Top 10 OSHA List of Most Cited Workplace Violations for 2012

December 19th, 2012. By AbiK

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently announced a preliminary list of the top 10 most frequently cited workplace safety violations for 2012 (needless to say, as 2012 isn’t quite over yet, the list isn’t completely final, but it’s surely close).

OSHA’s top 10 most frequently cited workplace safety violations for 2012 are as follows:

1. Fall Protection – 7,250 total violations – this includes failure to protect open sides and edges, failure to prevent falls from a roof, failure to cover holes or excavation areas such as a  well, pit, shaft, or similar excavation of 6 feet or more in depth. Proper guardrail systems, fences, barricades, or covers should be in place.

2. Hazard Communication – 4,696 total violations – this relates to the failure to provide adequate education and training programs, signage, labels on containers of hazardous materials, and safety data information.

3. Scaffolding – 3,814 total violations – Scaffolding topped OSHA’s list in 2011, but still remains high up on the list in 2012. Violations involving scaffolding pertain to scaffold construction, and use of protective guardrails, safety nets or other safety precautions, and violations pertaining to proper access to scaffolding.

4. Respiratory Protection – 2,371 total violations – respiratory protection violations include unsuitable respirators–either due to sizing/fit or inadequate function, and lack of procedures or training for how to use respirators.

5. Ladders – 2,310 total violations – this includes improper use of ladders (e.g., standing on the top step), use of an improper ladder for a particular job and allowing excessive loads on ladders.

6. Machine Guarding – 2,097 total violations  – this includes improper placement or inadequate anchoring for fixed machinery, or improper and unsafe exposures at the point-of-operation (e.g., unsafe exposure to machine blades)

7. Powered Industrial Trucks – 1,993 total violations – violations here include lack of proper repair and upkeep of vehicles to ensure safety; lack of proper training for operators–or refresher training as needed/required.

8. Electrical Wiring – 1,744 total violations – this includes everything from improper use of extension cords to use of temporary wiring instead of permanent wiring.

9. Lockout/Tagout – 1,572 total violations – this one was number five on OSHA’s list for 2011; it includes violations that occur due to lack of training and inspections for the servicing and maintenance of machines and equipment in which the unexpected start up of the machines or equipment, or release of stored energy, could harm employees.

10. Electrical (General) –  1,332 total violations – general electrical violations include instances of electrical shock or electrocution.

Restaurant, Phone Book Settle After Carcass Removal Screw Up

December 17th, 2012. By AbiK

How well do you think your restaurant business would be doing if your phone book listing was tucked under the “Animal Carcass Removal” section in the local yellow pages?

Well, that’s just what this negligence lawsuit in Montana was about.

According to an AP report, a restaurant—Bar 3 Bar-B-Q—which has locations in Bozeman and Belgrade MT (and its own BBQ sauce, see left), was listed under “Animal Carcass Removal” in the yellow pages there. Now, forget about the simple fact that anyone looking under “Restaurants” would simply not see Bar 3 Bar-B-Q listed—that’s only half the issue. What about the people who actually notice the restaurant listed right along with other dead animal removal services?

That raises a whole bunch of questions not the least of which is…what exactly would a restaurant do with those dead animals? Re-purposed roadkill could, imaginably, help defray increasing food costs and give new meaning to “local beef”—though one can only think it would be a matter of time before something else that’s local—the health department—would have something to say about it.

Clearly, someone messed up and Hunter Lacey, who owns Bar 3 Bar-B-Q, was none too pleased. A late-night Jay Leno crack about it didn’t exactly help either—what was a local beef (pun intended) suddenly became a nationally known joke. It also didn’t help that the listing was not only originally printed in the 2009 phone book (when all this began) but that it was subsequently picked up in other phone directories in 2010 and 2011. Ouch.

So Lacey filed a negligence, defamation and slander lawsuit against the phone book company, Dex Media, Inc. And the two (Dex and Bar 3’s parent company, Big Sky Beverage) have finally settled.

According to AP, Dex had said that the listing was erroneous and that they removed the listed upon its discovery. Terms of the settlement have not been disclosed, but reports indicate that it would include a payment to the restaurant owner.

Asbestos News Roundup: 12.13.12 – Home Renovation Asbestos Risk

December 13th, 2012. By LucyC

This week’s asbestos news roundup includes all the recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of. An ongoing list of reported asbestos hot spots in the US from the Asbestos News Roundup archive appears on our asbestos map.

Do-It-Yourself Home Renovation and Asbestos Exposure Risk

With Christmas just around the corner, many people may be considering the gift of a home renovation—large or small— and putting those brand new power tools that arrived as Christmas presents, to good use.

But before you go smashing through walls and ripping out old insulation, piping and wiring—do your homework. Dangers may lurk within the walls, ceilings or floors of your home is older, chances are it contains asbestos.

For example, asbestos siding was commonly used in construction years ago, making older homes a danger zone for asbestos mesothelioma. Like flooring, siding material was covered by asbestos to make it more durable and fire retardant. When these materials are disturbed—ripped off or torn out for example, they release asbestos fibers into the air, which people in immediate proximity then breathe in.

Equally important, when considering renovations, is hiring a reputable contractor who has the appropriate qualifications and licensing to remove asbestos.

Asbestos Settlements

Erie, PA: The family of a former employee at the GM Powertrain facility in the town of Tonawanda, who subsequently died of asbestos disease, has been awarded $3 million by the jury hearing the case.

Gerald Suttner, formerly of Tonawanda, worked at the GM facility repairing vales manufactured by Crane Co. The job involved removing asbestos gaskets, which created asbestos dust Suttner would have inhaled. He did this for 36 years, from 1964 to 1979, when he retired.

Diagnosed in October 2010, Mr. Suttner died just one year later, from pleural mesothelioma, a form of cancer that is caused by asbestos. He was 77.

During the trial, lawyers for the Suttner family called expert witnesses who testified that there is no such thing as safe asbestos exposure and assured the jury that Suttner’s exposure is what led to his diagnosis. The dangers of asbestos have been known since the early 1900s, and they lawyers made the case that Crane was aware of these dangers since the 1930s. “But the company continued to use asbestos well into the late 1980s without placing warnings on its products,” the law firm’s statement reads.

During his retirement, Suttner helped his wife, Joann, care for their disabled daughter, and served as a volunteer for the Shriners Hospital in Erie, PA, driving children to and from the hospital. (tonawandanews.com)

New York, NY: A $4,401,000 verdict has been rendered in an asbestos lawsuit against Ford and Sud Chemie (Southern Talc) in favor of a deceased asbestos mesothelioma victim.

According to media reports, Southern Talc sold talc to Johns Manville for use in Mansville’s asphalt roofing plant. In his lawsuit, the plaintiff alleged that the talc contained asbestos, and it was his exposure to this product that caused him to develop asbestos mesothelioma.(mesotheliomalegalblog.com)

Worst Toy List: Inflatable Bongo Ball A Potentially Bumpy Ride

December 11th, 2012. By AbiK

A huge inflatable ball that you can climb into by any other name—e.g.,  Bongo Ball, Giga Ball, GBOP Ball, Human Hamster Ball—whatever—is still a huge inflatable ball that you can crawl into and roll around in. Some even let you bounce around in them, bumping into things (and other people) as you play. It gives new, and literal, meaning to “living in a bubble” for sure—but does it afford the same protection that the saying implies? Uhh, probably not.

And definitely not according to consumer watchdog group World Against Toys Causing Harm (WATCH). WATCH has put the Bongo Ball, available at Toys R Us, on its 10 Worst Toys list for 2012.

Recently we posted about a study in which bounce houses—another inflatable fave for bouncy good fun—were found to be the cause of injury requiring medical attention in what amounts to 30 children a day! A number of those injuries were the result of a child somehow jumping out of the bounce house and landing on a hard surface. At least they weren’t encased in the inflatable and it didn’t land on top of them in the process.

But, as WATCH indicates in its report, when you’re in a big inflatable ball, you’re pretty much encased (see pic above) and your movements—some of which could be necessary to help protect yourself, say in a fall—could be restricted, potentially leading to an impact injury. It’s not hard to imagine—think about falling accidentally on a concrete patio in that thing. Makes you wonder what might be worse—the potential for a whiplash type injury or your head banging against the concrete. Neither option sounds great.

If the comments over at the Toys R Us website where the Bongo Ball is sold are any help, the possibility of one or more of the air chambers deflating or losing air can also add to the risk for injury; the “pillow” you thought you were landing on suddenly isn’t there anymore.

While the Bongo Ball is the 51-inch inflatable ball that WATCH identifies as potentially dangerous, check out the similar “Waterwalker” that you can find over at Gigaball.net (at right)—you have to love the picture the company uses to promote the floating version of the gigaball—now that looks safe, right? Forget just being concerned about being stuck inside some big plastic thing on top of water and hoping it won’t puncture—your greater worry is apparently whether you’ll come out bruised and battered. The irony here is that even backyard trampolines warn not to have more than one person use at a time—but Gigaball.net? They’ll even promote having more than one person go at a time!

It should be  noted that most of these inflatable balls—save the Waterwalker—do indicate that they are NOT to be used as floatation devices and that they should be used with parental supervision.

It doesn’t come as a surprise though that WATCH added this toy to their Worst Toys list for the year.

Asbestos News Roundup: 12.6.12 – Railroad Asbestos Exposure

December 6th, 2012. By LucyC

This week’s asbestos news roundup includes all the recent asbestos-related news and information that you should be aware of. An ongoing list of reported asbestos hot spots in the US from the Asbestos News Roundup archive appears on our asbestos map.

Retired Railwaymen Dying from Asbestos Disease

Many retired railway men are finding that the years they spent working in railway yards and on trains has caused them to become ill with asbestos-related illnesses. And their illnesses could have been prevented if they had been made aware of the dangers and provided with proper protective gear.

Asbestos was used to insulate steam and diesel locomotives, boxcars, cabooses and pipes. It was also used in brakes and floor tiles of passenger cars. When workers were tasked with removing the asbestos, and were not wearing protective clothing, the airborne asbestos fibers became lodged in their clothes and worse, in their lungs. As this practice went on over time—years in many cases—the accumulation of the asbestos fibers in their lungs led to fatal asbestos mesothelioma.

Asbestos Lawsuits

St. Clair County, IL: BNSF Railway Co, is facing a federal asbestos lawsuit filed by four former railroad workers who allege they developed asbestos-related respiratory problems as a result of the company’s alleged negligence.

In their asbestos lawsuit, Wavie Cole, Francisco Ruiz, Carl Canada and Cleophas Eckford are seeking $10 million in compensation from their former employer — $2.5 million each.

Each of the four men claim their duties for BNSF exposed them “to toxic substances including asbestos, diesel exhaust, environmental tobacco smoke, welding fumes, silica, and other toxic dusts, gases and fumes which caused him to suffer permanent injuries to his lungs in the nature of asbestosis and other respiratory disease.” The lawsuit states that Cole was employed by BNSF from 1977 to 2010, Ruiz from 1974 and 2009, Canada from 1973 to 2006 and Eckford from 1972 and 1999. Cole was a pipefitter while the other three men were employed in the “carman craft.” Canada also worked as a laborer and electrician.

In their asbestos complaint, the former railway men claim that the Federal Employers’ Liability Act (FELA) governs their claims because their employment duties “were in furtherance of and did closely, directly and substantially affect interstate commerce,” which BNSF engaged in as “a common carrier by rail.”

The complaint includes four FELA counts — one for each plaintiff – and asserts that BNSF failed to provide the men with a reasonably safe work place or warn them of the hazardous nature of asbestos and other toxic substances.

Additionally, the asbestos lawsuit alleges the railroad company failed to inspect equipment in order to determine if there was contamination, and to take adequate steps to reduce employees’ exposure to toxic substances.

The lawsuit claims that the men’s asbestosis and other respiratory diseases are a direct result of BNSF’s negligence, which caused “in whole or in part” the plaintiffs to develop these illnesses.

As a result of their asbestos-related illnesses, each of the four men claim they have “suffered and will continue to suffer great pain and disability, genuine and serious mental anguish and extreme nervousness as a result of his reasonable concern over the prospects of developing cancer caused by his exposure to asbestos, diesel exhaust, environmental tobacco smoke, welding fumes, silica and other toxic dusts, gases and fumes.”

Further, the retired railway men claim they have and will continue to incur “great expense in endeavoring to be cured” of their illnesses and diseases and have “lost and will continue to lose large amounts of income because of” the disabilities of their respiratory problems.(madisonrecord.com)

St. Clair County, IL: Teresa Halter filed an asbestos lawsuit naming 25 defendant corporations, which she alleges, are responsible for her late husband, John Halter, to develop asbestos-related lung cancer.

In her asbestos lawsuit, Mrs. Halter claims her John Halter was exposed to asbestos-containing products throughout his career as an auto mechanic in the Detroit area from 1971 until 1974 and as a boiler tender in the US Navy from 1974 until 1978.

Mrs. Halter alleges the defendants should have known of the harmful effects of asbestos, but failed to exercise reasonable care and caution for her husband’s safety.

As a result of his asbestos-related disease, John Halter incurred medical costs and suffered great physical pain and mental anguish, the complaint says. In addition, he became prevented from pursuing his normal course of employment and, as a result, lost large sums of money that would have accrued to him, his widow claims. (madisonrecord.com)