Patrick Kapust, of OSHA announced the top ten violations at this year’s National Safety Council’s Congress and Expo. The list tends to be similar from year to year with the top few moving positions, Fall Protection made it to number one this year. EHS Today listed the top ten and the number of violations as stated below:
An article titled “Improving Relationships” by Kyle W. Morrison in Safety + Health magazine examines the relationship between OSHA Region 9 and federal OSHA, as well as other states. OSHA Region 9 is made up of Hawaii, California, Nevada and Arizona; these states operate their own occupational safety programs. However, following a series of workplace deaths in Nevada, OSHA reported serious problems with the state’s program. A federal review of all state plans was then performed. The results were concerning and prompted working together with other states and federal OSHA to improve workplace safety.
Primary metal industries are now following OSHA’s new National Emphasis Program (NEP) which protects workers from hazardous exposures. Inspectors are now visiting plants that manufacture primary metals and metal products. Their main job is to ensure that there has been a reduction or elimination of metal exposures. The NEP also looks for chemical and physical hazards, such as noise and heat. An OSHA administrator, Dr. David Michaels states that “OSHA’s new enforcement program will raise awareness of the dangers of exposure to metal and other chemicals, so that employers can correct hazards and comply with OSHA standards”.
Previous OSHA inspections in the metals industry have revealed that employees are exposed to metal dust, fumes, lead and silica, carbon monoxide, among others on a daily basis. OSHA was worried about the frequency and seriousness of these issues. Exposures to these substances may cause damage to the eyes, nose, throat, skin as well as difficulty in breathing, chest pain and joint pain. Over exposures to these substances could also lead to death.
The Department of Health statistics from one state addresses that primary metal industries account for 26% of elevated blood lead levels. At least one worker had a blood lead level of 30ug/100g or greater in 2005. Previous inspections of metal facilities have resulted in citations for overexposures to a wide variety of health hazards including chemical exposures as well as physical stressors such as noise and heat. SlipNOT® Metal Safety Flooring makes sure that they meet OSHA’s standards so their employees will not suffer any damage. For more information on SlipNOT® please contact us at (313) 923-0400 or info@slipnot.com.
Walter, Laura. “OSHA Establishes New NEP for Primary Metal Industries”. EHS Today. June 3, 2011. http://ehstoday.com/standards/osha/osha-establishes-nep-primary-metal-industries-0603/
