February 2018 OSHA News

OSHA News for February  2018

John

We survived the cold start to February.  March 5 starts the Construction Safety Council annual conference. I will be doing a Construction Health and Safety Technician (CHST) prep class on March 5 from 8-12. Over 30 have already signed up. I had four students pass the CHST in the last 6 weeks.  Here is the link to register.  I volunteer to teach this and do not get paid. I want to see Chicago have the most CHSTs for any city.

https://myprereg.com/Registration.aspx?key=SAud56LoHLs9n2JYJ8EjBYXULNXTiY4lnatUIbmN83dRYttowi0vtw%3d%3d

This month powerpoint is respirators. The ppt is I am finding this is requested after silica so this is a shorter version. I am seeing grade D breathing air compressors that are oil-less and cost $1600.

Some audit findings for February include: no manual for equipment; wet electric welders; homemade lift material baskets; electrical tape repair on electrical cords; saws that are burning wood; no proof of aerial lift training; silica – no written program, training, medical surveillance, and air sampling; exits blocked; mobile scaffolds – no manuals, over 2 to 1 height to base ratio; missing confined space signs; ergonomics lifting to much; and many more. 

OSHA News. 

1) OSHA’s FY 2019 budget request provides an increase of $6.1 million for 42 new Compliance Safety and Health Officers; and another $5.1 million for 24 Compliance Assistance Specialists and eight Voluntary Protection Programs staff to allow the agency to expand its training, outreach, compliance assistance, and cooperative programs.

2) OSHA budget

FY 2016: $552,787,000

FY 2017: $551,736,000

FY 2018: $543,257,000 Still pending as Labor’s budget has not passed.

3) CAL-OSHA Approves Hotel Housekeeping Injury Standard. It will require. Worksite evaluations for identifying and evaluating housekeeping hazards.

●            Specific Risks Identified – The worksite evaluation must identify and address potential risks to

●            Injury Investigations

●            Corrective Measures

●            Training

●            Recordkeeping

https://www.fisherphillips.com/california-employers-blog/cal-osha-approves-hotel-housekeeping-injury-standard

4) Another OSHA multi-employer case. "The subcontractor was a sole proprietor who derived almost all of his work from the GC."

https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/for-osha-purposes-first-circuit-deems-16872/

5) "Accordingly, this case upholds OSHA’s right to refuse to allow its compliance officers to testify in civil proceedings."

https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/district-court-upholds-osha-s-refusal-48794/

6) There are many online vendors offering OSHA official training. Here is the 10/30 authorized training vendors.

 https://www.osha.gov/dte/outreach/training_providers.html

7) OSHA only has the capacity to inspect every workforce once every 159 years, so the Volks decision rendered the record-keeping rule “virtually unenforceable” without the 2016 rule, David Michaels, the longest-serving assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health, under the Obama administration, and professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health at the Milken Institute School of Public Health at The George Washington University in Washington, testified at a House subcommittee on workforce protections hearing on Tuesday.

http://www.businessinsurance.com/article/20180227/NEWS08/912319496/Former-OSHA-head-criticizes-regulatory-pullbac

8) OSHA requested $549,033,000 and is seeking a change from 2018 funding levels in only five of its ten budget categories: enforcement, federal compliance assistance, training grants, technical support, and executive direction. The agency requested the same amount of money and staff for safety and health standards, whistleblower programs, state programs, state consultation, and safety and health statistics that those areas received in 2018

https://safety.blr.com/workplace-safety-news/safety-administration/OSHA-Occupational-Safety-and-Health-Administration/OSHA-budget-seeks-more-enforcement-funding-cuts-tr/

9) "After OSHA had left, the company owner found the officer’s credential card left behind and discovered that the card had expired several weeks earlier."

https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/an-osha-officer-with-expired-31428/

10) OSHA and Waubonsee College have an OSHA day in Sugar Grove on March 14. I cannot make it this year. It offers many great speakers.

http://www.kendallcountynow.com/2018/02/20/waubonsee-planning-osha-safety-day/azhce0g/

11) OSHA budget request eliminates training grants.

https://www.constructionequipment.com/osha-budget-request-eliminates-training-grants

12) OSHA data shows 23 construction workers were killed in trench collapses in 2016, exceeding the combined total from 2014 and 2015.

http://www.safetyandhealthmagazine.com/articles/16730-alarming-rise-in-trench-worker-deaths-prompts-hazard-alert

Other Major News Stories.

1) Three dead at Manitowoc. Not any details.

http://www.echo-pilot.com/news/20180206/crane-accident-at-manitowoc-claims-two-lives

OSHA Citations this month

1)  $256,088 GA Fall Protection, Confined Space. Colorant Manufacturer.

2)  $101,800 AL Combustible Dust, 10 Serious. Pressure Vessel mfr.

3)  $74,833 AL Amputation pipe winding machine. Pipe mfr.

4) $195,144 AL Fatality in plastic recycling machine. Recycler.

5)  $281,286 IL Falls. Residential Roofer.

6)  $40,096 FL Fatal fall. Pool Mfr and installer.

Safety Training at Non-Profits

CHST Prep and CSC annual show                            Mar 5 Drury Lane

OSHA 500 CSC                                                             Mar 5-8

OSHA 7205 Health Hazards CSC                              Mar 14

OSHA 511 NSC                                                            Mar 20-23

OSHA 510 NSC                                                            Mar 26-29

NIU is Northern Illinois University OSHA Education Center http://www.nsec.niu.edu/nsec/

CSC is the Construction Safety Council in Hillside. Www.Buildsafe.org

WDCC is the Western Dupage Chamber of Commerce http://www.westerndupagechamber.com/

TRMA is Three Rivers Manufacturers Association   www.trma.org

 NSC is National Safety Council https://www.greatlakesosha.org/sites/national-safety-council/

I usually teach only part of the 30 hour and the 500 series. I have been teaching many 10.30 hour class for private companies.  I have taught 994 people this year. I teach evenings, weekends, early mornings too      

All presentations are put on slideshare.net for free downloading. I put this presentation at this link. https://www.slideshare.net/johnanewquist/respirators-2018

I use your feedback to make changes to make corrections.