New Proposed Rule from OSHA

January 2, 2024

OSHA taking more steps to protect first responders

  • OSHA will publish a proposal this month to update and expand safety and health protections for emergency responders.
  • These responders include firefighters, emergency medical service providers, and technical search and rescue workers.
  • The proposed rule requires employers to obtain baseline medical screening for all emergency responders and ensure continued medical surveillance for responders when they are exposed to the byproducts of fires and explosions more than 15 times annually.
  • The public will be able to submit comments to the docket once the Federal Register formally publishes the proposed rule.
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Questions arise about how U.S. Postal Service handles heat on workdays

  • OSHA is investigating the recent death of a postal worker in Texas, which has also raised questions about how the U.S. Postal Service is dealing with extreme heat.
  • U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Dallas and fellow Democrats on the House Oversight Committee wrote to their chairman, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., asking for a hearing on the topic.
  • The postal service already has a Heat Illness Prevention Program, which runs from April 1 through Oct. 31 and includes information for carriers about the prevention of heat-related illness.
  • However, lawmakers want more information on the issue.
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NJ firm slapped with 32 violations

  • An OSHA inspection at an Oakland, New Jersey, manufacturing company found employees exposed to dozens of serious safety and health hazards after two workers were injured.
  • The agency opened its inspection at FB International Inc., which designs, manufactures, and installs trade show displays, after being notified about one employee’s eye injury and another’s foot injury.
  • OSHA’s inspection led to citations for 32 serious violations and an assessment of $256,931 in proposed penalties for the company.
  • “The inspection results should serve as a wake-up call for FB International Inc. to eliminate workplace hazards immediately and make effective safety and health programs a priority,” said OSHA Area Director Lisa Levy in Hasbrouck Heights, New Jersey.
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OSHA grant for electrical safety training

  • The Manufacturers’ Association in York, Pennsylvania, was awarded a $157,833 grant by the Federal Susan Harwood Occupational Safety and Health Administration for electrical safety training in central and southcentral Pennsylvania through December 2024.
  • The group expects to train 500 people.
  • The Targeted Topic training grant, focusing on manufacturing and other industrial sectors, will help workers and employers recognize serious workplace hazards, including implementing injury prevention measures and understanding rights and responsibilities under the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
  • The grant audience also includes small businesses as well as temporarily unemployed workers seeking to enter manufacturing or industrial sectors.
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