Blog Archives

Ironwork Representatives Seek Additional Decking Protections

Organizations representing ironworkers and steel erection employers are seeking changes to Title 8 to protect employees from falls through metal decking on highrise projects. In particular, they want Cal/OSHA to officially recognize a system designed by the District Council of Ironworkers and the Western Steel Council called the “cone-and-bar barricade.” The system consists of high-visibility, … Read More »

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Six Employee Deaths

The still-raging infernos in Northern California have claimed the lives of two more firefighters. At the Mendocino Complex fires, Battalion Chief Matthew Burchett, 42, died after suffering injuries sustained fighting an “active portion” of the Ranch Fire near Potter Valley. He was airlifted to a local hospital where he died of his injuries. A Cal … Read More »

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Do Heat Illness Regs Apply In Buses and Other Transportation?

The California Court of Appeal has kept alive a 2007 Cal/OSHA case on the question of whether transit buses are considered outdoor places of employment for purposes of the state’s heat illness standard. The decision affects local governments, special districts, and private transportation companies. Upholding a Superior Court decision, the First Appellate District, based in … Read More »

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Is a Marijuana ‘Breathalyzer’ Coming Soon?

An Oakland company says it is getting close to a commercial release of a “breathalyzer” to measure recent marijuana use. The Hound Labs device could be a boon to law enforcement to curb impaired driving and provide a tool for employers to smoke out drug use in the workplace. Since marijuana became legal in California, … Read More »

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San Francisco Human Waste Problem: How Employees Who Clean it Up Are Protected

In June, Cal/OSHA cited the state Department of General Services for failing to provide proper protection to workers from exposure to blood, human waste, and needles while cleaning Capitol Park in Sacramento. It is the park immediately adjacent to the State Capitol building. The hazardous material is left behind by the homeless who sleep in … Read More »

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Another Fire Responder Killed

The still-raging Carr Fire near Redding has claimed the life of another responder, the third to die in the blaze. Jairus Ayeta, 21 an apprentice lineman for Pacific Gas & Electric Co., was killed in a vehicle incident in steep terrain while working in remote Shasta County. Details of the incident are not yet available. … Read More »

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Avalanche Control Revisions Needed for California Ski Resorts?

Ski industry representatives and Caltrans personnel had a generally positive reaction to a Cal/OSHA draft proposal to revise the rules on avalanche control blasting. But they also had plenty of questions for the Standards Board. “The devil is in the details,” one participant said. The board initiated the project at the request of the Division … Read More »

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Get a Safety Training Grant

Just a year ago it was thought that Fed-OSHA’s Susan Harwood Training Grant program would be a victim of the Trump budget chopping block. The  DOL-proposed cuts didn’t come to pass, though, and the Harwood Grants are back again this year. Fed-OSHA is making $10.5 million available nationwide. California traditionally gets a sizable chunk of … Read More »

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