LOS ANGELES – Eagan said the Standards Board would be moving at the end of July; it will take a few weeks longer for the Appeals Board to make the move. The Standards Board’s new address will be: 1300 I St., Suite 920, Sacramento, CA 95814. (Its phone number stays the same—916-322-3640.) The Appeals Board’s …
LOS ANGELES – On June 29, Fed-OSHA announced it was extending the start-up dates of most provisions of the new asbestos standards until October 1. The standards cover employee exposures in general industry, construction and shipyards. The notice of corrections and clarifications appeared in the June 29 Federal Register at pp. 33974 et seq. The …
LOS ANGELES – Ravenswood Aluminum Corp. of Ravenswood, WV, cited last year by OSHA for violations of the lockout/tagout standard, on June 30 agreed to pay $1,175,000 in proposed penalties and drop its appeal. It also agreed to significantly improve the health and safety of its 2,200 employees. OSHA began its inspection of the facility …
SAN FRANCISCO – The Hazard Evaulation System and Information Service (HESIS) has inaugurated a new service in Spanish for California workers, union representatives, employers and health professionals. HESIS provides free up-to-date information about the health effects of toxic substances in the workplace and how to use them safely. It also publishes many information bulletins about …
SAN FRANCISCO – Rather than appeal the OSHA citations, Midwest Metallics, L.P., has agreed to pay $1 million in proposed penalties and pledged to make significant improvements at its four operating facilities in the Chicago area. The agreement follows an inspection conducted by the OSHA area office in Calumet City, IL, after a fatal accident …
SAN FRANCISCO – Ralph Whitford, a carpenter employed by Martin Bros., was injured while working by himself near an open and unprotected elevator shaft in a 52-story building in downtown Los Angeles. Whitford received a workers’ compensation award from his employer and then filed a personal injury suit against the general contractor, Swinerton & Walberg, …
SAN FRANCISCO – Assaults and violent acts injured 2,078 state employees in 1993—a startling 17.3% of 11,989 cases involving days away from work. In the private sector, there were fewer lost workday cases in 1993 than in 1992, but the number of carpal tunnel syndrome cases more than doubled, rising to 6,406 from 2,545. All …
SAN FRANCISCO – The federal Agency for Health Care Policy & Research (AHCPR) has issued guidelines that support a “less is more” approach to treating acute low back injuries—defined as causing pain which can last up to three months. (Pain that lasts longer is considered chronic, and the guidelines do not apply.) AHCPR has issued …