DeSantis wants to create his own oversight agency
- Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is looking to pull out of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and create his own oversight.
- He recently signed a bill that would give the state power to develop a plan for Florida to seek federal approval for a state counterpart to OSHA, which would result in the state withdrawing from the federal agency.
- Lawmakers approved the measure, which includes giving the governor’s office $1 million to propose its own version of OSHA. However, the state would not be fully free from OSHA’s oversight.
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DeSantis has said the move is an appropriate response to how “heavy-handed” OSHA has been with its federal vaccine mandate.
NIOH reveals risk among oil rig drivers
- The driving behaviors that create risks among oil and gas extraction workers are affected by lack of sleep, long commutes, and long hours, according to NIOSH.
- The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that motor vehicle crashes were the leading cause of work-related death in oil and gas extraction.
- NIOSH examined workers in Colorado, North Dakota, and Texas.
- These workers revealed challenges with work schedules, workplace policies, and risky driving events, and feeling drowsy while driving or even falling asleep.
Chicago contractor faces $277,000 in fines
- Three times in four months, federal safety inspectors observed workers employed by a Calumet City roofing contractor exposed to deadly fall hazards at job sites in Lake Zurich and Wheeling.
- In each instance, the company’s foremen on site failed to protect workers from known hazards as they did residential framing work on new homes under construction.
- Following three investigations by OSHA, Araujo Construction Corp. faces $277,524 in proposed penalties after workplace safety inspectors identified two willful, four repeat, and six serious violations.
- OSHA inspectors informed company officials and a foreman at the Lake Zurich site that they were violating federal law by allowing employees to work at heights of more than 30 feet without fall protection.
Sole oil refinery about to restart after an explosion
- Wisconsin’s only oil refinery in Superior is poised to reopen early next year since an explosion four years ago that injured three dozen people and evacuated many of the city of Superior’s 27,000 residents
- The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board have yet to release the final results of its investigation into the explosion.
- Canadian firm Cenovus Energy, which acquired Husky Energy in 2021, has invested $1.2 billion to rebuild the refinery.
- A worn valve is believed to have caused the Superior refinery explosion.