Not all work-related injuries are reported

• The number of workers getting hurt or sick on the job as the number of workers at in-person job sites rose in 2022.
• New data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that 2.8 million workplace injuries and illnesses were voluntarily reported by employers last year.
• Not everyone injured on the job reports to OSHA. For example, gig workers often just move to a different workplace after an injury.
• Debbie Berkowitz, former OSHA chief of staff, said jobs often require a lot of repetitive motions that can lead to injuries to the back, upper extremities, wrist, and shoulder/elbow.
• OSHA has begun to crack down on warehousing companies this year, citing Amazon for violations at least six times.
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New resource for lead exposure

• The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health has a new resource for employers and workers that addresses the health hazards associated with lead pipe removal and replacement.
• The Workplace Solutions: Reducing Workers’ Lead Exposure during Water Service Line Removal and Replacement covers the potential for lead exposure when workers replace lead service lines and provides recommendations for reducing lead exposure.
• Recommendations for employers to reduce lead exposure include developing a written lead monitoring and control program that can include a testing protocol, hazard control program, and job hazard assessment for tasks during which workers may be exposed to lead.
• Employers should also monitor airborne lead exposures and provide portable high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA)-filtered vacuums to clean work vehicles.
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Fines vary for companies that had fires

• Fines for companies with fires ranged from just a few thousand dollars to nearly $1 million in settlement payments in Texas.
• OSHS generally issues penalties to companies for violating its standards.
• In April 2019, one person was killed after a plant fire at KMCO, a chemical processing and manufacturing facility in Crosby. KMCO was $131,274 for serious OSHA violations.
• A tank fire erupted at the Intercontinental Terminal Company facility in Deer Park that lasted for days. ITC agreed to pay $900,000 to settle a lawsuit with Harris County.
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• Two people were injured in a partial building collapse at a home being renovated in Newton, Massachusetts.
• The incident was reported just before 11 a.m. at a home under construction on Sterling Street.
• The building was unoccupied and was under renovation at the time of the collapse. The two people working on the building were injured.
• One of the workers dove out of the way, but the other worker was trapped and had to be rescued by National Grid employees who were at the scene. Both workers were taken to local hospitals.
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