Worker Safety Concerns as Hurricane Makes Landfall

Hurricane Helene, which is expected to become at least a Category 3 storm, could have devastating effects as it makes landfall in Florida. Governor Ron DeSantis has declared a state of emergency for 61 counties in the Sunshine State.
Given the potential damage, employers are advised to make preparations to ensure the safety of their employees and workplaces.
Such preparations include communicating emergency action plans and in some cases closing or evacuating workplaces entirely. Some evacuations have been ordered by authorities.
The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration requires employers to provide a workplace free of recognized hazards. OSHA standards also require them to provide training, emergency action plans, hazard communication, personal protective equipment and post-event safety.
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A lawsuit attacking the structure of the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission could pave the way for similar challenges as employers test the limits of recent U.S Supreme Court decisions.
New Jersey-based Kenric Steel LLC sued the commission, arguing that it is unconstitutionally comprised because commissioners are shielded from being fired at will by the President of the United States.
The move comes in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling overturning the so-called “Chevron doctrine,” which deferred to administrative agencies in cases where parts of federal law are ambiguous.
A 1977 Supreme Court ruling held that the 7^th Amendment to the Constitution did not bar Congress from assigning the commission the task of adjudicating OSH Act violations. The company argues that recent rulings have effectively overturned the 1977 decision.
Kenric is seeking to overturn a $348,000 penalty sought by Fed-OSHA for alleged safety violations.
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North Carolina Poultry Farm Receives Safety Recognition

Wayne-Sanderson Farms, based in Dobson, North Carolina, has been awarded silver and gold awards from the state Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Division for safety performance at its facilities.
Three of the company’s facilities plants received awards, two of them for consecutive years.
“The culture we’ve developed is the key to our successful safety performance,” says Wayne-Sanderson safety manager Travis Tilley.
Wayne-Sanderson is the third largest poultry producer in the United States, operating 23 fresh and further-processing facilities, employing more than 26,000 people.
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An employee of the Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) was killed after being struck by a semi-truck, according to the state Highway Patrol.
An 18-year-old truck driver in a Peterbilt hit 60-year-old Jay L. Bone, working on the side of the highway. He died at the scene.
Bone was a senior maintenance worker with MoDOT. A Highway Patrol spokesman said the worksite had “typical safety measures” in place at the time of the accident.
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