June 28, 2021

US Department of Labor orders Lansing chemical manufacturer to reinstate whistleblower who questioned accounting practices

LANSING, MI – After an account manager continually expressed concerns and objections about a proposed accounting practice they believed to be illegal, Equistar Chemicals L.P. in Lansing placed the account manager on a performance improvement program and, ultimately, fired them.

June 24, 2021

US Department of Labor announces availability of more than $21M in grants for training on workplace hazards, infectious diseases

WASHINGTON, DC The U.S. Department of Labor today announced funding opportunities for more than $21 million in Occupational Safety and Health Administration training grants for non-profit organizations.

June 22, 2021

US Department of Labor, stakeholders renew alliance to train, protect North Dakota workers from excavation, trenching hazards

BISMARCK, ND – To combat the dangers workers face in trenching and excavation operations, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration and key stakeholders renewed an alliance to train workers on trenching and excavation hazards.

June 22, 2021

US Department of Labor cites Toccoa plastic recycler for violating safety standards after worker sustains fatal injuries from a fall

TOCCOA, GA  With the holiday fast approaching, a 56-year-old worker at a Toccoa plastic processing facility could never have known he would spend Christmas Day in a hospital and die from a head injury after falling more than 6 feet from an elevated platform.

June 17, 2021

US Postal Service failed to prevent blocked, obstructed exits, other safety violations at Lehigh Valley facility

BETHLEHEM, PA – A federal workplace safety inspection of a U.S. Postal Service location in Hanover Township found employees exposed to potentially serious and fatal injuries in the event of an emergency.

June 16, 2021

OSHA cites Bronx contractor after 21-year-old laborer erecting scaffolding suffers deadly fall at Brooklyn building project

BROOKLYN, NY – Falls are the leading cause of fatalities in construction, a fact sadly illustrated by the death of a 21-year-old laborer, who fell nearly 50 feet as he installed a supported tubular welded frame scaffold during construction of a seven-story Brooklyn building.

June 15, 2021

Inspección federal descubre que fabricante de tortillas de San Marcos expuso a sus trabajadores repetidamente a peligros de amputación

SAN MARCOS, TX –Las inspecciones previas de la Administración de Seguridad y Salud Ocupacional (OSHA por sus siglas en inglés) del Departamento de Trabajo de los Estados Unidos han dado a los operadores de una fábrica familiar de tortillas al sur de Austin todas las oportunidades para resolver sus problemas de seguridad.

June 15, 2021

US Department of Labor reminds North Dakota construction contractors that protecting workers from falls is a matter of life, death

BISMARCK, ND – Spurred by its significant population growth in the past decade, North Dakota experienced the nation’s largest increase in housing units – nearly 20 percent – over the same period. As the demand for new homes brings more jobs and construction projects to the state, employers must be vigilant in protecting workers from hazards on construction work sites.

June 15, 2021

Federal inspection finds San Marcos tortilla manufacturer repeatedly exposing workers to amputation dangers

SAN MARCOS, TX – Previous inspections by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration have given the operators of a family owned tortilla factory south of Austin every opportunity to resolve its safety issues. Yet, OSHA has found the company still exposing workers to the risks of amputation and other serious injuries.

June 15, 2021

US Department of Labor cites Rhode Island medical practice, owner for exposing employees to coronavirus in North Providence, West Greenwich

PROVIDENCE, RI – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited the owner-operator of four Rhode Island medical facilities for failing to protect workers from exposure to the coronavirus and implement proper safety measures after six employees tested positive for the virus in the fall of 2020.

June 14, 2021

OSHA initiative seeks to protect manufacturing workers in Midwest facilities from hazardous noise levels

CHICAGO ‒ Nearly one in 10 people endure noise levels at work loud enough to cause hearing loss while seven in 10 experience moderately loud noise levels, reports the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Yet, the bureau’s Occupational Requirements Survey, published in 2019, found that more than half of the nation’s manufacturing workers reported not using personal protective equipment to protect their hearing.

June 14, 2021

US Department of Labor honors Montana safety professionals group for continued commitment to workplace safety, health

BILLINGS, MT The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has named the American Society of Safety Professionals’ Big Sky Chapter an OSHA Alliance Program Ambassador in recognition of its partnership with OSHA and commitment to addressing workplace safety and health hazards in Montana.

June 10, 2021

US Department of Labor’s OSHA issues emergency temporary standard to protect healthcare workers from the coronavirus

WASHINGTON, DC The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has announced it will issue an emergency temporary standard to protect healthcare workers from contracting coronavirus. The standard focuses on healthcare workers most likely to have contact with someone infected with the virus.

June 10, 2021

La OSHA del Departamento de Trabajo de EE.UU. emite estatuto temporal de emergencia para proteger a trabajadores de salud contra el coronavirus

WASHINGTON, DC La Administración de Seguridad y Salud Ocupacional del Departamento de Trabajo de EE.UU. ha emitido un estatuto temporal de emergencia para proteger a los trabajadores de salud contra el coronavirus. El estatuto se enfoca en trabajadores de salud con más probabilidad de entrar en contacto con alguien infectado con el virus.

June 10, 2021

US Department of Labor cites pharma, biotech manufacturer for failing to protect workers from coronavirus at Monmouth County facility

EATONTOWN, NJ – An Eatontown manufacturer failed to protect employees adequately from workplace exposure to coronavirus, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration determined, after an investigation into the deaths of two workers and the hospitalization of two others who contracted the coronavirus in the fall of 2020.

June 7, 2021

US Department of Labor implements initiative to conduct random, weekend safety inspections to protect construction workers from falls, trench collapses

DENVER – As work at construction project sites increases in Colorado’s Front Range, more workers may find themselves exposed to falls and trenching and excavation hazards. Over the last two years, at least six workers have suffered fatal falls, and nearly a dozen excavation collapses and trenching incidents have led to the deaths of three workers in Colorado.

June 7, 2021

US Department of Labor cites Cambria grain facility for workplace safety failures following engulfment death of manager in corn silo

CAMBRIA, WI – After a worker who was clearing corn debris from an unsafe silo failed to arrive for a regularly scheduled meeting, employees called 911 when they could not find him at the silo, nor reach him by phone. It took emergency services nine hours to recover the body of the 52-year-old manager, found engulfed in the silo operated by Didion Milling Inc. in Cambria.

June 4, 2021

US Department of Labor partners with OHL North America construction company, University of South Florida to promote workplace safety

FORT LAUDERDALE, FL The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Obrascón Huarte Lain North America are collaborating to promote worker safety and health at the South Corridor Rapid Transit project, a 20-mile stretch of existing busway.

June 2, 2021

Lack of hazardous energy control safeguards, unexpected steam release led to two workers’ deaths at Department of Veterans Affairs’ West Haven campus

BRIDGEPORT, CT – Two workers at a West Haven veterans’ healthcare facility suffered fatal injuries caused by hot steam after a metal fixture on a main steam line blew off. The workers had just finished making repairs to the steam pipe within the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Connecticut Healthcare System West Haven campus in November 2020.

June 1, 2021

Fort Myers behavioral healthcare center agrees to revamp its workplace violence prevention program after OSHA investigation of five incidents

FORT MYERS, FL  The U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration has reached a settlement with a Fort Myers behavioral healthcare and residential treatment facility to prevent future employee injuries after a series of violent incidents in the spring and fall of 2020.