Safety Columnists

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OSHA’s emphasis this year is on the need for employers to acclimatize workers.

The forklift has been around for more than 100 years in one form or another, servicing the needs of every industry to manage the movement of all types of material.

Part of a quarterly webinar series produced by the ASA and OSHA Alliance, the program identified for employers what the key components of the programs need to include under OSHA regulations.

Section 5(a)(1) of the OSH Act, often referred to as the General Duty Clause, requires employers to “furnish to each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees.”

We’ve all said it, or at least found ourselves thinking about it: the Empire State Building managed to get built without OSHA and it turned out just fine.

The distribution industry is reliant on the people who receive, pick, pack and ship the goods that we deliver to our customers. Our profitability depends on their productivity. Industry is investing in equipment, software and processes to drive productivity, but the best investment is the continuing health and safety of its workers.

It is a fundamental aspect of a company’s safety program that there is a published methodology for employees to report work-related injuries and illnesses. All injuries/illnesses, no matter how slight, need to be reported in accordance with company policy.

Dec. 1, 2013 is the deadline to complete employee training, which includes GHS as part of the site Hazard Communication Standard program. HCS commonly is referred to as HazCom or HazCom 2012. The HCS is OHSA Standard 29 CFR 1910.1200.

 Each year there are nearly two million nonfatal acts of workplace violence and about 600 employees killed due to workplace violence. 

This is the second of a two-part series on the steps United States-based employers should take to comply with the revised OSHA Hazard Communication Standard, also known as OSHA HCS 2012.