Archive for: Workplace Injuries Statistics

Texas Industries Sued for $15 Million in Wrongful Death, OSHA Violation Case

Posted by admin on Friday, June 15th, 2012 | Comments (0)

The family of Benino Perez is filing a suit against Texas Industries (TXI), a construction and cement company, suing for $15 million for actual and punitive damages, alleging that the company negligently failed to provide proper safety training and provide fall protection equipment, and that the company ordered a drug test on Perez when he lay unconscious after a fall before calling 911, resulting in a two-hour delay that may have cost the employee his life.

Witness testimony states that a fellow employee ordered a drug test, that co-workers unzipped his pants to take urine from him, and that two full hours passed before paramedics were called. Cameras that were positioned in areas that recorded the incident were removed the following day. An OSHA investigation was launched but issued no fines in the case.

A spokesman for TXI denies that the drug test was performed and that emergency response was delayed, claiming that emergency services were called after one of the company’s drivers noticed Benino walking irregularly with blood coming from his nose. They further state that no cameras were facing the area where Benino was working, and that the fall and its aftermath were not recorded.

Comments (0)
Categories : Fall Protection, OSHA Safety Topics, Safety at the Workplace, Safety Topics for Work, Workplace Injuries Statistics
Tags : , ,

California OSHA Reminds Employers To Post Summary of Workplace Illnesses and Injuries

Posted by admin on Monday, February 6th, 2012 | Comments (0)

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Department of Industrial Relations in California would like to remind all employers that Form 300A, which documents the summary of all work-related injuries and illnesses occurring during the previous year, must be posted for employee review from February 1st through April 30th.

The form includes information on workplace injuries, total number of days injured or sick employees spent away from work, total number of individual cases that caused lost time, and the specific types of injury or illness suffered.

The form is intended to provide accurate reporting of injuries and illnesses in a readily reviewable format so that present and former employees can better understand job hazards, and so that employers can determine what additional health and safety measures are needed in order to improve worker safety in future years.

We feel that it is important to have this information available for evaluation so that employers and employees can determine subtle causes of injury and illness that may not be readily apparent, and provide and utilize appropriate personal protective equipment such as respiratory protection or earplugs to improve future worker safety.

(Information provided by the Wall Street Journal MarketWatch and PR Newswire.)

Comments (0)
Categories : OSHA Safety Topics, Safety at the Workplace, Safety Topics for Work, Workplace Injuries Statistics
Tags : , , ,

Flame Resistant Coat May Have Saved LA Researcher

Posted by Mr. Safety on Monday, January 23rd, 2012 | Comments (0)

When felony charges were filed against the University of California and Professor Patrick Harran in the death of 23-year-old researcher Sheharbano (Sheri) Sangji last month from a chemical fire that took place in 2008, the three-year old case also reignited a controversy about the fact that Sangji wasn’t wearing a fire resistant lab coat. Some say that fact is overemphasized, but we at American Work Safety disagree.

It’s not only a blatant disregard for worker safety to not follow proper safety procedures for chemical handling, it was equally clear that the young woman was unfamiliar with procedure regarding a chemical fire. The 23-year-old ran about the lab frantically which only fed the flames that eventually burned nearly half her body, according to the LA Times. The injuries claimed her life 18 days later.

While there were other factors involved in the incident, clearly an inexpensive fire resistant coat would have slowed the flames and perhaps saved the young woman from a painful death. Moreover, proper training in the use of personal protective equipment and proper emergency procedure would have further protected a bright prospect. The cost? A couple hundred dollars maybe, but what is the loss to our society and the economic strength of our economy when someone of this caliber dies an unnecessary death? Far more. Read More→

Comments (0)
Categories : Flame Resistant, Lab Safety, Safety at the Workplace, Workplace Injuries Statistics

Employers Pay Heavy Price for Workplace Injuries

Posted by Mr. Safety on Monday, January 2nd, 2012 | Comments (1)

Liberty Mutual Insurance company report showed that the most disabling injuries (those involving six or more days away from work) cost American employers more than $53 billion a year – over $1 billion a week – in workers’ compensation costs alone.

That statistic was quoted by Assistant Secretary of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), Dr. David Michaels in testimony before Congress on April 14, 2011. He cited the data in support of his administration’s 40 year history of protecting workers from injury on the job. Read More→

Comments (1)
Categories : Cost of Workplace Injuries, Safety at the Workplace, Workplace Injuries Statistics
Tags : ,

At the Store