Note: OSHA Today will take its annual summer break starting Monday, July 4, and resume daily publication Monday, July 18. Happy Fourth of July to all of our valued subscribers!

 

Two presumed dead after trench collapse in Texas

Two employees were presumed dead after a 24-foot-deep trench they were digging for a sewer line in Jarrell, Texas collapsed and buried them on Tuesday. Crews worked unsuccessfully for four hours to reach the buried workers, who were then presumed dead. Fed-OSHA is investigating. NBC News

 

Human tissue found at recycling plant prompts SC OSHA investigation

South Carolina OSHA has been called in to investigate the disappearance of a man who was working on top of a shredding machine at a recycling center in Greer, where human tissue was found on a conveyor belt. Sources said the substance found on the conveyor looked like ground up flesh and filled a plastic bag. Herald Sun

 

What happened in the year since an Oregon farmworker died in extreme heat

Oregon OSHA and stakeholders had been working on proposed rules to protect employees working outdoors during high temperatures but had not finalized anything prior to the death last year of a 38-year-old agricultural employee on a day when reached 104 degrees, and did not implement any emergency rules prior to the record high temperatures that year. Specific rules regarding heat were enacted in July 2021, after his death. Salem Statesman Journal

 

Labor Department hosts employee classification forums

The U.S. Department of Labor scheduled two public forums to get feedback regarding employee classification definitions. At the first, participants asked the Labor Department to not make it more difficult for a person to be designated as an independent contractor. The second was scheduled for Wednesday, June 29. The Department of Labor said it is using the public forums to help establish definitions of “employee” and “independent contractor” under the Fair Labor Standards Act. Land Line

 

Sandwich franchise fined for teen employee hours

A submarine sandwich franchise has paid $24,660 in penalties after regulators found child labor law violations at franchise stores in New Jersey and three other states, the U.S. Labor Department has announced. At least some of the stores allowed 14- and 15-year-old employees to work past 7 p.m. on school nights; past 9 p.m. during the summer; and more than three hours on school days, according to the department. Asbury Park Press