June 30th, 2010 at 9:15 am
Dr. David Michaels (Assistant Secretary of Labor for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration) recently stated that he wants to push for Criminal Penalties in cases of employer negligence of employee safety. Given the context of the quote, it is inferred that he wishes for ‘the powers that be’ at BP to face charges.
“It’s an unfortunate fact that monetary penalties just aren’t enough. We believe that nothing focuses the mind like the threat of doing time in prison, which is why we need criminal penalties for employers who are determined to gamble with their workers’ lives and consider it merely a cost of doing business when a worker dies on the job.”
- Dr. David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of Labor (OSHA)
We want to know what you think, given the information we have at this point, do you feel somebody at BP needs to face Criminal Penalties?
Sound off in the comments section or by sending us an email, info@safetyservicescompany.com
Source : OHSOnline.com
June 22nd, 2010 at 11:49 am
The requests for topics on Oil Cleanup Safety materials have been overwhelming since the BP Disaster. We thought it would be helpful to provide a basic overview of oil cleanup safety, where to get started and what the requirements are.
First off, it’s important to remember that the gulf oil cleanup is a massive coordinated effort that cannot possibly be perfect. In addition to the dangers of exposure to crude oil, chemical additives, dispersants and cleaning chemicals, workers are forced to deal with all the standard job-site hazards such as sharp objects, falls, drowning, wildlife and heat exhaustion in the dizzying gulf summer. We do know that OSHA is taking this seriously, however. Some quick facts provided by OSHA :
- OSHA Currently has more than 2,000 federal employees overseeing the efforts of 25,000 workers and 5,000+ boats.
- OSHA is working with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH ) and the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) to ensure that appropriate training is provided to workers that BP is hiring to help cleanup the oil. Emphasis is placed on ensuring workers were trained in a language and vocabulary they understand. OSHA, along with NIEHS, continues to monitor this program. In response to recently received information, OSHA is in the process of increasing the training requirement for crews on vessels engaged in offshore oil recovery
- OSHA personnel were deployed to the Gulf the week of April 26th. Since then OSHA personnel have been deployed to all 17 staging areas in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida. OSHA staff is on the ground monitoring worker safety and health and assessing whether BP is providing appropriate worker safety and health protections. In coordination with the U.S. Coast Guard, OSHA staff also board near-shore vessels doing booming, skimming operations, and in situ burning operations, and are stationed on offshore vessels for longer periods.
- Every day OSHA has over 146 professionals protecting workers throughout the Gulf Region, 25 of whom are assigned solely to the Oil Response Clean up. OSHA staff is in the field and on boats to make sure BP is protecting cleanup workers from health and safety hazards. In addition, OSHA’s Health Response Team (from Salt Lake City) arrived in Louisiana on May 6th to provide technical support (for worker exposure monitoring) to OSHA response site personnel.
- OSHA staff have made over 1000 site visits, covering the vessels of opportunity, staging areas, decontamination, distribution, and deployment sites.
- When OSHA finds safety problems on site visits or learns about them from workers, it brings them to the attention of BP and makes sure they are corrected. OSHA also raises its concerns through the Unified Command so they are addressed across the entire response area. OSHA is ensuring that workers are provided, free of charge, appropriate personal protective equipment such as boots, gloves and other protective equipment as needed.
If you would like to get involved with oil spill cleanup, or have lost your employment due to the oil spill, we highly recommend visiting the CareerOneStop website, which is a great comprehensive resource and sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor. Access by clicking the links below :
OSHA’s golden rule : Your employer is responsible for training you in the hazards of your job in a language that you understand BEFORE YOU BEGIN WORK. They are responsible for determining the amount and length of training based on your job duties and hazards.
OSHA’s basic training fact sheet states :
- If you are doing work that does NOT involve materials contaminated by the spill, you must receive a 1.5 hour training session
- If you ARE doing work cleaning up anything contaminated by the spill, you must receive a minimum of 4 hours of training which are supervised by people with more than 40 hours of Hazardous Operations training.
- The company or contractor you work for is also responsible for establishing safe work practices and giving you the personal protective equipment you need to do your job safely.
- They are also responsible for developing a health and safety site plan and sharing it with you. The plan should have information about all the job site hazards and requirements for working safely.
Resources and Links :
We’d like to hear your thoughts and opinions! Please share with us via email or by submitting a comment on the blog.
You must be trained on the hazards of your job in a language that you understand. You must be
trained before you begin oil spill response and clean-up work. Your employer must determine the type
and length of training you will need. Training is based on your job duties and the job’s hazards.
February 1st, 2010 at 9:25 am
Julie Tisdale-Pardi from the NIOSH Science Blog contacted us to bring attention to a recent blog post titled “The Effectiveness of Workplace Training“, which outlines some of the work they’ve been putting in recently to help companies justify the cost of workplace safety training.
From the article :
This report shows that investment in training results in positive changes in worker knowledge and skills, attitudes, and behavior. These results are encouraging given that a primary purpose for workplace training is to impart new skills/behaviors that are transferred into the workplace. However, this research revealed that training as a lone intervention has not been demonstrated to have an impact on reducing injuries or symptoms. The fact that the study did not show an effect of training on health outcomes was, in part, an indication that training alone is not sufficient to result in reduced morbidity, mortality, or injury. For training to be effective in preventing occupational injuries and illness, it also requires management commitment and investment and worker involvement in a comprehensive hazard identification and risk management program.
– Carol Merry Stephenson, Ph.D.
The article can be found here, and is an excellent read. Thanks Julie!
October 30th, 2009 at 2:07 pm
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.”
Read More…
August 20th, 2009 at 4:44 pm
For the 2nd year in a row we are happy to announce that we have once again ranked among america’s 5000 fastest growing private companies, according to Inc. magazine. For those who don’t know, here is some basic information about our company.
Safety Services Company was founded in 2003 by President/CEO Devon Dickinson, operating out of Yuma, Arizona. Devon continues to hold an active role and provides the driving force behind our immense success.
“When we started in 2004, we had only 11 employees. Our annual revenue in 2005 was $2.4 Million, growing 272% in just 3 years, finishing out the 2008 year with a Gross Revenue of $8 Million. Our company has continued to see success even throughout an economic recession, which has hit the construction and manufacturing industries particularly hard.”
You can read more about our products and services by going to our website, www.safetyservicescompany.com
Through a commitment to a safe workplace, progressive safety culture, and some hard work – we believe that every company can be not only 100% compliant, but 100% safe.
Devon Dickinson – President/CEO
Safety Services Company
Related Links :
June 11th, 2009 at 11:30 am
The June 18 meeting of the Cal/OSH Standards Board in Oakland will include an emergency proposal on heat illness prevention that seeks to bring “more specificity and enforceability” to General Industry Safety Orders §3395.
The proposed amendments will, according to the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR):
- Clarify the provisions on when and how to provide shade, drinking water and employee training;
- Add tiered procedures to be followed when temperatures are above 85F and 95F;
- Add related requirements to implement “feasible and effective” measures for protecting employees working outdoors;
- Eliminate the definition of the “preventative recovery period.”
DIR says the board meeting will give the public an opportunity to comment on the emergency proposal. The board is expected to vote on the proposal at the same meeting.
Source : Cal-OSHA Reporter
June 10th, 2009 at 6:19 am
An april release from the OSHA quick-takes shows another great example of the dangers of trench collapses. In this example – OSHA claims that just minutes after an OSHA officer stopped work on an 8 foot trench, it collapsed. This collapse was particularly mind-blowing, due to an unnamed employee arguing with the OSHA officer literally 3 seconds before the trench collapses. A video transcript :
OSHA Officer : “This is a good demonstration as to why you’re not supposed to be down there without caving protection…”
Employee : “I understand that, but when we also would’ve seen any type of movement, we would have been out of there and been able to excavate it out before it happened….and I know it’s a…a “what-if” on both ends…”
**3 Seconds Elapses…**
**Trench Collapses**
OSHA Officer : “I mean I wouldn’t wanna be down in there when that happens…and it’s hard to judge when those things happen.”
You can see the fissure on the left side of the trench, about 0.5″-1″ wide which gradually grows during the course of the video. While this particular example seems underwhelming, keep in mind that this trench is approximately 8 feet deep, Earth falling on you from above is never a good thing no matter what quantity.
To raise awareness and prevent accidents like this, OSHA provides specific information on Trench and Excavation in their usual format, laid out to answer any questions you have regarding this.
- What OSHA standards apply to trenching and excavation?
- What information is available to the construction industry regarding trenching and excavation?
- What are the potential hazards and possible solutions associated with trenching and excavation?
- What additional information is available regarding trenching and excavation?
Additionally, OSHA Directive CPL 02-00-069 [CPL 2.69], (1985, September 19). Establishes a National Emphasis Program (NEP) for the programmed safety inspection of trenching and excavation operations.
A video of the incident can be seen by clicking here.
May 15th, 2009 at 11:04 am
We recently have been going through some restructuring and refocusing, and as part of it, we want to know if you have any needs, questions, suggestions, ideas, or complaints!
Our goal is to provide you guys with safety information to help you supplement your existing program and keep you updated on the current regulations to keep you out of trouble. Recently we have been trying to make sure we have diverse topics, informing updates, and valuable tools to keep your jobsite/workplace safe, but if you have any suggestions on how we can better do that, we definitely want to know.
If so, you can email us – info@safetyservicescompany.com
OR
Leave a comment below!
March 21st, 2009 at 1:15 am
New York City Buildings Commissioner Robert Limandri is now blaming workers for the cause of the March Crane Collapse in New York. Limandri was quoted saying that the workers did not follow the proper safety procedures or equipment guidelines, causing the crane to collapse.
“And what now happens is that they notify us. We show up and we actually make sure that all the new rules being put into place are being followed.”, Said Limandri.
For More info and Updates, see the New York Public Radio Website.
March 20th, 2009 at 12:59 am
The latest in mainstream safety news is that 28 year-old Anthony Paino, while working on a 10 story hotel undergoing construction, was not wearing a harness while working on the Gansevoort Hotel, and fell 10 stories to his death, on the top of an adjacent building. Paino was working for a steel
Anthony Paino and Fiance'
subcontractor by the name of L.M.C. Specialties, working under Levine Builders, General Contractor. Other employees had confirmed that Paino was not wearing the safety harness used to prevent falls of this nature.
What will surprise most is that there is actually an on-site Safety Manager, who worked for Total Safety Consulting, who was present at the hotel during the accident. Steve Solomon, a spokesman for Levine Builders, was quoted saying, “We strongly believe that all of the safety precautions were taken on this job.”
The New York Department of Buildings issued eight Environmental Control Board issues as follows :
- Failure to provide adequate guardrails on the seventh, ninth, tenth floors
- Failure to provide horizontal safety netting on the seventh floor
- Failure to safeguard the public and property
- Failure to provide overhead protection on the third-floor setback
- Failure to provide overhead protection on the fourth-floor setback
- Failure to provide protection near holes throughout the job site
- Smoking refuse
- Obstructed standpipe and stairwell
The Department of Buildings has also issued a stop-work order on the Hotel until further Notice.
Our hearts and prayers go out to the family and friends of Anthony. Unfortunately these accidents are all too common, even more unfortunately, they are almost always preventable, with vigilant focus on safety, and following the required safety guidelines. Our hope is that Anthony’s accident will inspire others to pay attention and always operate safely no matter what the conditions or circumstances.
