Masonry Magazine October 1972 Page. 11
OSHA info
Current Information
Relating To The Occupational
Safety and Health Act
by Lawrence P. Sands
Robert L. Wilson
(Fred S. James & Co.)
1971 ACCIDENT STATISTICS
In 1971, 51,229,000 people were injured in the United States. 11,200,000 of these injuries were disabling and 115,000 died a violent death as a result of these accidents! It is estimated that the direct cost of accidents in 1971 was $29.5 billion dollars. The indirect and uninsurable cost is estimated to be between 4 and 10 times this figure. Accidents in the work place in 1971 killed 14,200 persons, disabled 2,300,000 and cost $9.3 billion dollars. On-the-job fatalities decreased by 1% in 1971.
NIOSH RECOMMENDS LOWER NOISE LIMITS
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health has recommended lower noise limits in a 160 page report submitted to OSHA. In new installations it was recommended that noise levels do not exceed 85 decibels for an 8 hour exposure.
NEW SAFETY PROGRAMS ESTABLISHED
AS A RESULT OF OSHA
A survey by the National Association of Manufacturers showed 85% of companies responding to the survey initiated new health and safety programs. It is felt that OSHA influence accounts for this result. The survey also disclosed that 95% of the companies with Safety Committees included representatives of employees and management on the committee, and 53% of the safety and health programs were in writing.
BEWARE OF OSHA COMPLIANCE OFFICER
IMPOSTERS
George C. Guenther, Assistant Secretary of Labor warned employees to check the credentials of compliance officers calling on them. Several instances of imposters pretending to be representatives of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration have been reported.
APPEAL OR NOT APPEAL?
An article in the Wall Street Journal indicated appealing citations can pay off. OSHA reduced penalties in 43% of the cases heard. Penalties were toughened in only 15% of cases appealed. It was pointed out, however, that savings might be offset by attorney fees and other costs.
RULE CHANGES
OSHA has received a large volume of comments concerning the two proposed rule changes of July 19 and 25 (relating to excluding companies with a small number of employees and employees not in a fixed establishment). Representatives of Bureau of Labor Labor Statistics, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, National Institute for Safety and Health and the solicitor's office, will examine the comments and prepare a final draft for a possible rule change. This demonstrates the importance of voicing your opinions and comments to OSHA on standards and rules that you may disagree with.
All MCAA members having questions concerning OSHA or desiring information relative to the Act, should write MCAA, OSHA Information, 208 S. LaSalle St., Chicago 60604, and the authors, Sands and Wilson, will be more than pleased to assist you.
NEW RULES FOR CONTESTING OSHA CITATIONS
New rules of procedure were adopted by the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission to replace interim rules for contesting enforcement action, which have been in effect since October 1, 1971. The new rules become effective with their publication in the Federal Register on September 28. They will appear in a future Reference File Supplement. The commission also is publishing a guide to its procedures which is written in nonlegal language and is available at the commission's Washington, D. C. office. Beginning September 28, the guide automatically will be sent to all parties when their cases are docketed with the commission. Employers who contest OSHA action will be furnished also with a notice to be used in informing their employees of the case and a return post card which will advise the commission that they have done so. This will make it easier on employers to comply with a commission rule requiring that affected employees, and unions representing them, be notified of the case so they can avail themselves of the opportunity to participate as parties, Commission Chairman Robert D. Moran said. Moran also announced that the commission has worked out an agreement with the Labor Department under which each cited employer, at the time he is cited, will be supplied with written information explaining how to contest OSHA citations and penalty proposals. This will go into effect as soon as printing and distribution of the information to OSHA area offices can be accomplished. With these changes, no one who is dissatisfied with an OSHA enforcement action affecting him, should have any trouble understanding what he must do to obtain a hearing on the matter, and, if he wants a hearing, there will no longer be any red tape or other legal barriers to achieving that desire, Moran said,
FRED. S. JAMES & COMPANY INVITES YOU
If you're attending the National Safety Congress being held in Chicago the week of October 30th, the Fred. S. James & Co. invites you to visit their hospitality suite in Playboy Towers on the days of October 30 & 31 from 5-10 P.M.
MCAA 1973
MARRIOTT
HAI LAN I FEB. 22-28
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