Bobby Lewis

Preliminary data from 2022 has been reported with fall protection (for the 12th year in a row) being the most cited standard. Ensuring safety and the health of employees happens when employers create and maintain a company-wide environment that starts with training and ends with standards compliance.

It is about about protecting the people. The failure to maintain proper work areas put workers at risk and, in some cases, are fatal. Also, management cannot overlook the financial penalties that accompany citations. OSHA’s highest penalties ranged from $638,000 to $1.3 million in the previous 12 months for companies of different sizes.

Top four most-frequently cited standards in Region 8

1. Fall Protection:  This standard is designed to protect employees on walking/working surfaces with an unprotected side above six feet. 
2. Hazard Communication: This standard addresses chemical hazards and the communication of these hazards to workers.
3. Respiratory Protection: This standard lists requirements for a complete protection program including training, evaluation and other areas of concern.
4. Machine Guarding: This standard protects operators and others from hazards including machinery and flying debris.

Training components and compliance assessments are crucial to safe working conditions. Hellman & Associates can assist you to review training records, conduct interviews and evaluate the work areas. And if you looking for comprehensive annual reviews, ASSUREDCompliance^SM fulfills your ongoing safety needs at a third of the cost of a full-time safety manager. And with ASSUREDCompliance^SM, you can rest assured your workforce and your workplace are in safe, working order – guaranteed. If you incur a citation for something we should have managed, we pay for it.

You need to ask yourself: Are you in compliance with OSHA? How about the EPA, DOT or state and local agencies? H&A offers EHS compliance management services that protect your workforce and keep your company current with regulatory requirements.

Don’t wait for a citation. Contact us today to get started. Check the details on our web site and download an ASSUREDCompliance^SM brochure today.

Hellman & Associates has seen a surge in OSHA regulatory engagement with companies during the past year. When it comes to compliance, Hellman & Associates can be the key to favorable results when facing potential violations. Hellman & Associates helps minimize financial losses when in-house compliance programs come up short.

Examples of Reduced Citations and Fines negotiated by Hellman & Associates:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Even better are the examples demonstrating the benefits when a business takes advantage of Hellman & Associates’ ASSUREDCompliance program.

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more examples of how Hellman & Associates helped companies minimize financial losses when in-house compliance programs came up short, click here and download this solution brief. A comprehensive overview of the ASSUREDCompliance program that has made Hellman & Associates the preferred EHS compliance partner for businesses like yours can be found on this web page.

OSHA has implemented a new regional emphasis program (REP) in Region 8 which will facilitate inspections of all general industry and construction workplaces where the operation of powered industrial vehicles (PIV) or personnel handling motorized equipment occurs. If your company has any type of warehouse, loading or unloading capability, most likely this will affect you.

As with all OSHA programs, the purpose is to reduce injuries and fatalities from the operation of this equipment. This REP includes PIVs ridden or controlled by a walking operator. It also includes mobile power-propelled trucks used to move materials. Golf carts or electric trucks used to transport personnel or ATVs used for grounds crews are included in this REP.

The REP aligns strategically with OSHA’s Agency Management Plan as it concerns the reduction of hazards in the Warehousing and Storage Industry and during the operation of powered industrial trucks (PIT). PIT standard (29 CFR 1910.178) is by far the most cited standard in the Warehousing and Storage industry over the previous three years. This standard is consistently in the top ten cited standards. The number of fatalities with a primary source of injury reported as PIT-related increased by 37% between 2017 and 2019. In 2017 alone, forklifts were involved in 9,050 nonfatal workplace injuries with days away from work. Of these, injuries to pedestrians resulted in the highest median number of days away from work.

Inspections of all General Industry and Construction worksites utilizing PIVs will be expanded to include PIV hazards and equipment. In addition, target inspection lists will be developed for certain industries listed in the emphasis program. Inspections under this program will begin after a 90-day period of outreach.

For a complete list of vehicles, other specs and programs to help your company receive high marks during this REP, contact Bobby Lewis at Hellman & Associates. We can also provide you answers about the program and provide training on OSHA’s PIT standard.

September is Construction Suicide Prevention Month.  According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the construction industry has the second highest rate of suicide in the U.S.  Working in the building and construction trades has become this country’s deadliest occupation. But it isn’t cranes, ladders or broken bones that get to construction workers. They are more likely to die by their own hands rather than be killed in an on-the-job accident. With 53.2 suicides per 100 thousand workers, construction has among the greatest suicide rate of any industry – over four times higher than the national suicide average and five times higher than all construction deaths combined. Work in this industry is a demanding profession. There are tremendous production expectations on the workers in order to fulfill deadlines as well as working circumstances that may frequently be hazardous if rigorous safety rules are not followed. While further study is underway to understand these work-related factors, initial research indicates suicide risk is related with the following:

Low skilled labor

• Lower education
• Access to lethal means
• Job stress
• Poor supervision and colleague support
• Low job control
• Job insecurity

We join other groups which recognize September as a month to raise awareness about the higher-than-average number of suicides in the construction industry and providing resources to help prevent those deaths. Hellman & Associates supports and encourages your company to expand internal resources and recognize National Suicide Prevention Month. H&A can provide assistance for you to raise awareness about the unique challenges workers face in construction leading to suicide and what we can do to prevent it.

 Click here to download OSHA’s Suicide Prevention guide. Resources are also available at the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline (formerly the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline). It provides free and confidential emotional support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress 24/7 in the U.S. The Lifeline is comprised of a national network of over 200 local crisis centers, combining local care and resources with national standards and best practices.

Together, we can save lives. Contact us to learn more about how H&A can help you keep your valuable employees safe on and off the job.

Back in 1985, Glenn Frey sang “The Heat Is On” and that is exactly the forecast! In less than a week, many areas of the country jumped to triple digit temperatures. This type of quick and ongoing temperature change exposes workers to dangerous risks related to heat exposure. And remember, heat stress can happen outdoors as well indoors. Earlier this year, OSHA launched a National Emphasis Program for outdoor (and indoor) heat-related hazards. The purpose is to protect employees from heat-related hazards. They set a targeted enforcement component and want early interventions by employers to prevent illnesses and death during high heat conditions. For reference, OSHA stipulates that a heat priority day occurs with the heat index for the day is expected be 80° degrees or more. Here are some items OSHA will look for during heat-related inspections:

• • OSHA 300 logs and 301 incident reports
  • Records of heat-related ER visits or ambulatory transport
  • Determination if employer has a heat illness and injury program
  • Identifying activities relevant to heat-related hazards

The most effective way to minimize heat-related illness in the work force is to create and execute a plan. H&A has compiled a variety of resources to facilitate effective safety meetings for the heat stress topic including posters, written materials and videos. Click on the links below to download these resources:

• Heat Stress (English)
• Heat Stress (Spanish)

Hellman & Associates’ poster can be printed and place in your workplace. Share it with your employees to help them identify the signs and symptoms of heat stress so they know when to cool down before health risks set in. Download the poster

Contact us to learn more about how we can help you keep your valuable employees safe on the job