Government Safety Regulations

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OSHA has cited Spear Excavating LLC – based in Pennsburg, Pennsylvania – for exposing employees to trenching hazards at a worksite in Malvern, Pennsylvania. The company faces $106,057 in proposed penalties. OSHA initiated an inspection on August 2, 2018, after receiving a complaint alleging the hazards.

A crane collapse that caused injuries in New York City last summer has resulted in citations against a Missouri-based contractor. Three construction workers were injured – one critically - when an unsecured mini-crane overturned and fell four stories from an East Harlem worksite on June 25, 2018. The injured included the worker who fell with the crane.

A worker’s heat-related fatality last summer in Southern California has resulted in citations against the U.S. Postal Service for a repeated violation of OSHA’s General Duty Clause. The employee suffered hyperthermia while delivering mail in July 2018 when the outdoor temperature reached 117 degrees.

Released in Q3 of 2018, ANSI/ISEA 121-2018, American National Standard for Dropped Object Prevention Solutions, is the first standard of its type for dropped and falling objects prevention equipment – establishing minimum design, performance, and labeling requirements for product solutions and guidelines for testing.

OSHA has cited Maryland-based contractor Power Factor LLC for exposing workers to electrical hazards after an employee was fatally electrocuted while installing solar panels on a building in Fort Riley, Kansas. Inspectors determined that the employee was hoisting a metal rail that came into contact with energized overhead power lines.

Outfitting employees with appropriate footwear reduces injuries. Making sure workers have the right footwear for the job is a real, ongoing challenge for safety managers. Here are five ways you can overcome it and take advantage of all the benefits of high-quality safety footwear.

OSHA has cited Franklin County Construction LLC – based in New Haven, Missouri – after an employee suffered fatal fall injuries when a roof truss collapsed. The employee was part of a crew installing prefabricated roof trusses onto a commercial building under construction in Bowling Green, Missouri.

Although the partial shutdown of the federal government continues to affect many agencies, the U.S. Department of Labor – of which OSHA is a part – is open and funded as a result of spending bills that were previously passed by Congress and signed into law by President Trump.

According to OSHA, an injury or illness is considered work related if an event or exposure in the work environment caused or contributed to the condition or significantly aggravated a preexisting condition. Work-relatedness is presumed for injuries and illnesses resulting from events or exposures occurring in the workplace, unless an exception specifically applies.

OSHA's Respiratory Protection Standard applies to general industry, construction, shipyards, marine terminals, and longshoring. The OSHA respirator standard applies to all occupational airborne exposures to contaminated air where the employee is.