OSHA News Blog | The OSHA Updater

Every once in a while you have to do a google search for funny safety pictures.  I have compiled a "Best of the Hilarious and Shockingly Unsafe Pictures".  And now... In no particular order...

#1  Power Tools on Ladder in Pool While Barefoot

This is a personal favorite of mine.  Note the subtle display of alcoholic beverages located in the bottom left.  At least he saw fit to wear protective eye wear.















#2  The Ol' Wood Cutting Near the Genitals Routine

Sometimes you've got to cut wood, and sometimes you've got to do it near where you know it can really do some damage.  You might also want to take your shirts off and have huge beards.










#3 Because Why Not?

Tired of those hot lunch breaks?  Need shade, but want it to be heavier?  You need one of these!!!   The heaviest shade you can get.  It even comes with reluctant guy to help keep your shady area uncrowded.










#4  Power Prop

As you can probably tell, this guy likes working on his truck, but he hates getting his shirt dirty.  I'm thinking 3 seconds later his shirt probably got real dirty.










#5  Tandom Power Ladder for Men
Come on...  I mean, maybe it would be safe enough for one person, but this is too much.  Also,  is that a denim skirt or some real short shorts?  Maybe it's some new couples therapy technique.














#6  Oops!
You probably can't tell by the pictures, but just inside that warehouse is someone saying, "I don't know... I just found it like that..."











#7  Real Dedication
Some people are just that dedicated to the art of gardening.  Though, gas prices are at an all-time low...
















#8  The Roof Danglers
What?  They love dangling...  Get over it.














#9  The Danglers Revisited
The Danglers are back!  Only this time they've hired a designated poker guy.  He just sits there and pokes yah', and he's real good at it.














#10  Homemade Ladder's by Henry
I'm assuming they cleared it through OSHA before climbing to the top of that thing.  Then again,  it kind of looks like an amateur design.
















Well that does it for this installment of How to Be Unsafe - A Picture Story.  I hope you have enjoyed it.  This is the one time I might say... "Don't get any ideas.

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New Web site offers fact sheets with practical information

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued commonsense fact sheets that employers and workers can use to promote safety during the current H1N1 influenza outbreak.

The fact sheets inform employers and workers about ways to reduce the risk of exposure to the 2009 H1N1 virus at work. Separate fact sheets for health care workers, who carry out tasks and activities that require close contact with 2009 H1N1 patients, contain additional precautions.

"Protecting our nation's workers is OSHA's top priority," said Jordan Barab, the agency's acting assistant secretary. "These fact sheets are tools we have developed to help ensure America's workers stay healthy and our businesses remain viable. OSHA's new fact sheets will help all employers identify appropriate actions to protect their workers."

OSHA's "Workplace Safety and H1N1" Web site provides easy to understand information appropriate for all workplaces and more extensive guidance for those involved in higher risk health care activities. The fact sheets are advisory in nature and informational in content.

As new information about the 2009 H1N1 virus becomes available, these workplace fact sheets will be updated. Employers and workers should review OSHA's http://www.osha.gov/h1n1 site often to ensure they have the most up-to-date information when making decisions about their operations and planning.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, OSHA's role is to promote safe and healthful working conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, outreach and education. For more information about the agency, visit http://www.osha.gov.

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WASHINGTON - The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) today announced it is issuing $87,430,000 in proposed penalties to BP Products North America Inc. for the company's failure to correct potential hazards faced by employees. The fine is the largest in OSHA's history. The prior largest total penalty, $21 million, was issued in 2005, also against BP.

Safety violations at BP's Texas City, Texas, refinery resulted in a massive explosion — with 15 deaths and 170 people injured – in March of 2005. BP entered into a settlement agreement with OSHA in September of that year, under which the company agreed to corrective actions to eliminate potential hazards similar to those that caused the 2005 tragedy. Today's announcement comes at the conclusion of a six-month inspection by OSHA, designed to evaluate the extent to which BP has complied with its obligations under the 2005 agreement and OSHA standards.

"When BP signed the OSHA settlement from the March 2005 explosion, it agreed to take comprehensive action to protect employees. Instead of living up to that commitment, BP has allowed hundreds of potential hazards to continue unabated," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. "Fifteen people lost their lives as a result of the 2005 tragedy, and 170 others were injured. An $87 million fine won't restore those lives, but we can't let this happen again. Workplace safety is more than a slogan. It's the law. The U.S. Department of Labor will not tolerate the preventable exposure of workers to hazardous conditions."

For noncompliance with the terms of the settlement agreement, the BP Texas City Refinery has been issued 270 "notifications of failure to abate" with fines totaling $56.7 million. Each notification represents a penalty of $7,000 times 30 days, the period that the conditions have remained unabated. OSHA also identified 439 new willful violations for failures to follow industry-accepted controls on the pressure relief safety systems and other process safety management violations with penalties totaling $30.7 million.

"BP was given four years to correct the safety issues identified pursuant to the settlement agreement, yet OSHA has found hundreds of violations of the agreement and hundreds of new violations. BP still has a great deal of work to do to assure the safety and health of the employees who work at this refinery," said acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Jordan Barab.

The BP Texas City Refinery is the third largest refinery in the United States with a refining capacity of 475,000 barrels of crude per day. It is located on a 1,200-acre facility in Texas City, southeast of Houston in Galveston County.

A willful violation exists where an employer has knowledge of a violation and demonstrates either an intentional disregard for the requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act of 1970, or shows plain indifference to employee safety and health. A penalty of up to $70,000 may be assessed for each willful violation.

A notification of failure to abate can be issued if an employer fails to correct a cited condition and the citation is a final order of the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. A penalty of up to $7,000 may be assessed for each day that the violation remains uncorrected.

Under the OSH Act, OSHA's role is to promote safe and healthful working conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, outreach and education. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

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