Cal/OSHA is poised to adopt a significant decrease in the permissible exposure limit for the chemical benzyl chloride. But with the only comment on the proposal being in support, the question is whether this a big issue in California. It appears not – few employers could be affected. Nonetheless, the Division of Occupational Safety and …
Earlier this year, Fed-OSHA published a final rule designed to prevent workers from falling from heights on the same level – so-called walking/working surfaces. For instance, falls from ladders are a constant source of deadly incidents, as Cal-OSHA Reporter’s regular fatality updates show. Many of the new Fed-OSHA rules have gone into effect; others are …
Seven California workers suffered workplace fatalities in late August and early September. The incidents were from a variety of sources. In Chula Vista, an employee of El Prieto was washing the exterior of a truck and shipping and storage facility when he stepped in a puddle of water, through which an electrical cord was running. …
One of the enduring lessons from the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster in 1986 is what has become known as the “normalization of deviation.” The concept is that employees and organizations will deviate from best practices when expedient until the deviation becomes the norm. It will continue until disaster strikes. But Tennessee safety professional Mark Paradies …
It’s been a hot summer in California, even in places not normally known for sizzling temperatures. Such locales as the Sonoma coast area have seen multiple days well into triple digits. That’s not uncommon for California’s inland valleys, but for those not acclimated, it’s a big “yikes!” There is good news for California workplaces: So …
The newest Cal/OSHA Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) Star started its quest for safety excellence in 2008. But, says Michael Morrison, plant manager for the Phillips 66 Los Angeles Lubricants Terminal, it was worth the time, effort and expense. “It was a long and arduous journey,” he says, “but our facility is safer for it.” The …
Among the settlements recently approved by the Cal/OSH Appeals Board in big cases are three willful violations issued to Bay Area Rapid Transit in a 2013 double fatality, and approval of a huge deal in the 2012 Chevron Richmond explosion and fire. In the BART case, the transit agency and the Division of Occupational Safety …
Cal/OSHA has issued citations alleging serious violations – including a willful charge – to a Huntington Beach manufacturer, seeking close to $150,000 in penalties. A power-operated punch press operator lost three fingers in January while feeding raw material into the machine at Crenshaw Manufacturing. The willful violation was issued because, Cal/OSHA says, a supervisor instructed …