OSHA Compliance Posts

The OSHRC has vacated four (4) heat-related OSHA citations against the United States Post Office.  This decision was based ON LEGAL matters regarding the Feasibility of Abatement of the Hazard.  ALL parties agreed to the fact that HEAT CAN BE A HAZARD, but when OSHA issues a GDC Citation, it must provide feasible abatement measures. …...

Last month I wrote a few posts about how a compliance manual made up of dozens of individual safety programs written for OSHA compliance needs is not a safety management system (SMS).  That post got a lot of friends to encourage me to expand on that position and explain what I meant.  So using one…...

ATVs, commonly called 4-wheelers, have been around for decades.  Most people recognize the risks associated with these machines outside of the workplace.  The accident/injury statistics can be alarming.  But when management claims those accident statistics are not work-related and that somehow the risks these machines pose are less in the workplace may be a very…...

I will never understand why/how a location identifies a hazard, in this case, OSHA identified it, failed to take that learning, and did NOT APPLY it across the business where that hazard is present.  In this case, a federal workplace safety investigation at a cattle processing plant – now cited seven times by inspectors for…...

OSHA determined that the employer of a 25-year-old welder – who suffered fatal injuries in an explosion in July 2022 – could have prevented the tragedy by following federal workplace safety standards.  OSHA learned the explosion occurred during welding operations while the work crew replaced old metal tanks with fiberglass ones at a saltwater disposal…...

This case is before the Commission on remand from the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.  Administrative Law Judge Keith E. Bell affirmed a citation issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, alleging that pallets of merchandise kept on racks at a distribution center were “stored in tiers” but not “blocked…...

This week OSHA published the Compliance Directive for Region IV’s Regional Emphasis Program (REP) for Safety Hazards in Auto Parts Industry – NAICS 3363XX (Motor Vehicle Parts Manufacturing).   Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) shows that in 2021 the auto parts supplier industry had higher injury and illness rates – 3.3 per 100…...

A worker died of acute hydrogen sulfide (H2S) poisoning while responding to an alarming water pump involved in the process of extracting crude oil and natural gas. The worker was alone in the pump house, attempting to close process valves to isolate the pump. The pump unexpectedly energized either before the worker’s arrival or during…...

When a manufacturer or importer ships defective/rejected Li-ion batteries for disposal or recycling, they are required to provide an HCS-compliant SDS to downstream employers. An HCS-compliant label would not be required for a product that is regulated under the CPSC.7 For example, consumer products that are generally regulated by the CPSC include button cells (e.g.,…...

This [Portable] Rechargeable Battery Association (PRBA) inquiry includes a number of scenarios and questions raised by its members related to the article determination, hazard classification, consumer product exemptions, and labeling requirements The PRBA scenarios and questions have been paraphrased, followed by our responses. In addition, Attachment 1 to this letter provides several scenarios to give…...

A plastics manufacturer’s failure to make sure required safety procedures were followed contributed to the death of a worker who suffered fatal injuries when he became entangled in a rotating part inside a bagging machine while trying to clear a jam.  OSHA found that duct tape over the safety interlock prevented the machine from shutting…...

This memorandum is intended to reiterate existing policy that allows Regional Administrators and Area Directors discretion to NOT GROUP VIOLATIONS in appropriate cases to achieve a deterrent effect. In particular, the agency may refrain from grouping violations where there is evidence that worksite conditions giving rise to the violations are separate and distinct, or where…...