OSHA Focus

I was on vacation last week, so I was unable to attend the AGC Safety & Health Committee meeting in Washington, DC. But, a friend and fellow committee member gave me a brief update on some of the more interesting points.

On the 23rd, Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor Jordan Barab (apparently soon to be replaced by Dr. Michaels), addressed the group. Barab indicated that OSHA will be making a major effort on enforcement (no surprises there). Then, Noah Connell, Deputy Director of Construction for OSHA reiterated OSHA's belief in the importance of the Focus Four and the Focus Four training efforts that most of us have been putting forth over the past several years.

My colleague reported that his interpretation of the remarks indicate that OSHA will be taking a "Zero Tolerance" approach to Fall Protection violations. So, if you haven't gotten the message yet, you had better get on board soon. Falls protection is one of the most serious concerns with which we deal in the construction industry. And, fall hazards will be cited as heavily as they are able.

There was also talk of increasing the penalties within the current cap; and, talk of raising the cap. Sounds like OSHA will be much less tolerant of poor players in the construction industry. Although that sounds ominous, it will give those of us who do comply a competitive edge over the slackers who give the construction industry a bad name in the safety arena.

He also reported that there was specific mention of Texas and Housing Construction and more, as Hilda Solis referred to them, SWAT Teams - or, as we referred to them in Florida - "Blitzes."

Obama's Pick for New OSHA Leader

According to the NY Times, President Obama has nominated epidemiologist David Michaels to take the top spot at OSHA (Assistant Secretary of Labor). Dr. Michaels is a professor at the School of Public Health at George Washington University and has served in the Clinton White House.

The appointment won't be official until confirmed by the Senate.

Construction Safety Training Requirements

One of the most difficult problems that I run into on a construction site is the lack of adequate training on the part of the subcontractors. Every day, I see workers tied off, but not properly. In a few minutes, it becomes obvious that those workers had received little or no training. Often, the subcontractor is oblivious to the fact that he has to provide training.

And it's not just fall protection. It's scaffold erection, forklift use, excavation and trenching, etc. So, in an effort to "educate" our subcontractors, I pulled out all of the references to training that appear in OSHA's 29 CFR 1926 and put them into one 78 page booklet. My intention is to get this booklet into the hands of our subcontractors. I'll keep a copy handy for myself too - it'll serve as a great reference tool.

If you would like to get one (or more) for yourself, click here for information. It's available in print format for $10, or for download for $6.25.

And, if you own a SONY e-reader or an Amazon Kindle, you can get it in e-book format for $6.00 - just click here.

USF OTI Education Center has moved

If you are an Outreach Trainer serviced by the University of South Florida's Outreach Training Center (USF OTI), it is very important that you make note of their new location:

Phone: (813) 994-1195
Fax: (813) 994-1173
Address: 2612 Cypress Ridge Blvd., Suite 101
Wesley Chapel, Florida 33544

E-mail addresses remain the same!

Visit www.usfoticenter.org for information on USF OTI

Safety = Competive Edge

BLR reports that Michael Coleman, leader of the ASSE Manufacturer's Practice Specialty group and Safety Manager for Rockline Industries, "noted in a recent address that sustained competitive edge is tied to not cutting safety and health programs during a down economy."

"Coleman told fellow safety professionals that if companies believe they will save money by reducing or ignoring safety, they are mistaken. "Not only does their bottom line benefit positively," he said, "but their company reputation stays intact, employees stay safe and healthy…." The results include savings on health care, workers' compensation, training, and turnover costs."

How many of us know a fellow safety professional who has lost his job at one time or another because times got tough and poorly advised employers cut the safety guy first. Or maybe you have been on the receiving end of that scenario.

I listened to a group of top CEO's address the ASSE PDC last week and each of them echoed Coleman's thoughts.

To read the entire article from BLR, click here.

Chocolate Kills

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that a worker was killed when he fell into a vat of chocolate on Wednesday. Although the article doesn't say what caused the fall, or what protections should have been in place, they do say that a similar accident occurred in 2002 at a different chocolate processing plant.

And yes, OSHA is investigating this incident. To read the whole story, click here.

New OSHA Focus on Enforcement

I was privileged to attend Safety 2009 - this year's ASSE PDC - in San Antonio. As always, a great event. In a previous blog entry, you may have watched a portion of the new Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis' speech delivered at that event. I was there. What you didn't hear was Solis tell us that Texas has taken the lead from Florida in construction workplace fatalities. What you didn't hear was Solis tell the crowded room of safety professionals her intention to send OSHA "SWAT Teams" into Texas beginning this month to correct the problem.

I spent twelve years dealing with the construction workplace safety issues in Florida when OSHA denied the use of "Blitz teams" in that state - they called it "saturation" then. But, they were "Blitz teams." Groups of OSHA compliance officers from outside the state descended upon a county with the charge of driving by as many construction sites as possible and stopping to inspect should they find something that was not safe. If your site was easily visible (like on a major roadway, or with a tower crane high in the air), your site was at risk of a visit. One year, a "saturation" team hit five of my projects in five days.

The interesting thing about those visits, is that the teams drove by many small projects with many more uncorrected hazards, to get to our larger sites. I know about the smaller projects because I drove by them too. Interestingly, we received only one citation in those five visits, and that was vacated. The "Blitz teams" left a very bad taste in our mouths. The OSHA compliance officers from our area office were not allowed to visit our "touristy" area during the season because accomodations were too expensive. But a five person "blitz team" could spend a week there during the season.

Interestingly, Florida's fatality numbers in construction were largely due to the fact that a huge amount of construction work occurred in Florida. Since the bottom fell out of that market, Texas has a larger amount of work than Florida. Instead of looking at the raw numbers, OSHA should look at the numbers in comparison to the number of manhours worked. They might see that the death/injury rate is not that different in Texas (and in Florida before) than in many other parts of the country.

Anyway, in Texas, OSHA is not dancing around the issue this time and calls this new initiative "SWAT Teams." Fortunately for me (yeah, I'm now in Texas) my company has good superintendents who pay close attention to jobsite safety and are backed by management commitment to safety. For those who haven't yet found that safety is important - watch out! You're in for an education.

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