Do Variations in State Consultation Programs Affect Construction Fatality Rates?

The Integrated Management Information System (IMIS) is the largest multi-industry source of exposure measurements available in North America. However, many have suspected that the criteria through which worksites are selected for inspection are related to exposure levels. We investigated associations between exposure levels and ancillary variables in IMIS in order to understand the predictors of high exposure within an enforcement context. We analyzed the association between nine variables (reason for inspection, establishment size, total amount of penalty, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) plan, OSHA region, union status, inspection scope, year, and industry) and exposure levels in IMIS using multimodel inference for 77 agents. For each agent, we used two different types of models: (i) logistic models were used for the odds ratio (OR) of exposure being above the threshold limit value (TLV) and (ii) linear models were used for exposure concentrations restricted to detected results to estimate percent increase in exposure level, i.e. relative index of exposure (RIE). Meta-analytic methods were used to combine results for each variable across agents. A total of 511,047 exposure measurements were modeled for logistic models and 299,791 for linear models. Higher exposures were measured during follow-up inspections than planned inspections [meta-OR = 1.61, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.44-1.81; meta-RIE = 1.06, 95% CI: 1.03-1.09]. Lower exposures were observed for measurements collected under state OSHA plans compared to measurements collected under federal OSHA (meta-OR = 0.82, 95% CI: 0.73-0.92; meta-RIE = 0.86, 95% CI: 0.81-0.91). A 'high' total historical amount of penalty relative to none was associated with higher exposures (meta-OR = 1.54, 95% CI: 1.40-1.71; meta-RIE = 1.18, 95% CI: 1.13-1.23). The relationships observed between exposure levels and ancillary variables across a vast majority of agents suggest that certain elements of OSHA's process of selecting worksites for inspection influence the exposure levels that OSHA inspectors encounter. Nonetheless, given the paucity of other sources of exposure data and the lack of a more demonstrably representative data source, our study considers the use of IMIS data for the estimation of exposures in the broader universe of worksites in the USA.

A Little Occupational Audiology for the Clinical Audiologist

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was developed to ensure that every American has a safe and healthy work environment. An important component of OSHA's mission is to develop and promulgate minimum standards for workplace safety, and we recently published, JAVMA fan 15, 1994 through Mar 1, 1994, a series of articles giving practical suggestions for complying with current OSHA standards. However, an equally important part of OSHA's mission is inspection of American workplaces to determine whether those workplaces are complying with safety standards. Few veterinarians know what to expect during an OSHA inspection, nor understand what their rights and responsibilities are. In this article, Ms. Richard, an attorney who specializes in management labor and employment law, outlines what to expect and what to do if your practice is inspected by the OSHA. Please remember that the information in this article is based on the author's best interpretation of current law. However, the law can change, and the accuracy of any interpretation of the law can be challenged by the OSHA. Therefore, information in this article is intended to be only a guideline and is not intended to be, nor should it be construed as, legal advice. Veterinarians are advised to consult with their own attorneys for advice on specific matters. Finally, this information is based on current federal OSHA guidelines. Veterinary practices located in one of the 25 states and territories with OSHA-approved state plans may have to comply with slightly different guidelines.—Kurt J. Matushek, Assistant Editor.

Falls remain the leading killer in the U.S. construction industry. Despite the recurring nature of fall- related fatalities, the construction industry seems to struggle with learning from past incidents. Between 2015 and 2019, over 37% of all construction fatalities (1,902 out of 5,172) were fall-related. This research study aims to analyze Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) investigations of fall-related fatalities in the construction industry during this 5-year period to identify trends and patterns of these fatal occurrences. More than 40% of the fatality investigations conducted by OSHA between 2015 and 2019 involved falls. Of these falls, roofing contractors accounted for over 25% of all fall fatalities, many of which were in the falls from roofs category. This study identified 20 types of work activities that preceded the construction fall fatalities investigated by OSHA. Industry professionals and academia can leverage the "lessons learned" from this paper to develop training programs that reduce the likelihood and severity of falls from height on construction sites.

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Safety in the construction industry has progressed exponentially in the last century. The development of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) may be seen as a major milestone for work place safety. However, the first stages of OSHA were reactive. In the early 2000‘s, companies placed aggressive focus on the application of proactive measures in preventing incidents rather than simply reacting. Risk Assessments, Constructability Reviews, and Hazard Identifications were few of the best practices implemented in this time period. Experts now believe the implementation of a Behavioral Based Safety Program (BBS) is the next revolutionary technique to help decrease injury rates further. Several studies were conducted which exhibit a correlation between effective BBS implementation and OSHA classified recordable injury rates. However, there are no previous studies identifying correlation between BBS implementation versus Near Misses, and BBS implementation versus OSHA classified First Aid Cases. This paper helps identify whether BBS implementation on a typical Petrochemical/refinery construction project impacts the number of Near Misses and First Aid Cases. BBS was implemented on 14 different construction projects within Technip, collecting all BBS and incident data, and applying different analysis techniques to identify existing trends between BBS observations/First Aids Cases/Near Misses. It helps identify whether BBS improves the safety performance on a job site by identifying its impact on injuries, in addition to Near Miss reporting. The paper will assist similar companies with evaluating whether the implementation of a BBS program yields favorable results to the safe performance of their projects.

This book chapter reviews the issues of occupational safety and health administration in the composites industry in three countries, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Malaysia. In the United States, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was established in 1971 under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. It was the Department of United States of Labour agency that enforced the law and standards and responsible for ensuring safe and healthy working conditions and environments for the workers of both genders. In 1802, Sir Robert Peel introduced the first piece of Occupational Safety and Health legislation in the United Kingdom, The Health and Morals of Apprentices Act. The historical aims of OSH have been mostly safety matters, measurement problems, enhancing difficulty between well-being and health, and associated financial costs. In Malaysia, The Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 (OSHA) was developed due to increased concern in enormous movement and transformation from year to year and was well-established in Feb 1994 in Malaysia. For further understanding, this paper discusses Occupational Safety and Health management in those countries. Based on the literature, different countries have different management systems in terms of administration. Besides, this paper also confers about the safety and health legislation that has been practiced in these three countries. The United States was concerned with protecting the workers from hazardous materials and chemicals, improving workplace performance, reducing workplace injuries and death, providing adequate information, and training to all employees especially those who engage in hazardous and dangerous works. In Malaysia, the purpose of the bureau is to encourage employers and workers to practise effective safety and health measures at the geographic point. This paper also proposes the safety and health management of composite industries in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Malaysia. Effective safety will solely be achieved once there is proper management of interaction between technological systems and other people.KeywordsOSH managementLegislationSafetyHealthComposite industry

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was created in the year 1971 with the passage of the Occupational Safety and Health Act on December 29, 1970. Signed into law by President Nixon, OSHA was created to protect the health and safety of American workers from the hazards of their work environments. A significant workplace health hazard, especially in the construction industry, is crystalline silica, or silica dust. Only recently was an official rule on crystalline silica exposure signed into law. The OSH Act was published in the Federal Register on March 25, 2016, issued on June 23, and effective a year later on June 23, 2017. Previous guidelines and standards on proactive measures to reduce the health effects of silica on workers included federal, state and local programs and initiatives. A systematic review of crystalline silica resources was conducted, including the history of crystalline silica as an occupational health hazard, the history of governmental and non-governmental standards and guidelines on silica, and the anticipated physical adjustments that industries, specific companies, and other entities plan to implement for future compliance with the new standards. The economic consequences of implementing the new practices and permissible exposure limits have yet to be measured, and there were conflicting outlooks between the data published by OSHA and the studies released by groups representing the affected industries. In April 2017, the effective date of the new silica rule was delayed by three months to September 23, 2017.

Investigations of fatalities by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) provide the most detailed available information about traumatic workplace deaths that are potentially related to violations of existing safety standards. Comparison of the number of such deaths investigated by OSHA from 1977 to 1986 with the comparable category of deaths reported to the Bureau of Labor Statistics Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses indicates that the overall magnitudes have been roughly similar. The OSHA data contain more information than other sources and are especially valuable for analyses of fatalities at smaller workplaces. The OSHA data show that death rates decline sharply with establishment size; the inverted "U" pattern for lost workday injury rates is absent. Because accident investigations are conducted as part of an administrative system, the OSHA data can be influenced by changes in administrative policies. Changes over time in the percent of fatalities in which violations of OSHA standards were cited have clearly been influenced by changes in OSHA citation policy and thus do not provide a valid measure of the rate of violation-caused deaths. Realization of the epidemiological value of this data source depends upon a commitment from OSHA to maintain consistency in investigating accidents and to improve its data collection methods.

Compilation of this list is the initial step in OSHA's screening process for suspected carcinogens. To compile this list, substances for which there was some evidence of carcinogenicity and potential occupational hazard were drawn from such lists the NIOSH Registry of Toxic Effects of Chemical Substances (RTECS); U.S. Public Health Service, Publication No. 149; EPA's Inventory of Chemical Substances; the

This paper will consider medical surveillance in the context of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued (after rule making) health standards covering approximately 24 toxic substances, and all these standards have included medical surveillance programs. OSHA is not only empowered but compelled by law to require medical surveillance programs for exposed employees. At the same time, a number of major legal/policy issues relating to medical surveillance have been raised at the standards rule-making stage and litigated in court. Among the more significant of these are access to medical records, selection of physician, and medical removals. Many of these issues were involved in OSHA's Lead Standard, issued in 1978 and affirmed in relevant part by the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia in 1980, and in the "medical access" rule, issued in 1980 and upheld by the Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. These two proceedings will be used as a focus for the discussions of medical surveillance programs under the OSHA act.

Chapter 1 - Definitions, Statistics, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration

Construction industry accounts for the largest number of occupational injuries and fatalities every year. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is an organization responsible for regulating and enforcing standards for various occupations to ensure safe working conditions including construction industry. As an OSHA requirement, every construction employer should employ a safety program that involves both training of the employees and frequent site inspections. OSHA has provided an online ‘construction eTool’ as a training tool which also aids in the development of safety inspection procedures. Traditionally, safety inspections are paper based and usually designed to address a specific work area or procedure. The inspection reports did not include any detailed visual data which may increase the cost of maintenance and data mining for problem areas. This project explains the possibility of using Tablet PC’s as tool for performing safety inspections at a construction site to identify occupational hazards. As a part of the project, a Tablet PC application, Hazard Prevention Tool (HPT), is developed that concentrates on the four prime hazard areas, Electrical, Falls, Struck By, and Trenching and Excavation, hazards. The application makes it possible to capture the image of the worksite and marking the problem areas on the image. After each site inspection, a report is generated which includes the worksite image with problem areas marked and possible solutions for each problem area based on the OSHA recommendations. A usability test is also conducted as a part of the project using three sample work sites.

Biological monitoring and standard setting in the USA: a critical appraisal

Regulatory law enforcement bias in the inspection, charging, and sanctioning process has been linked to the characteristics of offenses, the attributes of the regulatory agencies and the corporation, and the political and economic environment. However, the bargaining process of regulatory agencies has been less thoroughly investigated. To fill this gap in the literature, this study investigates whether certain extralegal variables affect the post-inspection bargaining process at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). In particular, since previous studies have focused exclusively on fine reductions, this study examines the full range of bargaining options, including count, charge, and fine reductions. Further, this is one of the first studies to directly examine whether company financial resources impact bargaining at OSHA. Because the data are multilevel data, I use multilevel logistic and linear regressions to examine whether extralegal variables affect the reductions given to facilities in the steel, oil, pulp, and paper industries. Specifically, I test whether facility level variables (unionization and experience with the system), company level variables (financial performance and size) and state level variables (political and economic environment) affect the reductions received by facilities during the post-inspection process at OSHA. Although there was some evidence to support the idea that state political views and system familiarity affect bargaining, the results overall tend to cast doubt on the notion that extralegal variables impact the decision-making process at OSHA. Due to sample limitations, the multilevel models employed here are exploratory, but they suggest that previous studies may have overestimated the effects of extralegal variables.