Blog Archives

Appeals Board Dismissal Of Willful Violation Triggers Regulatory Action

When a janitorial worker was seriously injured using an inherently unsafe technique to access a rooftop work location, the Division of Occupational Safety and Health slapped a citation for serious/willful violation on his employer. But the Cal/OSH Appeals Board slapped down DOSH, saying even though the employer willfully overlooked the hazard, the Division couldn’t contort … Read More »

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Appeals Board Reverses ALJ On Construction Hoists In Fatality Case

A double fatality during the construction of the Grand Sheraton in Sacramento spurred changes in Title 8 on the strength of hoistway doors on construction elevators. But the facts of the case didn’t support a set of citations the Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) issued to the employer, the Cal/OSH Appeals Board has … Read More »

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Construction Incidents Kill Workers

California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) is investigating two fatalities and two serious injury incidents in recent days, involving construction workers and a theme park worker. Sept. 24: An employee of Shimmick Construction Co. was killed at a reservoir project in San Francisco’s Sunset District. The worker was sandblasting the ceiling of the … Read More »

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Feds To Finally Take Diacetyl Action?

With Congress working on legislation to force Fed-OSHA to ban the flavoring chemical diacetyl, the agency announces it has initiated three actions intended to “address concerns regarding diacetyl exposure.” Fed-OSHA says it will initiate rulemaking under Section 6 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. That section authorizes the U.S. Secretary of Labor to promulgate … Read More »

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Half-Century Of Safety

CROWS LANDING – Cal/OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) has turned 51. Not bad for a program that started in the 1970s. The addition of four new employers brings VPP 51 Star sites, its highest-ever level. In recent weeks, Hamilton Sundstrand of Long Beach, Rohm and Haas of La Mirada, Georgia-Pacific Gypsum of Antioch, and Covanta … Read More »

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Fleetwood: A Variance “Guaranteed To Make No One Happy”

Among the 51 variance requests approved, denied and postponed was a decision on the contentious Fleetwood Motor Homes variance. The board deferred a vote on the request until October because it had little time to study the complicated matter, but it is poised to grant the variance – subject to a host of conditions. As … Read More »

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Cal/OSHA Approves Nail Gun Reforms

COSTA MESA – In the end, the Cal/OSH Standards Board nailed it, so to speak. The construction industry is happy, Cal/OSHA has the regulatory reform it seeks, and, presumably, workers who operate pneumatic nailers and staplers will be safer. The board approved its now-not-so-controversial revisions to Construction Safety Orders §1704 Sept. 20, putting the finishing … Read More »

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