OSHA Random Inspection Study Proves Increase in Safety

A new study shows that random safety inspections improve the workplace instead of leading to layoffs and large expenses. The common argument with random inspections has been that the high cost of compliance leads to layoffs and bankruptcy.  According to Science, a top scientific journal, most safety regulators don't inspect companies at random and instead typically focus on those that have accidents or where workers have filed complaints. Afterward, injury rates tend to revert back to whatever they were before the incident occurred, even without an OSHA inspection. Based on these facts, researchers could infer that the inspection played a bigger role in the reduction of injuries than it actually did.

On the other hand, if OSHA finds incomplete records of on-the job accidents and injuries, better record keeping will be enforced and this could bring up more accidents and injuries to be reported.  To provide an unbiased report on whether random inspections are positive or negative, economists David Levine of the University of California, Berkeley, and Matthew Johnson of Boston University studied workplaces that have been inspected between 1996 and 2006. They examined workers compensation claims 4 years before and 4 years after an inspection as well as companies that weren’t inspected in the same time frame.

Based on the study, results show that there was a decline of 9% in injuries reported after the inspection in comparison with companies of the same time frame that were not inspected. The cost of the injuries reported fell by 26%. Investigators also used reports provided by financial data provider Standard & Poor to determine that the random inspections have no effect on employment, total earnings, sales and company longevity.

OSHA estimated that in 2012, they will inspect 41,000 workplaces. The random selection of the company is done in the following order of priority – Imminent danger situations, fatalities and catastrophes, complaints, referrals, follow-ups and planned or programmed investigations.  Be proactive in preparing for random audits with up-to date and accurate reports and hazard communication plans. 

SafetySkills offers online safety training courses to help the employer and employees commit to a safety compliant workplace. The OSHA Reporting and Record Keeping course will provide general awareness level training of  OSHA's general requirements for injury and illness reporting and record keeping, identification of OSHA's definitions relating to its reporting and record keeping regulations, OSHA's required reporting forms, the types of incidents OSHA requires to be reported and, finally, OSHA's record keeping requirements. The Hazard Communication course will cover the hazards of potential chemical exposure, types of hazards, Material Safety Data Sheets, chemical detection methods, how chemical hazards are controlled, and how the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) will affect the HAZCOM standard.

For more information on SafetySkills and the online safety training courses offered, please visit SafetySkills.com

OSHA Proposes New Limits on Silica Exposure

In August 2013, OSHA announced a proposed rule that would lower the worker exposure to crystalline silica. This deadly dust often occurs in common workplace operations such as construction work involving cutting, sawing, drilling and crushing of concrete, brick, rock and stone. Silica can also be found in glass manufacturing and sand blasting. Worker can inhale the dust from particles in the air. Repeat exposure can cause fatal lung diseases including silicosis and lung cancer.

Prior to the new proposed rule, the guidelines of the exposure limit dated to the 1960s. Since then, numerous studies have shown an increase of lung cancer among silica-exposed workers. A 2012 federal study demonstrated that a growing number of workers in the energy industry were increasingly at risk of being exposed to silica dust due the recent domestic oil and gas boom brought on by hydraulic fracturing.  This study also found that hydraulic fracturing workers were exposed to 10 times the current permissible level of silica. The new proposed rule would limit the exposure to crystalline silica to 50 micrograms per cubic meter in the workplace. OSHA is estimating that if adopted as a standard, its proposed rule would save nearly 700 lives and prevent 1,600 new cases of silicosis annually.

Until a final silica standard is issued, there are several OSHA standards that employers are required to comply with that can help protect workers exposed to silica dust.  For example:

• General Safety and Health Provisions Standard (1926.20) addresses the employee’s general right to a safe workplace.
• Gases, Vapors, Fumes, Dusts and Mists Standard (1926.55(a)) lists the airborne levels of substances that would make a workplace hazardous.
• The Ventilation Standard (1926.57) must be consulted for specific requirements about removing silica dust from a worker’s breathing zone.
•  For worker training requirements about silica hazards, the Hazard Communication Standard (1926.59) applies, which is identical to 1910.1200.
• If respirators are required on-the-job, then employers must comply with the OSHA Respiratory Protection Standard (1926.103), which is identical to 1910.134.

SafetySkills online safety training courses can assist you and your company with the proper awareness level safety training. The silica awareness course addresses standard 1926.55 and will demonstrate to the learner the health effects associated with crystalline silica exposure, and measures that can be taken to eliminate or minimize crystalline silica exposure on the job. The hazard communication course assists the employer in meeting OSHA standard 1910.1200 and complies with the December 2015 GHS final implementation. The respiratory protection course covers the general requirements for respiratory protection which is outlined in 29 CFR 1910.132 and some of the training requirements of 29 CFR 1910.134. 

GHS Deadlines and Training Requirements

The December 1^st 2013 deadline for training employees on the revised Hazcom standard is fast approaching. The purpose of the training is to bring companies and employees up to speed with the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). The basic goal of GHS is to ensure the safe use and transportation of chemicals across the globe. This standard will provide a framework of regulations for countries without existing systems, provide added chemical hazard protection for workers and the public, as well as provide an increase of efficiency and cost reduction from compliance with hazard communication regulations.

The two most important changes to the revised standard require the use of new labeling elements and a standard format for Safety Data Sheets (SDS), formerly, Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS). To help roll out these changes, OSHA constructed a phasing in of the specific requirements over the next several years (December 1, 2013 to June 1^st, 2016). The first deadline states that employers must train employees on the new GHS label elements and safety data sheet (SDS) format by Dec 1 2013.  OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard Final Rule Fact Sheet states provides a guideline on what changes need to be address and by when:

 

There are only two months left to train your employees on the new labeling and SDS format. SafetySkills offers GHS online safety training and other courses updated to meet the GHS guidelines. Each course can be completed in a little as 25 minutes. The user can take the course on a time that works for them and at a pace that is suited for them. Courses are usually $29.95 each for individual training, but may be higher or lower depending on title and industry. Reduced rates can apply for organizations.

The course titles include:

Globally Harmonized Systems

Hazard Communication

Hazard Communication for the Oil and Gas Industry

Chemical Safety

Hazmat Marking and Labeling

Safety Data Sheets

These titles are also available in DVD format for $107.99 each. Each DVD comes with an instructor key, printable quizzes and certificates of completion. To place your DVD order, please call us at 888-844-3549. Online courses can be purchased on our website at SafetySkills.com.