High hazard industries - Articles

Okla. foundry cuts workers comp costs by $180,000 with safety changes

March 7, 2018

Working around molten metals at temperatures of 1,300 to 1,600 degrees Fahrenheit, employees of T&L Foundry in Glenpool, Oklahoma load metal melting furnaces, form molds for pouring metal into, and finish the final product using grinders and tumble blasters. It is a high-hard industry. The family-owned foundry - which produces non-ferrous castings, ranging from only a few ounces up to 1,000 pounds – was already dedicated to employee safety, but decided to do more.

BLS: 2016 work fatal work injuries highest since 2008

Workplace violence deaths up 23 percent

December 20, 2017

There were a total of 5,190 fatal work injuries recorded in the United States in 2016, a 7-percent increase from the 4,836 fatal injuries reported in 2015, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported yesterday. This is the third consecutive increase in annual workplace fatalities and the first time more than 5,000 fatalities have been recorded by the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) since 2008.

How a virtual fence could make dangerous work safer

November 17, 2017

High hazard industries could be a little less hazardous in the future, if researchers can find a way to thwart the biggest challenge to promising new technology: trees. The same kinds of collision-avoidance technologies used by self-driving cars could help logging and other workers monitor their surroundings through a mobile virtual fence, or geofence, according to NIOSH-funded research at the University of Idaho. Geofences could be used to maintain safe work areas in logging, for instance, by sending alerts of approaching hazards.

A blog post from the Union of Concerned Scientists

Will Congress turn its back on the safety of America’s workers?

Kathleen Rest

March 20, 2017

Let’s say someone you care about—mother, father, wife, husband, partner, son, daughter, friend, and neighbor—works in a facility that’s had a history of serious injuries or illnesses. You know, like burns, amputations, and broken bones that happen at work. Or head, eye, or back injuries.

Ark., La. and W. Va have this dubious distinction

October 20, 2016

The Southeastern part of the U.S. has an especially high workplace fatality rate, with 5.2 work-related injury deaths per 100,000 workers in 2014, compared with 3.8 nationwide, according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).

ASSE: New recordkeeping rule is “a step backward”

Worst employers may report even fewer incidents

May 12, 2016

The American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) says the final rule requiring employers in high-hazard industries to submit injury and illness data for posting on the OSHA website will not achieve the goals the agency has set for it.

OSHA issues final rule to collect injury, illness data for online posting

May 11, 2016

OSHA today issued a final rule requiring employers in high-hazard industries to send the agency injury and illness data for posting on the OSHA website. Currently, little or no information about the three million worker injuries and illnesses a year is made public or available to the agency.

Workplace fatalities have increased

The leading cause of workplace death is also most-violated OSHA Standard

April 28, 2016

Just in time for Workers Memorial Day, a new report from the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health finds that the number of workers who died on the job is on the upswing. Based on data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Preventable Deaths 2016,” reports that 4,821 workers died on the job from traumatic events in the workplace in 2014, a 5.1% increase from 4,585 deaths in 2013.

One year later

OSHA says injury reporting requirements help agency focus resources

March 18, 2016

During the first full year of a new reporting requirement, employers reported 10,388 severe injuries, including 7,636 hospitalizations and 2,644 amputations.

From NSC Congress & Expo

Training oil and gas workers

Benita Mehta

September 29, 2015

In 2003, Marianne McGee, compliance assistance specialist, USDOL-OSHA, was working in Corpus Christi, Texas and her team was trying to figure out a strategic management plan with one of the major goals of reducing fatalities in oil and gas, which is considered a high-hazard industry.