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Hazard Communication: Still a Bulwark of Workplace Safety

OSHA estimates that more than 32 million workers are exposed to 650,000 hazardous chemical products in more than 3 million American workplaces. If your workplace is one of those 3 million, hazard communication is a critical issue for you and your workers. OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) was developed to ensure that workers and employers […]

Train to Reduce Pain

Aches and pains may not seem like serious concerns for supervisors, but if your workers are suffering, the quality and productivity of their work may suffer as well. Our Safety Training Tips editor has some tips for dealing with this common problem. Encourage open communication between yourself and workers so that they feel free to […]

Can You Hear Me Now? Noise and Your Employees’ Hearing

Approximately 30 million Americans are exposed to high noise levels on the job. Long-term exposure to high noise levels can cause permanent hearing loss. That’s why OSHA requires employers to provide training and hearing protection when employees are exposed to harmful noise levels. Too much noise can affect employees’ safety and health. We know that […]

Hearing Protection: Your Questions Answered

If you’ve got noisy work areas, you’ve probably also got questions about hearing protection and OSHA requirements. The experts at Safety.BLR.com® have been fielding these questions for years. Here is a sampling that may be helpful for your workplace.   (NOTE: To get all the details of OSHA’s hearing protection requirements, refer to the Occupational […]

No Slips, Trips, and Falls Allowed!

Busy, bustling workplaces with all kinds of activities in progress at any given time can be full of slip, trip, and fall hazards. These accidents are costly in both human and financial terms. Don’t let slips, trips, and falls create havoc with your work schedules and eat away at your bottom line. The General Duty […]

Slips, Trips, and Falls: Boring Everyday Accidents?

Slips, trips, and falls are among the most common workplace accidents, and they cause a lot of very costly—and painful—injuries every year. Are you doing all you can to prevent them? Everyone reading this has certainly slipped, tripped, or fallen at least once. More likely, you’ve had several falls during your lifetime. Fortunately, many such […]

Can You Hear Me Now??

How much noise is too much before it hurts workers’ hearing? Our Safety Training Tips editor looks at the data. According to OSHA, workers run the risk of hearing loss if they are exposed to an average of more than 85 decibels (dB) over an 8-hour workday. OSHA takes excessive noise seriously, and its regulation […]

Curb BBP Risks with Universal Precautions

Universal precautions are essential to preventing the spread of bloodborne infections such as HIV and HBV (hepatitis B). Are your employees familiar with the concept and the practice?  “Universal precautions” means treating all blood and bodily fluids as if they are infectious—whether or not you think they really are. It doesn’t matter if it’s your […]

Untrue Blood: Scientists Look for Blood Substitute

Imagine that a worker is badly injured on the job and is bleeding heavily. When taken to the hospital, the employee is pumped full of blood. Only it isn’t real blood; it’s an artificial substitute. Currently, this scenario is more science fiction than science. But the possibility of someday being able to manufacture artificial blood […]

Safety & Health Under Obama: What to Expect?

Washington, D.C., is full of new faces and new initiatives. What are the implications for occupational safety and health of all these changes? Who stands to gain and whose agenda will be shoved to the back burner for the next 3½ years? There is no shortage of opinion about what the Obama administration will ultimately […]