People who work outside or who do the heavy lifting for a living are often jealous of office workers. “They have it so easy!” you hear them say, “They never have to worry about the heat, the cold, or being injured.”
While the office temperature is debatable, it is not true that desk jobs carry no risk of injury. The CDC states that in 1999, about 1 million people took time off work to recover from musculoskeletal injuries due to poor economics, costing businesses about $50 billion each year in lost wages and productivity.
Full article: Seize the opportunities ergonomics can mean for your workplace
Source: Safety Best Practices
ASSP names new leaders of key standards committees
The American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) has announced leadership changes on two ANSI/ASSP standards committees that work to advance occupational safety and health across the country. Voluntary consensus standards promote best practices and prevent worker injuries, illnesses and fatalities.
Full article: ASSP names new leaders of key standards committees
Source: Safety Best Practices
3 most common workplace eye injuries — and how to avoid them
When new hires or temporary staff members join your team, it isn’t enough to simply lay out the plan, give them their tools and expect them to get to work. In fact, failing to educate your team on proper safety protocols is exactly the kind of negligence that often leads to workplace eye injuries — or worse.
When it comes to eye injuries, the numbers are astonishing. In the U.S., more than 2,000 workers injure their eyes on the job every single day, with roughly one out of every 10 of those injuries resulting in employees missing work in order to recuperate. That’s a drain on your bottom line to the tune of $300 million in medical bills, compensation and time off annually — and that’s something you just can’t afford.
Full article: 3 most common workplace eye injuries — and how to avoid them
Source: Safety Best Practices
National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in Construction set for May 6-10
OSHA and its partners will host events throughout the country in honor of the sixth annual National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in Construction May 6-10, 2019. Employers and workers will pause to talk about fall hazards, OSHA compliance, and industry best practices to prevent falls. The 2019 poster is now available on OSHA’s publications page.
Full article: National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in Construction set for May 6-10
Source: Safety Best Practices
Safety Leadership: Why system-focused behavior-based safety is the real deal
“Organizations that implement oversimplified BBS systems are shortchanging themselves and their people,” says Jim Spigener of DEKRA Organizational Safety and Reliability, who encourages the use of system-focused BBS.
Full article: Safety Leadership: Why system-focused behavior-based safety is the real deal
Source: Safety Leadership
OSHA recommends contract to protect temp workers
While the extent of responsibility under the law of staffing agencies and host employers is dependent on the specific facts of each case, staffing agencies and host employers are jointly responsible for maintaining a safe work environment for temporary workers – including, for example, ensuring that OSHA’s training, hazard communication, and recordkeeping requirements are fulfilled.
Full article: OSHA recommends contract to protect temp workers
Source: Safety Best Practices
Suddath warehouse workers log 500+ days without injuries
A global transportation, relocation, and logistics company headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida is celebrating more than its 100 anniversary this year. Suddath® reached a significant safety milestone in its Global Logistics division –500+ days – or more than a half-million consecutive hours – without lost workdays due to injuries.
Full article: Suddath warehouse workers log 500+ days without injuries
Source: Safety Best Practices
How a cop was exposed to fentanyl during a traffic stop
The case of a law enforcement officer (LEO) who developed alarming symptoms after a traffic stop highlight can provide lessons for other emergency responders, who are increasingly at risk of being exposed to illicit drugs while on the job.
The incident that led to a health hazard evaluation (HHE) occurred in New Hampshire in June 2017. As part of a vehicle search, the officer opened a container of what was suspected to be heroin and fentanyl.
Full article: How a cop was exposed to fentanyl during a traffic stop
Source: Safety Best Practices
Exposure effects explained
Abasic understanding of the toxicological dose-response curve is a necessity for OHS pros. People fear most what they understand the least. New and vast toxicological information can trigger fear and irrational actions.
Full article: Exposure effects explained
Source: Safety Best Practices
How NIOSH, partners are helping make OSH content accessible to all
Choosing the right final project for a graduate level course can be a daunting responsibility for any instructor. Harvard Research Scientist and Instructor Dr. Diana Ceballos heard NIOSH researcher Dr. Thais Morata share details at a NORA conference about NIOSH’s collaboration with academia and Wikipedia to teach students science translation and knew it was a perfect match.
Full article: How NIOSH, partners are helping make OSH content accessible to all
Source: Safety Best Practices