Blog Archives

Stakeholders Call Standards Board’s Hand Protection Proposal Excessive

SACRAMENTO – Differences between a Cal/OSHA proposal on hand protection and the federal language it is based on triggered critical comments at an Oct.17 Standards Board public hearing, with a number of stakeholders asking the board to adopt the federal language verbatim. The proposal is aimed at clarifying the hand-protection provisions of General Industry Safety … Read More »

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Standards Board Steering Around the State Mandate Issue on Turnout Boots

Responding to a petition from a Sierra foothills fire chief to update a safety order on personal protective equipment and clothing for firefighters should be a relatively straightforward matter. But in granting the petition, the Cal/OSH Standards Board must steer clear of a legal ruling that would require the state to reimburse local agencies for … Read More »

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DOSH Cited Wrong Safety Order?

Reader Paul Burnett says one citation in a lengthy case we published in the Oct. 18 Decisions section referenced the wrong safety order. In Pars Industries, among the many violations alleged was one under General Industry Safety Orders §3653(a). The administrative law judge upheld the general violation and $165 penalty for failure to have a … Read More »

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GHS: ‘Let’s Do the Horcher Again’

The Cal/OSH Standards Board readopted the temporary Horcher for the first round of Globally Harmonized System changes to Title 8 at its Oct. 17 meeting in Sacramento. The re adoption affects Construction Safety Orders §§ 1529, 1532 and 1532.1 and Appendix B,  §§ 1532.2 and 1535; General Industry Safety Orders §§ 5150, 5189, 5190, 5191, … Read More »

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In Case You Missed These…

The Cal/OSH Appeals Board has upheld citations in two workplace fatality cases. Our summaries appeared in the Oct. 11 Decisions section. You can access them by clicking on the links below. The board upheld an administrative law judge decision in Morrow Meadows Corp. that upheld a serious, accident-related violation of General Industry Safety Orders §3212(e) … Read More »

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Lessons from a Trench Tragedy

A tragic fatality at a private residence in Beverly Hills was completely avoidable and homeowners who act as their own general contractors should be aware of a project’s hazards before hiring day laborers to perform dangerous work. Those are the conclusions of the California Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) program, which has issued a … Read More »

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DOSH Seeks Emergency Regulations on Process Safety Management Unit Fees

The Division of Occupational Safety and Health has filed an emergency regulation with the Office of Administrative law setting user-fee procedures for Cal/OSHA’s 18 refineries. The fees will support the Division’s Process Safety Management Unit and increased personnel mandated earlier this year in the wake of the Chevron Richmond refinery fire. The Department of Industrial … Read More »

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Governor Vetoes Abatement Bill

As one of his last acts before the deadline to decide on bills passed by the California Legislature, Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed AB 1165, which would have ended automatic stays of abatement in Cal/OSHA citation cases. The governor also signed several bills related to occupational safety and health, including AB 633 and 1202 and SB 435. AB … Read More »

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