Dear Subscriber,

Are you looking to improve your company’s safety performance and gain insight into the latest trends and developments in the EHS field? Are you looking for a professional development opportunity where you can receive individual attention from speakers, network with peers, and return with practical strategies and takeaways to help take your safety program to the next level? If so, consider attending BLR’s 2019 Safety Summit, coming up from April 8–10 in Austin, Texas.

Safety Summit attendees will hear from thought leaders in the EHS field about the latest OSHA enforcement initiatives and trends affecting your organization, new legal considerations and compliance tactics for drug and alcohol testing, the most effective tools and metrics for tracking and improving safety performance, proven management and leadership strategies to promote safety engagement, and much more. Register today.

Injury and Illness Records (OSHA 300)—Cal/OSHA to hold hearing on electronic recordkeeping

Health - General—CDC to track firefighters’ exposures, cancers

Hazard Communication—OSHA outlines FIFRA, HazCom differences

Safety - General—Workers, employers click with NIOSH resources

Hazard Communication—Hazard communication: Successful strategies to avoid one of the most commonly cited violations

Fire Extinguishers—Infographic: 4 compliance options for use of fire extinguishers

Healthcare Safety—NIOSH finds nurses not using PPE with hazardous drugs

Silica (Construction)—OSHA expected to act on silica standard

Webinars

Machine Guarding—Webinar [2018-11]: Machine Guarding and Lockout/Tagout: Simplify and Implement Your OSHA-Compliant Program and Procedures According to OSHA, workers who operate and maintain machinery suffer 18,000 amputations, lacerations, crushing injuries, and abrasions, and over 800 deaths per year because of unguarded or poorly safeguarded machines and equipment. In this on-demand webinar, Attorney Tracy Moon of Fisher Phillips LLP will explain machine guarding and LOTO regulations and how to best comply with applicable requirements to prevent accidents and violations.

Electrical Safety—Webinar [2018-11]: Electrical Safety Hazard Reduction: How to Zap Common Mistakes that Cause Crippling Injuries, Facility Damage, and OSHA Fines NFPA has released the 2018 version of NFPA 70E, Standard for Electrical Safety in the Workplace. In this on-demand webinar, Mark Haskins of Practical Safety Solutions will provide insight into how to implement the latest NFPA 70E specifications to protect employees from electrical shock and arc flash and avoid OSHA citations.

Employee Newsletters—February 2019 Safety Works for Employees—This month's issue includes tips on automobile battery safety, lockout/tagout, shelter in place, and pinch points.

Q: Does OSHA require a shower station or eye wash station to be located by our battery chargers for our PIT equipment? What else do we need to be OSHA compliant in our battery charging area?

Q: How does an employer determine who should be trained and offered the HBV vaccination?

Q: Is it mandatory for employees to sign a declination letter after receiving training on the hepatitis B injection?

Q: What are the Cal/OSHA requirements or limitations of propane and electric forklifts in coating/paint spray booths?

Q: If I have a recordable injury that occurred in 2017 and has carried over into 2018, does that 2017 recordable injury need to be reflected on the 2018 OSHA 300 log?

Q: Is the HAZWOPER training required for staff that operate a water pollution control plant?

Q: Our facilities have ACBM or are PACM. The EPA standard requires an Operations and Maintenance Plan and the person responsible for the Plan must have O & M Training. Can we train or must training be by an accredited or official training facility?

Q: Is a dedicated walking lane required for pedestrians in a warehouse where forklifts are operated? Also, is there a requirement that visitors wear safety vests?

Q: If an employee leaves one facility to work at another facility owned by the same company, does that employee need to be retrained at their new facility like a new employee?

Q: Has OSHA regulated the use of noise-cancelling headphones in the biotech industry? Could they be used in office areas but not in laboratory/production/dangerous areas?

Q: Does OSHA require a Health and Safety policy to be written?

Final Rules

State:

Proposed Rules

State:

02/7/2019—Toxic and Hazardous Substances—Kentucky—Toxic and Hazardous Substances

02/7/2019—Cranes and Derricks (Construction)—Kentucky—Cranes and Derricks in Construction

02/6/2019—Safety Plans—California—Injury and Illness Prevention Program

02/6/2019—Workers' Compensation—North Carolina—Workers Compensation and Tort Claims Rules

02/5/2019—Workers' Compensation—Washington—Medical Aid Rules

02/5/2019—Safety - General—Rhode Island—Boiler and Pressure Vessel Inspection

02/4/2019—Safety Plans—California—Injury and Illness Prevention Program

02/1/2019—Workers' Compensation—Oklahoma—Affidavit of Exempt Status

02/1/2019—Workers' Compensation—Oklahoma—General Provisions

02/1/2019—Workers' Compensation—Oklahoma—Exempt Status Documentation

Guidance Documents

Safety - General—National—Year in Review and What's New in California for 2019: Cal/OSHA Regulations, Enforcement Trends, and More

Ladders (Construction)—National—Portable Ladder Safety [OSHA Quick Card]

Scaffolding (Construction)—National—OSHA Fact Sheet: Narrow Frame Scaffolds

Scaffolding (Construction)—National—OSHA Fact Sheet: Erecting and Using Tube and Coupler Scaffolds

Scaffolding (Construction)—National—OSHA Fact Sheet: Planning and Designing Tube and Coupler Scaffolds

White Papers

Lockout-tagout: Changes on the horizon?—OSHA's most recent regulatory agenda includes two items with the potential to change employers’ lockout/tagout compliance obligations: a request for information about the strengths and limitations of computer-based controls and a Standards Improvement Project rulemaking that could broaden the scope of the standard by removing a single word.

Upcoming Webinars