Asthma death at cannabis plant 

• A 27-year-old woman died from an asthma attack at a cannabis production in Massachusetts — the first reported death of his kind in the U.S.
• OSHA reported in filings last year that an employee at the Holyoke location of cannabis company Trulieve who was packaging ground cannabis into pre-rolls suffered an asthma attack and later died in the hospital.
• Trulieve identified the worker as Lorna McMurrey last year.
• Trulieve paid more than $14,00 after settling with OSHA after McMurrey’s death.
  Read more

Steelworkers worried about long-term health

• Republic Steel closed its factories in Ohio and New York in August, but many former workers now worry about their long-term health and medical care.
• Former Republic Steel workers described standards far below other factories where they’ve worked before or after, claiming the company neglected cleaning and maintenance.
• The most recent are two open OSHA inspections at the Canton plant from 2023 and 2022 and one closed inspection from 2022.
• The agency lists a total of 17 citations.
  Read more

Death at the Hyundai plant could have been prevented

• OSHA ruled that the death of a construction worker at the Hyundai Metaplant in Bryan County, Georgia, could have been prevented if the company followed safety rules.
• Investigators found that Eastern Constructors Inc. failed to ensure workers were provided the proper equipment that protects them from falls.
• OSHA determined that Victor Javier Gamboa Cagiga was 60 feet up, walking on top of the plant’s paint building when he lost his balance, fell, and died at the scene.
• OSHA filed citations against Eastern Constructors Inc. and proposed $160,724 in penalties. The company has also been placed in OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program to focus on enforcement efforts.
  Read more

More workers dealing with mental health issues

• Mental health issues make up 52% of all workplace injury cases, more than any other kind, according to a report by Atticus, a Los Angeles-based disability benefits company.
• The study drew on non-fatal injury data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, fatal and catastrophic injury data from OSHA, and Google Trends data on workplace-related injuries.
• The study found that 1 in 10 workers experience mental health issues related to their jobs and those issues are more common than other kinds of workplace injuries.
• In addition, mental health issues are 10 times more common than chemical exposure and almost nine times more common than head injuries.
  Read more