Tag: OSHA

Chicago Countertop Maker Facing $1 Million OSHA Fine

Florenza Marble & Granite Corp., a Chicago countertop manufacturer, faces over $1 million in Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) fines after the agency learned an employee needed a double lung transplant after suffering accelerated silicosis, OSHA announced August 26. OSHA cited Florenza Marble & Granite with eight egregious willful, four willful, and 20 serious […]

Texas’ New Healthcare Workplace Violence Law: What It Requires

As violence against healthcare workers occurs with greater frequency than in any other industry, the state of Texas is requiring healthcare facilities to adopt workplace violence prevention plans by September 1, 2024. The measure, Senate Bill 240, was proposed by Sen. Donna Campbell, MD (R-New Braunfels) and adopted by the Texas legislature in 2023. “What […]

Childcare Provider Ordered to Pay Whistleblower

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) officials have ordered the Dallas area location of a national childcare provider to reinstate an employee and pay $43,295 in back wages and damages after firing the employee for reporting concerns about unsanitary and unsafe conditions in the facility’s kitchen to Texas health officials, the agency announced August 22. […]

Poultry Processor Settles with DOL Following Teen’s Death

Poultry processor Mar-Jac Poultry MS LLC reached a settlement with the Department of Labor (DOL), agreeing to pay $164,814 in fines and implement enhanced safety measures to protect its employees from well-known machine hazards, the department announced August 14. In July 2023, a teenage worker at the company’s Hattiesburg, Mississippi, facility became caught in a […]

Faces of EHS: Julien Ngue on the Immigrant Experience in the U.S. Safety Industry

In 2016, Julien Ngue moved from Cameroon, Africa, to the United States in hopes of a better life and to further his career as a safety professional. “The U.S. Declaration of Independence bears my ultimate motivation in all my endeavors: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness,” said Ngue. After making his journey overseas, Ngue found roles […]

OSHA Continues Work on Six Economically Significant Rulemakings

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) continues its work on six economically significant rulemakings, according to an August 16 Department of Labor (DOL) notice (89 Fed. Reg. 66838). The notice outlines all the DOL’s rulemakings with a significant economic impact on a large number of small entities. All six of OSHA’s economically significant rulemakings […]

OSHA Cites Circle K After Florida Cashier Shot

Convenience store chain Circle K faces a $16,131 Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) fine after a store cashier in Orlando, Florida, suffered a serious gunshot injury, the agency announced August 14. OSHA inspectors learned that two unidentified men entered the Circle K location on Silver Star Road shortly after 1 a.m. on January 19, 2024; […]

Parker Details OSHA’s Safety Initiatives at ASSP Conference

While it continues to work on new standards on heat stress and infectious disease, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is emphasizing its willingness to work with businesses to improve worker protection. Speaking last week at the American Society of Safety Professionals’ (ASSP) Safety 2024 conference, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and […]

Oklahoma Contractor Cited in Fatal Trench Collapse

Jerlow Construction Co., an Edmond, Oklahoma, contractor, faces $85,173 in Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) fines after a 61-year-old pipe layer suffered fatal injuries when a 9-foot-deep trench collapsed at a residential worksite near Shawnee, OSHA announced August 6. The employer has a history of workplace safety violations dating back to 2018, including three […]

CSB Calls for Greater Use of Remote Isolation Equipment at Chemical Plants

The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) issued a call for greater use of remote isolation equipment at U.S. chemical facilities, the board announced July 25. A new safety study titled “Remote Isolation of Process Equipment” offered recommendations for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), as […]