Slips, trips, and falls are the second most common type of fatal work-related injuries and the third most common type of non-fatal work-related injuries in the United States (1, 2). Although falls from heights are more likely to result in a fatality, falls on the same level (which often start as a slip or trip) occur more frequently and can cause injury. Recent US Bureau of Labor Statistics data show that 50% of all same-level falls resulted in more than 10 days away from work (1, 2, 3).
Patrick Pizella, the man who’ll become acting Labor Secretary tomorrow, is “hard-working and no-nonsense” and will likely push for more employer-friendly safety standards, according to a former colleague.
Deputy U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) secretary since April 2018, Pizella will fill the vacancy left by the recent departure of Alexander Acosta, who resigned amid controversy over his role in a lenient 2008 plea deal with convicted sex offender – and billionaire – Jeffrey Epstein. Pizella held positions in several agencies during four different Administrations, including on the Federal Labor Relations Authority, to which he was appointed by President Barack Obama.
Two Susan Harwood Training Grant Program recipients have developed free training programs to help protect construction workers from fall hazards.
The University of Tennessee training program offers three modules on OSHA's role in workplace safety, health and safety standards affecting construction workers, and preventing common types of falls at construction sites.
U.S. adolescents (< 18 years) experience a higher rate of job-related injuries compared with adults. Safety education is considered critical to the prevention of these incidents. To prepare middle- and high-school students for safe and healthy employment, NIOSH and its partners developed a free curriculum, Youth@Work—Talking Safety, built on a theoretical framework of foundational workplace safety and health competencies that are fundamental to all jobs.
Last October, Erick Solis, a 19-year-old temp worker at a Los Angeles food company, lost two fingers when his hand got caught in an unguarded dough-rolling machine.
Cal/OSHA, the state job safety agency, cited the company, JSL Foods Inc., for willful violations because an almost identical accident had happened before.
A 24-year-old Wisconsin man died last week at an Amazon construction site in suburban Wisconsin after falling approximately 30 to 40 feet, police said.
Police received a call at 10:09 a.m. for an industrial accident at the future Amazon site. Zachary Dassow of Kansasville, Wisconsin, was operating a four-wheel ATV on an upper floor and drove it out a window, falling more than 30 feet, according to police.
According to a report by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), a high number of American workers were seriously injured or died on the job due to traumatic brain injuries.
The study found that construction workers sustain more traumatic brain injuries than workers at any other type of workplace in the United States. Between 2003 to 2010, more than 2,200 construction workers died due to a traumatic brain injury.
Outdoor workers can experience a number of hazards. One often unexpected hazard is a venomous snakebite. Venomous snakes may be encountered in workplaces throughout the United States. The most likely geographic locations where outdoor workers would encounter venomous snakes is in the American South, Southwest, and West. From 2008-2015, the greatest number of deaths from venomous snakebites occurred in the southern and mid-western United States.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is developing new guidance intended to help make people fully aware of the abuse or addiction possibilities of the prescriptions they’re taking. Drug Abuse and Dependence Section of Labeling for Human Prescription Drug and Biological Products - Content and Format doesn’t just deal with prescription medications that are scheduled under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). Medications not scheduled under the CSA that have dependence potential are also addressed.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) this week published an updated list of the safety recommendations associated with the agency’s 2019 – 2020 Most Wanted List of Transportation Safety Improvements following the recent closure of eight safety recommendations.
Of the eight closed safety recommendations; four (P-17-003, H-15-020, A-09-092, and H-09-018) were closed with acceptable action taken, one (P-18-003 ) was closed with acceptable alternate action taken, one (M-16-028) was closed with a status of exceeds recommended action, and safety recommendation H-12-029 was unfortunately closed with unacceptable action taken.