ORANGE — Sometimes it takes seeing how people do things on the other side of the world to drive home the progress we have made here in the United States on worker safety and health. Nils Wright, former editor of Cal-OSHA Reporter’s sister publication, Workers’ Comp Executive, recently forwarded this photo and commentary on the …
Welders on the increasingly troubled San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge project again are raising safety questions about the joint venture in charge of the new eastern span. Almost one year ago, laid-off welders alleged they had been exposed to hazardous welding fumes, and after the Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) investigated, it agreed. Recently, …
CONCORD — A few months after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington, D.C., California’s Occupational Health Branch (OHB), part of the Department of Health Services, sponsored a symposium to look at lessons for rescue and recovery workers who respond to disasters, both natural and man-made. The conclusions? Disaster workers …
ORANGE — Will Cal/OSHA succeed in removing hearing conservation exemptions for several noisy industries? A long-stalled advisory committee will meet next week to determine the fate of the controversial proposal. The changes would affect General Industry Safety Orders 5095-5100, which require employers, except agriculture, construction and oil and gas well drilling and servicing operations, to …
Little did Doug Gow know in 2002 when one of his workers suffered what was believed to be a minor neck injury that two years later he’d be defending his employer against a Cal/OSHA reporting violation. But the risk management assistant for the City of Santa Rosa got an unpleasant surprise last October when the …
The Assembly Labor and Employment committee has scheduled an April 20 hearing on AB 1514 by Assemblyman Michael Villines (R-Fresno). The legislation would drop a requirement for the Division of Occupational Safety and Health to get Department of Health Services (DHS) evaluations of private-sector laboratory work under DOSH contracts. SB 727 by Sen Alan Lowenthal …
In our March 18 edition we told you about a new safety saw that senses the difference between a live extremity and a piece of wood and stops the saw in a split second before it can lop something off. Company founder Steve Gass noted at the end of the story that “We don’t have …
Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) in Moss Landing still seeks an occupational safety, health and security coordinator. The coordinator develops, implements and manages a quality environmental safety and health program, including identifying and correcting unsafe conditions, overseeing proper handling of hazardous materials and waste, and providing training. The coordinator also serves as key facilitator …