Occupational safety and health experts are urging the U.S. Congress to go slow and consider workplace safety when taking on the legalization of marijuana. Although recreational and medical marijuana are still prohibited under federal law, it is legal in 33 states and the District of Columbia – and counting.

A Wisconsin company that produces aluminum and steel castings has been cited by OSHA for continually exposing employees to machine hazards at its facility in Niagara, Wisconsin. The company faces $ 206,291 in penalties.

Crews yesterday resumed searching for a person still missing in the rubble of a New Orleans construction site after a deadly building collapse on Saturday. News report say six to eight floors of the under-construction Hard Rock Hotel collapsed, killing two people and injuring at least 18 others.

Indiana last week became the latest state to adopt the 2017 National Electric Code (NEC) as a reference standard to be used in the state’s Uniform Building Code, leaving Illinois, Kansas as the only two states still using a nine-year old version electrical building safety standard. Nevada and Washington, D.C. use the NEC issued in 2007.

In an effort to enhance safety on the nation’s highways, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is providing $1.8 million in funding to non-governmental partner organizations who combat impaired driving and deal with other safety issues. "This funding will help NHTSA and our partners improve highway safety for all, and will provide critical leadership for reducing the incidence of driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol," said James Owens, Acting Administrator of NHTSA.

The rate at which Americans died from firearm injuries increased sharply starting in 2015, a new study shows. This recent increase occurred to varying degrees across different states, types of firearm deaths such as homicide and suicide, and demographic groups.

RMS Utilities Inc. is facing $92,819 in penalties after OSHA found that the Colorado company: failed to protect employees from cave-in hazards failed to keep the spoil pile at least two feet back from the edge of the excavation, and f allowed employees to work beneath an excavator bucket...

A collision earlier this year involving two trains owned by the same company resulted in minor injuries to both engineers and the derailment of one locomotive and more than two dozen railcars. The National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) preliminary report into the incident reveals that a westbound CSX Transportation (CSX) freight train collided with an eastbound CSX freight train near Carey, Ohio at 5:08 a.m. on August. 12.

OSHA has formed a national alliance with the National Waste & Recycling Association (NWRA), and Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) to protect the safety and health of workers in the solid waste industry. During the two-year agreement, the Alliance will address transportation hazards, including backovers and distracted driving; slips, trips, and falls; musculoskeletal injuries; heat and cold stress; and needle stick and other hazards.

It’s mid-shift, and your workplace is humming with activity. Suddenly, a fire breaks out. It’s relatively small – at least for the moment. Employee safety is your first priority, of course. Ordering an immediate evacuation is the obvious action to take. Or is it?