Business Insurance Magazine has named Safety Management Group of Indiana, Inc. as one of the largest independent safety consulting firm in the United States in their 2009 Independent Safety Consulting Firm Ranking.

Safety Management Group of Indiana, Inc. has been ranked amongst the top 10 safety consulting firms by the magazine since it entered the ranking in 2006. The listing ranks safety consulting firms based on their unbundled safety consulting revenues.

Entire article http://www.safetymanagementgroup.com/articles/Safety-Management-Group-Named-as-One-of-the-Largest-Safety-Consulting-firms-in-the-United-States.aspx

Labels: consultant, indianapolis, safety

The outbreak of the H1N1 virus at the start of 2009 initially left the medical community and the news confused, sending mixed messages of the danger. This left us scratching our heads wondering what to do. It turned out the H1N1 virus did not cause the disaster that the media speculated and it was on the level of the seasonal flu variants in its infection rates and illness severity.

H1N1 is a concern - since it is new, most of us do not have a immunity from previous exposures. It also seems to affect healthy young adults more virulently than normal flu strains.

I thought it would be interesting to put the H1N1 virus through the standard safety practitioners process of hazard reduction. The process is simple and in order of priority:

1. Eliminate Recognized Hazards (Engineering Controls)
2. Apply Administrative Controls
3. Implement Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

Using the above as a reference it should be straight forward on what a safety policy should do and say.

To eliminate the hazards you would need to prevent the virus being present in the workplace.

The best option for eliminating the virus is to offer flu shots at the workplace. Currently there is a shortage for the H1N1 virus shots, but the normal seasonal flu vaccine is readily available. This should be a priority for business owners to reduce costs. A sick worker is not producing widgets, and another employee has to pick up the lost production. Though not an apple to apple comparison take a look at our injury cost calculator.

Another engineering control option is ensuring working surfaces are cleaned and disinfected regularly. This includes door handles and restroom facilities. Janitorial staff should be instructed how to properly handle and clean potentially infected materials as a part of a comprehensive Bloodborne Pathogens program.

Administrative controls are things such as reducing the amount of time a worker is in a loud environment, to keep them under a daily exposure level of sound that prevents long term hearing damage. Administrative controls for the flu virus seem limited.

A hybrid Administrative and Engineering method includes having suspected sick employees stay home from work while ill and with fevers, and sending those who are ill home to recover. It is a good idea to get with your Human Resources staff to develop this policy to avoid potential land mines and include visits to doctors for evaluation before returning to work.

If your company offers work from home programs, the employee may be productive. The employee can feel better but still be contagious - working from home offers a way to be on the payroll and protect the workplace at the same time - a win-win all around. This could be a component of a Return to Work Policy.

Lastly, Personal Protective Equipment should be used. I consider hand washing in the PPE category. Researchers have studied hand washing habits and their findings show poor hand washing habits. Signage prompting hand washing in restrooms and break areas should be highly visible. Additionally, hand sanitizers can be offered and made available to employees. Hand sanitizers offer bring additional issues of fire safety, as some are flammable - local building codes and regulations/accreditations further complicate where and how much hand sanitizers can be used.

If you have not previously addressed seasonal flu and illnesses in your safety policy/procedure manual - it is a good time to act with the publicity of H1N1. Update your safety manual, hold toolbox talks, put the information out with emails or in your newsletter - be proactive and Proceed with Confidence.

For more resources visit:

National Safety Council - www.nsc.org - Prevent the Flu in Your Workplace

Center for Disease Control - www.cdc.gov - Novel H1N1 Flu: Facts and Figures

Labels: flu, illness, influenza

Alexander L. Booker Child Protection Construction Site Safety Act has been introduced by Rep. Donna Edwards of Maryland. The text of the proposed legislation can be found here. The bill has been referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor as of Jun 26, 2009.

OSHA occasionally make amendments and minor changes to its regulations and publishes updates annually. There have not been significant changes in OSHA regulations for many years. The last push I recall was the Ergonomics Standard under the Clinton Administration. This was quickly cancelled by George W. Bush's Administration shortly in his first term. New OSHA regulations and amendments were not given much consideration during the Bush years.

Under the Obama Administration things may be set to change. Given the current presidents active legislative agenda OSHA may get another look.

The Alexander L. Booker Child Protection Construction Site Safety Act proposes several changes to address a construction site incident that left a boy dead from playing on construction equipment.

The new legislation proposes lockout devices for motorized equipment, increased fencing and signage preventing access to construction sites adjacent to populated areas.

This is significant because the legislation will require contractor firms and owners to spend additional money to retrofit existing equipment and purchase additional signage and fencing.

The legislation currently sits in committee with the future uncertain. It is my opinion that the legislation is worthy in its goals to protect the public and children specifically from construction hazards. As a father, it is important to teach my children the hazards of playing with heavy equipment and prevent them from being exposed to dangers.

Is it the responsibility of contractor firms to provide safe equipment on private property or the responsibility of parents/guardians to protect their own children? I think the answer is somewhere in between.

It will be interesting to see how this legislation progresses. I will post updates when something happens in regards to this legislation.

As insurance products have become more varied and complex, there’s more potential for confusion. While most people have a pretty good understanding of how basic life, homeowners, and auto insurance policies work, liability coverage can be far more difficult to grasp. In today’s lawsuit-happy society, it’s important for companies and professionals to have a good working knowledge of liability coverage.

That’s particularly true for safety professionals. They often work in situations such as construction and manufacturing that present a substantial amount of potential risk for personal injury and property damage. Their role of minimizing the risk of injury to individuals in the workplace can actually increase their own risk of liability.

Safety Professional Liability Insurance Article

The Wall Street Journal is reporting about the Federal budget increases in president Obama's budget. If the budget is approved this will result in more money and resources for federal enforcement of occupational safety standars.

"Mr. Obama is asking for $13.3 billion of discretionary spending to run the Labor Department, up 3% from fiscal 2009. The $400 million increase would boost enforcement of workplace-safety and wage rules, and pay for more staffers to ensure that businesses comply with equal-employment rules for federal contractors." Source Wall Street Journal

The Department of Labor estimates nearly 1,000 new employees will be hired to increase enforcement.

The construction industry should take a serious look at compliance issues before costly fines and legal issues further complicate the industry. The increase in funding is a reversal from the Bush administration cut backs during that period.

Labels: enforcement, osha

Labels: budget, consultant, savings

Most of us have had the experience of hearing that cell phone on our hip ringing while driving. There has been much discussion on the safety of driving while talking on cell phones in the past years. As technology makes it easier to communicate in our mobile world, it may be making it more dangerous. Several states and local governments have bans in place, either restricting teens using mobile phones, or requring wireless headsets, some even have outright bans on the usage of cell phones. Now the National Safety Council is taking the step and recommending the stopage of cell phone usage while driving. This is in contrast to their 2002 study which found that communication, regardless of devices, is the issue - read here

“Studies show that driving while talking on a cell phone is extremely dangerous and puts drivers at a four times greater risk of a crash,” said Janet Froetscher, president and CEO of the NSC. “Driving drunk is also dangerous and against the law. When our friends have been drinking, we take the car keys away. It’s time to take the cell phone away.”

It is time to consider your companies policies regarding mobile phone usage. The full article can be found here.

Labels: cell phones