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Two employers in Alabama and Arkansas are facing six-figure Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) penalties following workers’ amputation injuries. OSHA cited iSpice LLC of Jackson, Alabama, with two repeat, serious and six serious safety and health violations and proposed penalties totaling $146,751. The agency cited Maxwell Hardwood Flooring Inc. of Monticello, Arkansas, with one […]
A federal appeals court December 17 lifted a stay on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) emergency temporary standard (ETS) requiring large employers to implement a program of COVID-19 vaccination for employees or coordinate weekly testing. OSHA will not issue citations for noncompliance with any requirements of the ETS before January 10, 2022, the […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced that solar panel installation contractor, Marc Jones Construction LLC, operating as Sunpro Solar, is facing $160,913 in penalties for a repeat violation of the fall protection standard, along with other violations. The agency cited Sunpro Solar with a repeat, serious violation of the fall protection standard and serious violations of the ladders and fall protection training standards. Agency inspectors found workers at […]
The Department of Labor (DOL) November 22 reminded retailers to both properly pay workers and ensure their health and safety during the holiday shopping season. Federal wage regulations are administered by the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulates worker health and safety. OSHA urged retail employers to […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) October 27 issued an advance notice of proposal rulemaking on heat injury and illness prevention in outdoor and indoor work settings—the first step in developing a federal heat stress standard (86 FR 59309). The document contains 114 questions about a potential standard but no proposed regulatory text. The […]
The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) will have expanded enforcement authority starting January 1, 2022, with the creation of two new classes of violations: enterprisewide and egregious. Governor Gavin Newsom (D) recently signed S.B. 606 into law, authorizing the new citation and penalty authority. If a cited employer has multiple worksites, there […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will soon issue an emergency temporary standard (ETS) requiring employers with 100 or more employees to ensure their employees are vaccinated against COVID-19 or provide weekly negative tests. The rule will be issued as part of President Joe Biden’s six-point national strategy, announced September 9, to combat the […]
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) September 7 released fact sheets covering counterfeit N95 filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs) and the institute’s filtration efficiency testing and employer FFR fit testing. Last year, NIOSH and personal protective equipment manufacturers reported a rise in counterfeit FFRs following respirator shortages at the beginning of the COVID-19 […]
Farmworkers in California remain at risk for heat-related illness despite farms’ compliance with the state’s heat illness prevention program standard, according to research from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). Around 7% of farmworkers studied were at risk for heat-related illness despite compliance with California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited Republic Steel for one repeat, seven serious, and three other-than-serious safety violations, seeking a proposed $220,399 in penalties. According to the agency, Republic’s Canton, Ohio, automotive steel mill did not install adequate machine guarding, implement lockout/tagout measures, or train workers on safety procedures, exposing its employees to […]