OSHA News Blog | The OSHA Updater

OSHA has recently released a new set of videos relating to construction hazards. In this blog post, we will be looking at videos concerning sprains and strains in the construction workplace. We hope you find these valuable and informational. Please check back for additional video topics.  To learn about OSHA training online visit http://www.easysafetyschool.com/

Sprains and Strains in Construction

Pulling Cables

This video addresses proper safety procedures when pulling cables in the construction industry. If you work with cables, this video is a must watch for anyone wanting to help prevent sprain and strain hazards in their workplace.

Laying Stone

This video addresses proper safety procedures when laying stone in the construction industry. If your work includeslaying stone, then we recommend watching this video to help prevent sprains and strains.

OSHA has recently released a new set of videos relating to construction hazards. In this blog post, we will be looking at videos concerning falls in the construction workplace. We hope you find these valuable and informational. Please check back for additional video topics.  To learn about OSHA safety training courses visit http://www.easysafetyschool.com/

Falls in Construction

Floor Openings

This video addresses proper safety procedures when working around floor openings in the construction industry. If you work around floor openings, this video is a must watch.

Fixed Scaffolds

This video addresses proper safety procedures when working around fixed openings in the construction industry. If your work includes fixed Scaffolds, then we recommend watching this video.

Bridge Decking

This video addresses proper safety procedures when working around bridge decking in the construction industry. If you work around bridge decking, you will want to check this video out.

Leading Edge Work

This video addresses proper safety procedures when working around leading edge work in the construction industry. Leading edge work is dangerous. Watch this video for safety tips.

Electrical, fire, explosions, burn and falls, along with other hazards, are still a huge concern of laboratory workers.  In an attempt to prevent and reduce these types of injuries and hazards, OSHA has released a new Laboratory Safety Guidance Document, which, covers preventative measures, safety equipment and proper safety procedures in the lab.  We have also linked to the National Academies' Prudent Practices in the Laboratory manual.

WASHINGTON – The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) today published new educational materials (http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/laboratories/index.html) for laboratory managers on protecting their workers from exposure to chemical, biological and physical hazards.

The new materials include the Laboratory Safety Guidance* document, which describes how electrical, fire, explosions and falls, among other hazards, can be minimized or eliminated if employers use safety plans, worker training, engineering controls and personal protective equipment. New laboratory safety materials also include fact sheets that each focus on a specific hazard related to laboratory environments. Practices and precautions to protect laboratory personnel include safety guidance for using autoclaves, use of chemical fume hoods, labeling and transferring chemicals, and latex exposure.

Over the past several years, there have been a number of laboratory incidents resulting in fatalities and injuries caused by fires, explosions and equipment. These incidents have resulted in debilitating injuries and death.

"The chemicals and equipment that laboratory workers use present a number of serious, sometimes life-threatening hazards," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health David Michaels. "These educational materials will help employers identify hazards and measures to ensure safe and healthful conditions for their workers and promote a robust safety culture in the workplace."

OSHA is collaborating with the National Academies on resources to help improve the safety of laboratory workers. OSHA used The original edition of the National Academies' Prudent Practices in the Laboratory manual, the authoritative source on the handling of chemical hazards, as the foundation for the agency's laboratory standard. The manual has since been revised, and the agencies are working together to update the non-mandatory appendices in OSHA's Laboratory Standard (29 CFR 1910.1450) to assure it is consistent with the guidance given in the revised manual.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to ensure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

Trench related accidents are some of the most common and terrible deaths associated with construction, yet  Dr. David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA, says it is "entirely preventable".   In an effort to increase trenching safety awareness and implementation, OSHA has released 3 new documents to help prevent trenching accidents.  These include a new Fact Sheet, a QuickCard and a Poster.  We have included links to these important safety documents below. Get safe by taking our online OSHA 10 hour course.

Download OSHA's Trenching Safety Fact Sheet

Download OSHA's Trenching Safety QuickCard

Download OSHA's Trenching Safety  Poster

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) today released three new guidance products to educate workers and employers about the hazards workers face in trenching operations. Unprotected trenches are among the deadliest hazards in the construction industry and the loss of life is devastating: since 2003, more than 200 workers have died in trench cave-ins, and hundreds more have been seriously injured.

"No worker's life should end in a trench. Cave–ins during excavations are some of the most common and grisliest causes of worker fatalities in construction, yet they are entirely preventable," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels. "I am deeply troubled by the continued violations of OSHA's trenching standards, many of which bring tragic results. These new educational materials provide clear guidance on the necessary steps that employers must take to protect workers in trenches."

The new information products, which are available on OSHA's Publications page, include:
"Trenching and Excavation" fact sheet* – an overview of the hazards that can occur while performing trenching operations and the safety measures required to protect workers;

"Working Safely in Trenches" QuickCard* – an easy-to-use guide to trenching hazards and safety measures with graphics; and

"Do Not Enter an Unprotected Trench!" poster* – a resource for construction workplaces informing workers what steps must be taken to ensure trench safety, along with the warning "An Unprotected Trench is an Early Grave."

Subjects covered in the three documents include proper shoring and sloping; evaluations by competent persons; means of access/egress; atmospheric hazard testing; and protective systems. The guidance also describes the protective measures that are required under OSHA's excavation standards (29 CFR 1926.650, 29 CFR 1926.651, and 29 CFR 1926.652). Spanish-language versions of the documents are also available.

Because of the severity of trenching hazards, OSHA conducts a Special Emphasis Program on Trenching and Excavations (Directive CPL 02-00-069 [CPL 2.69]), which sets procedures for enforcement activities wherever trenching and excavation worksites are observed. When OSHA's compliance officers see a trench, they will inspect a trench. On two separate occasions in the past year, this Special Emphasis Program allowed OSHA compliance officers to remove workers from unsupported trenches minutes before they collapsed – likely preventing possible injury and loss of life.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to ensure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

Easy Safety School is the premiere provider of on-site Cal/OSHA 10 and 30 hour training classes in California.  Thanks to our partnership with the best local California trainers, we can now offer on-site training within 300 miles of Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Inland Empire and Riverside, CA.  Our on-site training courses are affordable, convenient and fun.  Please visit our OSHA Training in California page to request a training or a quote.  In addition to Cal/OSHA courses, we also offer CPR training, First Aid, HAZWOPER, confined spaces, forklift certification, and many more.

OSHA has updated with hazard alert to hair salon owners after new agency investigations, an FDA warning and incorrect material safety data sheets were sent to hair salons.  The products under question are the Brazilian Blowout Acai Professional Smoothing Solution and Brasil Cacau Cadiveu which can release high amounts of formaldehyde during normal use.

Download OSHA's Letter Here

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued a revised hazard alert to hair salon owners and workers about potential formaldehyde exposure from working with certain hair smoothing and straightening products. The revised alert was prompted by the results of agency investigations, a warning letter issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and factually incorrect information recently sent to salons by a company that manufactures hair products. OSHA's updated alert can be viewed at http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/formaldehyde/hazard_alert.html.

During recent investigations, OSHA's air tests showed formaldehyde at hazardous levels in salons using Brazilian Blowout Acai Professional Smoothing Solution and Brasil Cacau Cadiveu, resulting in citations for multiple violations. OSHA found that workers were exposed to formaldehyde in these salons at levels higher than the agency's protective limits. OSHA also cited two manufacturers and two distributors of hair smoothing products for violations that included failing to list formaldehyde on product labels as well as on accompanying hazard warning sheets, known as material safety data sheets, that are provided to the products' users.

The FDA issued a warning letter on Aug. 22 to the importer and distributer of Brazilian Blowout Acai Professional Smoothing Solution stating that the product is adulterated and misbranded. Although the solution contains methylene glycol, which can release formaldehyde during the normal conditions of use, the product is labeled "formaldehyde free" or "no formaldehyde" and does not list formaldehyde on the material safety data sheet.

Following an Aug. 24 letter sent by Brazilian Blowout to salon owners claiming that all OSHA air tests performed on the company's Brazilian Blowout Professional Acai Smoothing Solution yielded results below OSHA's standard for exposure, the agency sent a letter today to the company refuting that assertion. OSHA's letter can be viewed at http://www.easysafetyschool.com/public/pdf/brazilian_blowout_letter.pdf.

"Misleading or inadequate information on hazardous product labels is unacceptable," said OSHA Assistant Secretary Dr. David Michaels. "Salon owners and workers have the right to know the risks associated with the chemicals with which they work and how to protect themselves."

Formaldehyde can irritate the eyes and nose; cause allergic reactions of the skin, eyes and lungs; and is a cancer hazard. The revised hazard alert notifies salons that if they use products that contain or release formaldehyde, they must follow the requirements in OSHA's formaldehyde standard at 29 Code of Federal Regulations 1910.1048. OSHA further requires manufacturers, importers and distributors of products that contain formaldehyde as a gas or in solution, or that can release formaldehyde during use, to include information about formaldehyde and its hazards on product labels and in the material safety data sheets. The alert also now includes details about the information that is required to be listed on the labels and the material safety data sheets of products that contain or could release formaldehyde. OSHA's formaldehyde standard can be viewed at http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=STANDARDS&p_id=10075.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to ensure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

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Nail gun related injuries are incredibly common -- accounting for +/- 37,000 visits to the emergency room last year.  In an attempt to reduce this number, a new document from NIOSH and OSHA has been released which targets nail gun safety in the workplace.  Read the full article below...

Download the Nail Gun Handbook

WASHINGTON – The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) have developed new guidance, Nail Gun Safety – A Guide for Construction Contractors*, to help construction employers and workers prevent work-related nail gun injuries.

"Nail gun injuries are responsible for approximately 37,000 emergency room visits annually. In some cases, workers have died from their injuries," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels. "This document will help construction employers make necessary changes to improve nail gun safety and protect their workers from preventable injuries and death."

"NIOSH is pleased to partner with OSHA in presenting effective, evidence-based guidance for safer nail gun use," said NIOSH Director John Howard, M.D.

Construction workers, particularly those in residential construction, use nail guns nearly every day. Although this tool is easy to operate and increases productivity, there have been reports of internal and external bodily injuries. These injuries occur as a result of unintended nail discharge; nails that bounce off a hard surface or miss the work piece and become airborne; and disabling the gun's safety features, among other causes. Injury prevention is possible if contractors take steps such as using full sequential trigger nail guns; establishing nail gun work procedures; and providing workers with personal protective equipment. -- OSHA 30 Hour Training is available at Easy Safety School.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to ensure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov. NIOSH is the federal agency that conducts research and makes recommendations for preventing work-related injuries, illnesses, and deaths. More information can be found at www.cdc.gov/niosh.