Practical EHS Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
As today’s workplace becomes more complex, regulation of that workplace increases. In this section, you’ll find the practical advice you need to understand exactly what OSHA, other federal agencies, and their state counterparts, require of you, and to comply in the ways that best satisfy both your and their needs. Look also for important court decisions, advice on how to handle enforcement actions, and news of upcoming changes in workplace health and safety law.
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Trimac Transportation Inc., operating as National Tank Services, faces $399,349 in Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) fines after two employees suffered injuries from exposure to hydrogen sulfide, the agency announced October 23. OSHA cited the company with nine health violations, including two willful, three repeat, and four serious. The flammable, highly toxic colorless gas […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is busy on several rulemaking fronts, but it’s devoting considerable resources to heat illness prevention, according to OSHA officials speaking at the NSC Safety Congress and Expo in New Orleans this week. Andrew Levinson, director, OSHA Directorate of Standards and Guidance, said OSHA’s regulatory agenda includes an update […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited feed and food processor Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) following the agency’s investigation into an explosion at ADM’s West Plant in Decatur, Illinois, that resulted in the hospitalization of three employees with burns and other injuries and extensive damage to the grain elevator, OSHA announced October 18. The […]
The EPA announced that Jens Schkade of Grand View, Idaho, has agreed to pay an $88,749 penalty over violations of the Clean Air Act (CAA) related to the safe handling and disposal of asbestos. According to the consent decree, on October 5, 2021, Schkade wrecked a commercial building called the Square Deal Store, located at […]
IBC Engineered Materials Inc., a Wilmington, Massachusetts, manufacturer, overexposed employees to airborne concentrations of beryllium, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced October 11. IBC, which does business as IBC Advanced Alloys Inc., was cited for 11 serious violations and 1 other-than-serious violation for the hazardous conditions and faces proposed penalties totaling $69,251. Employees […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) continues to carry out inspections and issue citations to employers that expose workers to hazardous conditions. We’ve summarized some of the key enforcement cases from the past few months for a look at where OSHA is focusing its efforts. National discount retailer fined $1.35 million OSHA entered a […]
In the third quarter (Q3), the EPA finalized 515 settlement agreements with companies small and large across the United States. This represents a significant increase in enforcement actions—up from 260 penalties—issued in Q2 for 2023. The actions taken resulted in $14,629,489 in fines. Here are some of the highlights. RCRA violations yield biggest fine from […]
Pennsylvania candy maker R.M. Palmer Co. failed to evacuate its employees after some reported smelling gas before a March 2023 explosion that killed seven workers at the company’s West Reading facility, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced October 5. The agency has cited R.M. Palmer with three serious and five other-than-serious workplace safety […]
Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su will join American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) President Jim Thornton and New York Governor Kathy Hochul on October 11 to dedicate a memorial in New York City to the 146 garment workers killed in the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire, the ASSP announced September 27. The ASSP was […]
An Augusta, Georgia, battery manufacturer faces $160,727 in Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) fines for exposing employees to unsafe levels of lead, the agency announced September 27. OSHA made its determination based on personal air monitoring of workers and lead accumulation on respirators and counters in areas where workers took their lunch breaks. The […]