Extreme heat proposal faces opposition

• Employees in the U.S. are working in tougher conditions due to extreme heat, but protection may not be forthcoming because of blocking measures by businesses and lobbyists.
• President Joe Biden’s administration has proposed federal heat protection, but it could be years before it comes into effect if it happens at all.
• Big businesses and work federations have blocked or protested a number of attempts to improve conditions and make work safer for employees.
• The American Farm Bureau Federation, for example, questioned whether the department can develop additional heat illness regulations without imposing new, onerous burdens on farmers and ranchers that will lead to economic losses.
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Vermont worker dies after warehouse accident

• A 49-year-old Chelsea, Vermont, man died in a workplace incident in Barre earlier this week.
• Workers at a Bellavance Trucking warehouse were unloading two large pieces of industrial conveyor tracks from a flatbed tractor-trailer using a crane system mounted to the warehouse ceiling.
• The workers realized that the conveyor track was falling. One of the workers, Arthur Sanford, 49, of Chelsea, sought to retreat down a set of metal stairs but slipped and fell.
• He was pronounced dead after arriving at Central Vermont Medical Center in Berlin and Vermont OSHA is investigating.
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Industrial accident at casino proves fatal

• An industrial accident in Washington State left one worker dead.
• The incident occurred at 9:30 am at a five-story hotel construction site beside Spokane Tribe Casino in Airway Heights. The victim was a journeyman carpenter that worked for a subcontractor on the project.
• The cause of the Spokane Tribe Casino accident is under investigation by local, Washington state, as well as federal agencies in collaboration with Spokane Tribe and tribal police. OSHA is involved in a yet-to-be-concluded investigation.
• Swinerton Construction disclosed that the accident was caused by a “formwork collapse.”
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Report reveals how to be safer as a contractor

• Associated Builders and Contractors released its 2023 Safety Performance Report, an annual guide to safety best practices on construction job sites.
• Companies that conduct an in-depth indoctrination of new employees into the safety culture, systems, and processes based on a documented orientation process experience incident rates that are 48% to 52% lower than companies that limit their orientations to basic health and safety compliance topics.
• Robust substance abuse prevention programs/policies with provisions for drug and alcohol testing where permitted lead to a 59% reduction in total recordable incident rates and a 62% reduction in days away.
• Companies that conduct daily toolbox talks reduce TRIR by 78% and DART rates by 76% compared to companies that hold them monthly.
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