South Dakota: Construction worker falls to death in Sioux Falls

Fed-OSHA is investigating after a 24-year-old man fell to his death from a new bank construction site in downtown Sioux Falls, South Dakota on Tuesday morning. Argus Leader

 

OR-OSHA fines frozen food plant for physical distancing violation

Oregon OSHA has fined an Albany frozen foods company $2,000 for allegedly failing to implement physical distancing measures to prevent spread of coronavirus. KVAL (Eugene, Ore.)

 

CDC warns of fake respirator masks

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is warning of low-quality medical masks in the American supply chain. Some reports show the gear is filtering less than 30 percent of particles, while according to the FDA, the N95 designation means the respirator should block at least 95 percent of very small (0.3 micron) test particles. Here are some signs a respirator may be counterfeit. 44News

 

Fed-OSHA offers safety alert for dental offices

Fed-OSHA has issued an alert intended to help protect dental industry workers from exposure to coronavirus, including encouraging employees to stay home if sick; maximizing use of telemedicine for nonemergency consultations and prioritize urgent and emergency procedures; installing physical barriers or partitions between patient treatment areas, and several others. Pahrump Valley Times

 

Boston issues new COVID-19 guidelines applicable to all city-permitted projects

The City of Boston has issued revised temporary guidance for construction projects in the city,  effective for active permitted projects and all future permit applications. The Best Practices Worksheet references and incorporates rapidly changing guidance from other agencies, including the CDC, OSHA, and the State of Massachusetts, and requires the creation of a site-specific safety plan that addresses the requirements of these other guidelines. National Law Review

 

Older, larger companies benefit from not investing in worker safety, study finds

When it’s cheaper to pay nominal fines for violating workplace regulations than to provide safe workplaces, that indicates current safety regulations are not enough to protect workers, an international collaboration of researchers with Oregon State University, University College Dublin in Ireland and Universitat Ramon Llull in Spain, has found. Researchers determined whether a company provided a safe workplace by examining the company’s history of disabling claims, using data provided by the Oregon Department of Consumer Affairs. PhysOrg

 

NIOSH releases fact sheet to help waste, recycling employees

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health has issued recommendations on how waste and recycling collectors can protect themselves from COVID-19 on the job, following a request by the National Waste & Recycling Association for a fact sheet. Waste Today