OSHA Changes You Need to Know

OSHA has issued a new rule to clarify duties of an employer for providing Personal Protective Equipment and Training for each employee.

The new rule, effective January 12, requires that employers "provide the required PPE and training to each and every one of their employees." Personal Protective Equipment  includes eye, face, head, foot and hearing protections, respirators and other forms of PPE. Employees must be trained if he or she falls under stated requirements.

Currently, an employer may be cited when a violation occurs under any standard. OSHA combines all violations of a single requirement into one penalty. However, under a new per-instance policy, a separated penalty may be issued for each violation. Per-instance can be translated in to per-injury, or per-location.

This rule does not inflict new requirements or require employers to provide any new type of PPE or training.

OHSA has also published changes to its Voluntary Protection Program, which allows participation by companies with mobile workers. New options will be provided to construction contractors and other companies that have employers at other locations. These changes will be made effective May 9.

 Call OCCU-TEC at 1-800-950-1953 for more information on these changes and how they affect you.

Some have called this recession the worst since the Great Depression.  As a consequence companies large and small have had to cut and save to meet the challenge.  Those cuts are something that every EH&S manager has felt, and yet the challenge of providing a safe work environment continues.

How can your work environments remain safe in these economic times?  Here are a few ideas.

Build with Good Blueprints
A good blueprint may make the difference between a building that stands the test of time or falls like a house of cards.  For EH&S professionals a good plan makes a noticeable difference during tough economic times. 

One way to do this is by creating a list of priorities of what MUST be done and weigh those things against important factors.  A sample list of those factors could include:

 - Risk
-  Financial exposure
-  Compliance
-  Return on investment

Keep it simple, no more than two pages and refer to it often.


What's Your Sign?
Sometimes the easiest way to avoid safety problems is to make sure hazardous areas are well signed.  Despite the best training, sometimes the old cliche, "Out of Sight, Out of Mind", manifests itself in workplace safety issues.  Better signage, although not a large cost, can pay big dividends.

Use Technology to Increase Productivity
Technology has made two things easier for EH&S personnel:  training and tracking.  Online training, like that offered by OCCU-TEC, has made training more accessible and more economical.  Gone are the days of the need to travel in order to get needed training, and government agencies recognize that.

Likewise, gone are the days of paper filing.  With the need to track an increasing amount of information for regulatory and compliance purposes, EH&S professionals need to have easy access to information.  Computer driven databases are the answer.  Whether it is OCCU-TEC's  AutoTrak™ system or any other, the need for greater access to information that can be created and distributed in a streamlined manner is essential.

Some companies are hesitant to embrace new technology because of the perceived cost of developing that competency in its use.  That doesn't need to be a barrier.

Occupational Health & Safety recently addressed the role of technology in EH&S departments.  Among its suggestions is to look at Software as a Service (SaaS) software.  Software in this category doesn't require internal IT support or special software.  Salesforce.com pioneered this evolution in 2001 with its Contact Management Software (CMS) but OCCU-TEC continues that trend today with AutoTrak™.

There is no question that 2009 will be a challenging year but if you need help navigating it economically and effectively call 1-800-950-1953 or go to www.occutec.com for more information.