OSHA watch

Inspectors ordered to crack down on employers who failed to electronically file

With much confusion surrounding the rule, a little more than a third of workplaces that were required to electronically file their 2016 Form 300A did not file the reports. The agency stopped accepting the 2016 data as of Jan. 1, 2018. In February, compliance officers were instructed to initiate inquiries into whether workplaces had electronically filed their 300A forms for 2016. Failure to file can lead to an other-than-serious citation, with a maximum penalty of $12,934. The agency has six-months from Dec. 15, 2017 to June 15, 2018, to issue citations to those employers who failed to electronically file the required information.

The agency is not requiring electronic OSHA 300 logs or 301 forms now, in anticipation of a new rule. Two types of establishments are expected to continue submitting 300A summary forms electronically: those with 250 or more employees, and those with between 20 and 249 employees in high-hazard industries.The deadline is July 1, 2018.

Enforcement of the Beryllium Standard begins May 11

Enforcement of the final rule on occupational exposure to beryllium in general, construction, and shipyard industries begins on May 11, 2018.

Local governments and emergency services will be notified when a company receives a serious citation

Spurred by a fatal chemical explosion and fire at a New York cosmetic factory, OSHA, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Department of Homeland Security are working on the new protocols for communicating and training with local governments and first responders.

Regional campaign on 'focus four' construction hazards in Region Three

Running from March to June, a campaign to raise awareness of the four leading safety hazards in the construction industry (electrocution, falls, struck-by, and caught-in or caught-between) will take place in Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and Washington. Representatives will conduct toolbox talks on each hazard.

A $1 million settlement for safety violations

Hebron, Ohio-based Sunfield Inc. has agreed to pay $1 million in fines and hire a safety and health coordinator to resolve violations found at the company's Hebron plant. The inspection, which took place after two employees suffered severe injuries when they came in contact with moving machine parts, revealed the company lacked adequate power press guarding and hazardous energy control procedures that could have prevented the incidents.

Standard interpretation related to recording and reporting injuries of temporary workers versus HIPAA requirements

A recent standard interpretation addresses injury and illness recordkeeping requirements pertaining to an employer that supervises temporary workers on a day-to-day basis but has limited access to their medical records when an injury or illness occurs.

New fact sheet for owners and managers on conducting a walk around

The fact sheet urges business owners and managers to personally conduct periodic walk around inspections. It reviews the best way to prepare for an inspection, what to do while onsite, and how to develop an abatement plan.

New bulletins provide information on horizontal drilling hazards and chemically induced hearing loss

"Preventing Hearing Loss Caused by Chemical (Ototoxicity) and Noise Exposure" was published in conjunction with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and provides recommendations to employers and safety professionals about identifying ototoxicants in the workplace and establishing hearing conservation programs where these chemicals are used.

"Avoiding Underground Utilities during Horizontal Directional Drilling Operations" highlights the hazards associated with striking different underground utilities. Horizontal directional drilling has reduced visibility compared to vertical drilling. The bulletin was based on an incident that led to an explosion at a nearby restaurant, resulting in a worker fatality.

Enforcement notes

California

• Alhambra Foundry Co. Ltd. faces $283,390 in proposed fines for workplace safety and health violations following a confined space accident that resulted in the amputation of an employee's legs.
• Petro Chemical Materials Innovation in South Gate faces $72,345 in penalties for failing to de-energize and guard a moving conveyer belt while a worker was cleaning it, resulting in the amputation of the worker's right arm.

Florida

• Jacksonville-based Jax Utilities Management Inc., a utilities contractor, was cited for $271,606 in proposed penalties and deemed a severe violator for exposing employees to trenching hazards. The investigation was launched after an employee was injured and hospitalized when an unprotected trench collapsed.
• Naples-based L.I. Aluminum Design Inc., a pool and patio installer, received four serious citations, and faces proposed penalties of $40,096 after a worker fatally fell.
• Middleburg-based Southeastern Subcontractors Inc. is facing $22,173 in proposed penalties following a heat-related fatality.
• A Texas communications contractor, Tower King II Inc., faces penalties of $12,934 after three workers were killed while trying to install a new antenna on a communications tower in Miami Gardens. The capacity of the rigging attachments was not adequate to support the loads and the workers fell over 1,000 feet.

Georgia

• Jose A. Serrato, a Marietta-based independent roofing contractor, was cited for exposing employees to fall hazards at a worksite in Birmingham and cited with $133,604 in proposed penalties. Mr. Serrato has been cited seven times in the past five years.

Massachusetts

• Luis Guallpa, doing business as Milford-based Guallpa Contracting Corp., faces penalties of $299,324 for exposing workers to fall and other hazards at a Nashua, New Hampshire work site. The company had previously been cited in 2014 and 2015.
• Jet Logistics Inc. (JLI) and New England Life Flight Inc., doing business as Boston MedFlight (BMF), were ordered to reinstate a pilot who lost his job after complaining about safety concerns and possible violations of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) regulations. JLI and BMF must pay the pilot $133,616.09 in back wages and interest; $100,000 in compensatory damages; reasonable attorney fees; and refrain from retaliating against the employee. The employers must also post a notice informing all employees of their whistleblower protections under AIR21.

Nebraska

• An egg processing facility, Michael Foods Inc.'s of Wakefield, faces proposed penalties of $188,464 after an employee was fatally struck by a dock leveler. The proposed penalties relate to lockout/tagout, electrical and arc flash hazards violations.

New York

• Summit Milk Products LLC faces $143,000 in proposed penalties for uncorrected and new hazards. A follow-up inspection was done after the company failed to report how it corrected violations found in an earlier inspection. Again, it was found that employees were not protected from heated milk in excess of 150 degrees and the injuries were not recorded in the 300 log.

Pennsylvania

• Allentown-based Lamm's Machine Inc. faces $14,782 in proposed penalties for exposing employees to hazardous chemical vapors from a degreasing operation in an enclosed space.