OSHA spends $12,7M on outreach

• OSHA awarded $12.7 million in grants to 100 nonprofit organizations across the nation to support education and training to help workers and employers recognize serious workplace hazards, employ injury prevention, and understand workers’ rights and employers’ responsibilities under federal law.
• Funded through the Susan Harwood Training Grant Program, the grants are being awarded in three categories, namely Targeted Topic Training, Training and Educational Materials Development, and Capacity Building grants.
• OSHA awards grants to non-profit organizations, including community and faith-based groups, employer associations, labor unions, joint labor-management associations, Native American tribes and local and state-sponsored colleges and universities.
• Target trainees include small-business employers and underserved vulnerable workers in high-hazard industries.
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Social Security wants billions back from recpients

• The Social Security Administration is trying to reclaim billions of dollars from many of the nation’s poorest and most vulnerable with payments it sent them but now says they never should have received.
• During the 2022 fiscal year, the agency clawed back $4.7 billion of overpayments, while another $21.6 billion remained outstanding, according to a report by SSA’s inspector general.
• One consequence is a costly collection effort for the government and a potentially devastating ordeal for the beneficiary.
• The agency declined to say how many people have been asked to repay overpayments.
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OSHA targeting distribution settings

• OSHA’s National Emphasis Program will focus on identifying and eliminating health and safety hazards in the industry by conducting inspections.
• The NEP will not only target classic warehouse, processing, and distribution settings but also “high injury rate retail establishments,” as many retail establishments have the same or similar hazards as warehousing and distribution facilities, particularly in loading and storage areas.
• High injury rate retail establishment inspections will focus on loading and storage areas, but OSHA may expand an inspection’s scope when evidence shows violations may exist in other areas of the establishment.
• Retail employers using warehouses and processing facilities and those deemed “high injury rate retail establishments” should be prepared for an uptick in inspections and enforcement activities.
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Concrete pipe manufacturer faces fines after 19-year-old’s death

• A Georgia-based concrete pipe manufacturer could have prevented a 19-year-old worker from suffering fatal injuries after a concrete mixer restarted while the teen tried to clean the machines.
• An investigation by OSHA determined two employees of Foley Products Company LLC climbed inside the mixer initially to use a hammer and chisel to chip away hardened concrete. As one of the workers left the mixer, the machine restarted with the other inside.
• OSHA inspectors cited the company for willfully exposing workers to crushed-by hazards by allowing them to enter the mixer without making sure to first follow energy-control procedures.
• Foley Products Company received one willful violation and six serious violations. The company faces $245,546 in proposed penalties.
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