OSHA Compliance

On Monday (12/19/2016) OSHA will issue a final rule that clarifies an employer’s continuing obligation to make and maintain an accurate record of each recordable injury and illness. The final rule becomes effective Jan. 18, 2017…. Membership Required You must be a member to access this content.View Membership LevelsAlready a member? Log in here...

The company was engaged in repairing and refurbishing railcars and related activities when it was cited by OSHA on October 30, 2015, for serious violations. The citation contained 5 items and proposed penalties totaling $23,000.00. After [The company] timely contested the citation, the Secretary filed a formal complaint with the Commission charging [The company] with…...

Following an inspection conducted at a facility from 06/03/2016 to 12/02/2016, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued citations for ergonomic hazards. During the inspection OSHA’s Office of Occupational Medicine and Nursing identified characteristics of the facility’s medical management program that pose several problems that contribute to injured workers receiving treatments that do not…...

Recently OSHA completed an inspection at a workplace where they identified a hazard that was not a violation of a specific OSHA standard, nor was it considered appropriate at the time to invoke Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (e.g. General Duty Clause). In these cases, OSHA may send the employer a…...

With OSHA’s new Walking-Working Surfaces and Personal Protective Equipment (Fall Protection Systems) standard comes some new requirements for protecting workers in “hoist areas”.  Paragraph (b)(2) establishes fall protection requirements for workers who work in “hoist areas” that are four (4) feet or more above a lower level. The final rule defines a “hoist area” as an elevated…...

With OSHA’s new Walking-Working Surfaces and Personal Protective Equipment (Fall Protection Systems) standard comes some clarification as to when “stairs” must be provided vs. using a ladder.  In the new standard, paragraphs (b)(7) through (9) specify when and where employers MUST provide standard stairs, and under what conditions employers may use spiral, ship, or alternating tread-type stairs…....

OSHA’s new Fall Protection standard for General Industry has a lot of MAJOR changes (for the better!) that we will be dealing with over the next several years (up to 20 years for some).  One that caught my eye was the new requirements for our maintenance personnel who may be doing work on low-sloped roofs…...

Incidence rates can be used to show the relative level of injuries and illnesses among different industries, firms, or operations within a single firm. Because a common base and a specific period of time are involved, these rates can help determine both problem areas and progress in preventing work-related injuries and illnesses. An incidence rate…...

OSHA recently posted one of the most interesting LOI’s I have seen in quite a while.  Somone asked:  If an employee exposure after de-rating falls below 85 dBA, would that be a justification to not record an STS shift on the OSHA 300 Log?  Of course OSHA said NO, but it was a nice try.  Here…...

As usual, OSHA released their annual news at the National Safety Council’s Congress and Expo… OSHA’s Top 10 Standards Cited.  The Top 10 for FY 2016* are: # Topic OSHA Std # of Citations 1 Fall Protection 1926.501 6,929 2 Hazard Communication 1910.1200 5,677 3 Scaffolds 1926.451 3,906 4 Respiratory Protection 1910.134 3,585 5 Lockout/Tagout…...