Beginning February 1, a summary of the total number of job-related injuries and illnesses that occurred last year must be posted. Employers are only required to post the Summary (OSHA Form 300A) - not the OSHA 300 Log - from Feb. 1 to Apr. 30, 2005. The summary must list the total numbers of job-related injuries and illnesses that occurred in 2004 and were logged on the OSHA 300 form. Employment information about annual average number of employees and total hours worked during the calendar year is also required to assists in calculating incidence rates. Companies with no recordable injuries or illnesses in 2004 must post the form with zeros on the total line. All establishment summaries must be certified by a company executive.
The form must be displayed in a common area wherever notices to employees are usually posted. Employers must make a copy of the summary available to employees who move from worksite to worksite, such as construction workers, and employees who do not report to any fixed establishment on a regular basis.
Employers with ten or fewer employees and employers in certain industry groups are normally exempt from federal OSHA injury and illness recordkeeping and posting requirements.
Exempted employers may still be selected by the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics to participate in an annual statistical survey. All employers covered by OSHA need to comply with safety and health standards and must report verbally within eight hours to the nearest OSHA office all accidents that result in one ore more fatalities or in the hospitalization of three or more employees.
New Hispanic Outreach Web Tool
CASQ is a web-based tool to provide a step-by-step guide to identify OSHA requirements and guidance materials for specific workplaces. The Hispanic Outreach Module will assist employers with a Spanish-speaking workforce to learn more about workplace rights and responsibilities.
The module identifies Spanish-language outreach and training resources, and illustrate how to work cooperatively with OSHA. It also provides a list of OSHA's Hispanic/English-as-a-second-language coordinators.
Visitors to the site can use a step-by-step guide to identify OSHA Spanish-language resources on OSHA's website that will help them comply with the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 as well as help them to prevent employee workplace injuries and illnesses. The site also includes OSHA English-Spanish and Spanish-English Dictionaries (with phonetic pronunciation guides) that contain over 2,000 general OSHA and construction safety and health industry terms.
CASQ may be found on OSHA's Compliance Assistance web page, and provides step-by-step guidance on how to identify OSHA requirements and guidance materials that may apply to specific workplaces. It also has a General Industry module for workplaces that are subject to OSHA's general industry standards, including manufacturing, wholesale, and retail establishments. The General Industry module includes a library that lists a collection of forms, fact sheets, publications, OSHA web pages and electronic tools, and sample programs.
$135,000 Penalty for Lockout Tagout and Other Violations
OSHA recently cited Atlantic Detroit Diesel Allison LLC for alleged safety and health violations at its Lodi, NJ site. The company, which services and repairs bus engines and transmissions, faces $135,000 in fines. The agency initiated an investigation in June following a complaint alleging that employees were exposed to diesel fumes and that medical emergencies were not handled properly.
The agency issued citations for two alleged willful violations for the company's failure to regularly inspect hooks and hoist chains, carrying a penalty of $55,000. There were 33 alleged serious violations, including the company's failure to utilize lockout/tagout procedures that prevent inadvertent machine start-ups, failure to properly maintain and service machinery, and failure to properly maintain and use fire extinguishers.
Additional serious citations were issued for deficient hazardous chemical procedures and inadequate medical surveillance for employees exposed to hazardous chemicals. The serious violations have a combined penalty of $80,000
Willful violations are those committed with an intentional disregard or plain indifference to the requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. A serious citation is issued when death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.
New National Response Plan
The National Response Plan divides the government's emergency operations into 15 emergency support functions. HHS is the lead agency for Emergency Support Function Eight (ESF-8) -- public health and medical services. In this role and through the HHS Secretary's Operations Center, the department coordinates all federal resources related to public health and medical services made available to assist state, local and tribal officials during a major disaster or emergency.
"HHS will continue to work closely with all our partners to protect the health of the American public," Secretary Thompson said. "The National Response Plan will help strengthen crucial working relationships between federal, state, local and tribal officials, and the private sector concerned with public health issues during disasters or terrorist attacks."
HHS responsibilities under ESF-8 include coordination of HHS assets such as the Secretary's Emergency Response Teams, the Surgeon General's cadre of deployable health care professionals from the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's public health experts and its Laboratory Response Network, and the Strategic National Stockpile of pharmaceuticals and medical equipment.
During major disasters and emergencies, HHS will also coordinate medical resources from all other federal agencies. This includes the Department of Homeland Security's National Disaster Medical System assets such as the Disaster Medical Assistance Teams; use of the Department of Veterans' Affairs facilities and health care professionals; and the Department of Defense's medical resources.
Are You Sharp?
OSHA's Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP) recognizes small employers who operate an exemplary safety and health management system. Acceptance into SHARP by OSHA is an achievement of status that will single you out among your business peers as a model for worksite safety and health. Upon receiving SHARP recognition, your worksite will be exempt from programmed inspections during the period that your SHARP certification is valid.
Worker Safety and Health Guidelines for Use During National Emergency Incidents Receive OSHA Support
OSHA has announced its support for the Department of Homeland SecurityÆs (DHS) new National Response Plan (NRP). The plan includes a new Worker Safety and Health Annex, which provides guidelines for implementing worker safety and health support functions during national incidents, including acts of terrorism, major natural disasters, or man-made emergencies.
The Annex is designed to provide a consistent high level of protection for all organizations involved in nationally significant events. Proper management of responder safety and health could be beyond any one organization's capabilities due to the vast number of people who are involved in major disasters.
The Worker Safety and Health Annex (WSHA) provides for the coordination of Federal safety and health assets for proactive consideration of all potential hazards, and ensures availability and management of all safety resources needed by responders. Additionally, WSHA shares responder safety-related information and coordinates among Federal agencies, State, local, and tribal governments, and private-sector organizations involved in responses to nationally significant events.
The NRP establishes a unified and standardized approach within the United States for protecting citizens and managing homeland security incidents. As well, the NRP standardizes federal incident response actions by integrating existing and formerly disparate processes and establishes standardized training, organization, and communications procedures through the National Incident Management System (NIMS), and clearly identifies authority and leadership responsibilities.
OSHA Alliance Focuses on Reducing Ergonomic-Related Hazards in Poultry Industry
OSHA has joined forces with the National Chicken Council (NCC) and National Turkey Federation (NTF) to focus on safety and health issues, including reducing ergonomic-related hazards associated with poultry processing.
The Alliance unites NCC and NTF with the agency on efforts to provide information, guidance and access to training resources to ensure the safety and health of workers throughout the industry, with a particular emphasis on reducing and preventing exposure to ergonomic-related hazards.
OSHA noted that both organizations worked with the agency in the development of ergonomics guidelines for poultry processing. By continuing to draw on their combined expertise, positive strides can be made toward ensuring that workers in the poultry industry have a safe and healthy workplace environment.
OSHA and NCC/NTF will work together to develop training and education programs for the poultry industry on ergonomics techniques, program structure, and applications in the poultry industry. Information will then be disseminated in various languages through print and electronic media, including electronic assistance tools and links from the organization's individual websites. OSHA personnel and industry safety and health professionals will share information regarding NCC/NTF best practices or effective approaches, and then publicize it through OSHA or NCC/NTF developed materials, training programs, workshops, seminars and lectures.
The NCC represents the nation's chicken industry and addresses the interests of the industry with Congress and federal agencies. Members include chicken producers/processors, poultry distributors, and allied industry firms. The NTF is a national trade association for all segments of the turkey industry and develops education and information resources for the public and its members. NTF's members include growers, processors, hatchers, breeders, distributors, allied services and state associations.