OSHNC fines hospital for failing to report employee’s COVID-19 death
A hospital in western North Carolina has been fined almost $30,000 by the North Carolina Department of Labor for alleged violations including not reporting a work-related COVID-19 hospitalization or the employee’s subsequent death in November 2021. When asked about the COVID-19 related employee death, a spokeswoman said there was no evidence the death was work-related. Blue Ridge Public Radio
North Carolina Butterball plant honored again for safety
OSHNC has awarded the Butterball, LLC production facility in Mount Olive, North Carolina recertification as a Carolina Star site in the Voluntary Protection Program for its commitment to workplace health and safety. The plant earned its initial certification in 2008 and has been recertified twice since then. Goldsboro Daily News
OR-OSHA fines discount retailer $32K
Oregon OSHA announced last week it has fined Dollar Tree Stores Inc. $32,000 for repeatedly exposing employees to potential serious injury at a Wilsonville store. Cited violations include unsecured materials falling, tripping and falling in cramped aisles and inaccessible fire extinguishers and emergency exits. Most of the violations were repeats of violations cited previously at other locations, according to the agency. Oregonian
Fed-OSHA fines employers $139K following 2021 explosion at Louisiana chemical plant
Fed-OSHA has cited four companies for safety violations linked to an explosion at a chemical plant that injured nearly two dozen employees at a plant near Lake Charles, Louisiana in late September. At least 23 employees are suing for injuries including burns, broken bones and other wounds. New Orleans Times-Picayune
IOSHA honors Terre Haute aviation plant
GE Aviation has been Indiana OSHA’s top workplace recognition, Star site under the Voluntary Protection Program, for the company’s its commitment to employee health and safety, the company announced last week. This status signifies a business has injury and illness rates at or below national averages for their industries. Tribune-Star
Wisconsin passes law making threats against healthcare employees a felony
Wisconsin’s governor has signed a bill that makes it a felony to threaten a healthcare employee, similar to laws covering police and other government employees. Employees in the healthcare and social service industries experience the highest rates of injuries caused by workplace violence and are five times as likely to get injured at work than employees overall, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. HR Dive