Tag: PPE

Do Your Employees Know How to Prevent Chemical Exposure?

This is Thanksgiving week and as environment, health, and safety (EHS) professionals, we all want to make sure employees are at home celebrating with their families and not at the hospital, or worse, because of an inadvertent exposure to chemicals on the job. Yesterday we offered three tips for preventing chemical exposure in the workplace […]

Don’t Let the Hazardous Waste Out: 6 Steps for Decontamination at Hazardous Waste Sites

Employees who work at hazardous waste sites are exposed to dangerous substances, some of which may not even be known. Developing a decontamination plan is part of an employer’s responsibility to protect workers from the effects of hazardous substances. Today we will outline the six steps that must be addressed in a decontamination plan, and […]

Recognition of Tank Gauging Hazards Leads to Increased Liability

As late as 2014, workers who died during tank gauging and other activities that involved opening the thieves’ hatch on oilfield tanks were recorded as resulting from “natural causes.” As a result, surviving family members were not eligible for workers’ compensation benefits. A recent court case out of Colorado could change that. Jim Freemyer, a […]

Protecting Oil and Gas Workers: The Latest Recommendations

In December, 2014, OSHA formed an Alliance with NIOSH and the National Service, Transmission, Exploration & Production Safety (STEPS) Network to identify hazards faced by oil and gas workers, and to make protective recommendations. Earlier this year, the Alliance issued a Tank Hazard Alert aggregating its findings on oilfield hazards and possible solutions. Some of […]

Safe Work Practices for Handling Medical Waste

When we think of people who handle medical waste, workers at healthcare facilities generally come to mind. However, there is a whole array of other folks, from transporters to landfill staff, who could also potentially be exposed to medical waste. As we are all aware, no matter what precautions we take, there is always the […]

Strategies for Obliterating Bronchiolitis obliterans

The hazards of diacetyl and related flavorings are increasingly of concern to employers across the food-processing industry. Although there is no federal standard or permissible exposure limit for diacetyl yet, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has weighed in with recommended strategies for controlling worker exposures. If your workers are exposed to […]

Bearded Men, Pregnant Women, and Respirators: What Workers Need to Know

Your workers have completed their medical evaluations and have been fit-tested; they know how to don and doff their respirators, how to keep them clean, and when to replace them. But do your workers know how their personal choices can impact safety when they’re wearing a respirator? Or do they just think they know? Workers […]

For TB or Silica or VOCs, Choose the Right Respirator

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and a number of states and organizations are calling on businesses to take part in efforts to develop, buy, and use greener products. Today we will review some of these efforts. Do you need a particulate respirator, a gas/vapor respirator, or a […]

It’s Preparedness Month! Are you Ready for a Power Outage?

September is National Preparedness Month. This month, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is encouraging businesses and individuals to make a plan for staying safe during different types of emergencies. Today we’ll look at FEMA’s recommendations for facing a power outage. When the power’s out, your business and your workers may face hazards that they […]

Safety and the Small Business: Resources for Small Businesses

Small businesses accounted for more than 60 percent of net new jobs created between 1993 and mid-2013 in the United States. In recent years, very small firms—those in the 20- to 499-employee category—have led job creation. But they face compliance challenges. Here are some resources that can help small businesses play up. The primary challenge […]