling, and carrying tasks with the primary goal of supporting ergonomic design interventions.

The online calculator is available here.

Labels: Free Safety Guides, Industrial Health, safety management

"Workplace safety processes must be in place at all times," American Society of Safety Engineers’ (ASSE) President Warren K. Brown, CSP, ARM, CSHMM, of Fairborn, Ohio, said today. "hey are even more critical during business downturns."

Brown is referring to recent reports of some companies cutting safety processes hoping to reduce costs.

"If companies believe they will save money by reducing or ignoring safety for their workers, customers and communities they do business in, they are mistaken," Brown said. "The ongoing positive results are in and have been for companies that have a strong safety culture and continually invest in and implement effective safety processes. Not only does their bottom line benefit positively, but their company reputation stays intact, employees stay safe and healthy reducing health care, workers comp, training and turnover costs not to mention keeping customers, the communities they do business in, vendors and employees happy. Safety is good business."

Members of the 97-year-old ASSE -- occupational safety, health and environmental professionals located worldwide -- caution employers against cutting back on workplace safety in time of economic difficulty.

President-Elect of the ASSE South Carolina Chapter Laura Comstock said, "Some safety related purchases and testing can be deferred, but other purchases, such as those for employee personal protective equipment (PPE) like hardhats, safety glasses and respirators, are critical to operations."

It is especially important for companies to show support for their employee safety during challenging economic times, she notes. "Employee morale may be low and employees may be carrying additional workloads, such as working additional hours or doing unfamiliar tasks due to cutbacks," she notes.

Comstock added, "In order to remain viable long-term, a company must maintain a solid safety process even through difficult times. The most successful companies in the long term also have the strongest safety performance."

"We realize these are tough times, but during economic down-turns, employers seeking to cut expenses may target variable operating costs such as travel, training and safety," Brown said. "Money cut from safety processes now could have an enormous cost later; this can be from injury and health care costs, fines, lost production time, employee morale, or worst of all, employee injury or even death. There are better and smarter ways to protect the bottom line."

The South Carolina ASSE chapter suggests employees can also take measures to help companies save money such as by: following safe working procedures and practices to prevent injuries, related downtime and expenses such as costly fines; by properly using, cleaning and caring for protective equipment such as hardhats and respirators; reusing gloves whenever possible for as long as possible; and by keeping track of safety glasses and reusable hearing protection.

Investing in safety pays and contributes positively to a company’s bottom line. Businesses spend about $170 billion a year on costs associated with workplace injuries and illnesses and pay almost $1 billion every week to injured employees and their medical providers. In addition, a recent investment firm study in Australia showed valuation links between workplace safety and health factors and investment performance. It found that companies who did not adequately manage workplace safety issues underperformed those that did.

Comstock also reminds employers, "When considering training reductions, some safety related training is driven by regulation, is time sensitive and cannot be delayed. Safety training related savings can be generated by streamlining and implementing simple solutions including using online or electronic safety training services, rather than face-to-face classroom safety training."

"We need to work together during these difficult times, but reducing or ignoring workplace safety should not be a strategic or budget option," Brown said. "The costs – both tangible and intangible – are far too high and hard to recoup."

Labels: ASSE, Industrial Health, Industrial Safety, workplace safety

In discussing occupational safety, health and the environment (SH&E) issues with the new administration’s transition team, American Society of Safety Engineers’ (ASSE) officials reviewed their key concerns and suggestions for OSHA.

Leadership, standards, risk-based safety and health management approaches, global harmonization rulemaking, third party consultation, ergonomics, workplace transportation fatalities, strengthening support for state OSHA programs, cooperation with the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), and continued support for cooperative programs like the Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) and OSHA alliances with businesses which advance employer understanding of the positive impact of SH&E on an employer’s bottom line were discussed.

As for leadership, ASSE notes federal safety and health agencies should be led by safety, health and environmental professionals who have the leadership capabilities to build relationships across the spectrum of occupational safety and health (OSH) stakeholders. ASSE also noted the following:

• Standards -- An examination of how OSHA standards are pursued must be undertaken. OSHA should lead efforts to develop cooperative mechanisms to help counter the division that has limited OSHA’s ability to update standards and permissible exposure limits (PELs).

• Advance risk-based safety and health management approaches -- OSHA should encourage employers to take proactive responsibility for safety and health through risk-based regulatory approaches and compliance assistance resources. Europe, Japan, China and committed U.S. employers already use such approaches. OSHA is falling behind the world in not incorporating risk-based safety and health management approaches.

• OSHA can help U.S. companies save jobs. Rulemaking on global harmonization of US hazard communications (GHS) will help U.S. employers compete across the globe and should be completed. An engaged OSHA can help ensure OSH issues are addressed fully in US trade agreements.

• Continue to support cooperative programs like VPP and the OSHA alliances, which continue to advance employer understanding that safe workplaces save lives and positively impact an employer’s bottom line.

• Third party consultation -- ASSE supports extending OSHA effectiveness by establishing a program to allow third party safety audits of companies under strict requirements to ensure professionalism and maximize effect, thereby expanding OSHA’s reach beyond the limits of its current enforcement and cooperative programs.

• Ergonomics – If ergonomics emerges as a regulatory goal, ASSE will not be able to support a prescriptive approach. Our members’ knowledge and experience indicate that ergonomic problems are addressed through specific job and workplace fixes. Any approach to ergonomics must be risk-based, encourage cooperation, and avoid prescriptive, one-size-fits-all solutions that cannot work.

• Harmonization with voluntary consensus standards – OSHA should increase its participation level in the voluntary consensus standard community and comply fully with the Technology Transfer Act's mandate to consider consensus standards when engaged in rulemaking. Use of such standards, like ANSI/ASSE Z117 (confined space standard) and ANSI/ASSE Z490.1 (safety training), will help expedite rulemaking and keep pace with current safety practices.

• Transportation-related deaths continue to be the leading cause of workplace fatalities in the U.S. OSHA should examine its current efforts and engage employers, employees and other federal agencies to create a new emphasis on addressing this problem.

• Cooperation with NIOSH – OSHA’s relationship with NIOSH envisioned by the 1970 Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act should be increased so that NIOSH’s work, including key SH&E research, can support and contribute to OSHA’s standards and other activities.

• Improve support for state programs – OSHA’s ability to support and encourage state program effectiveness must be strengthened.

Labels: ASSE, OSHA