Labor

Washington – OSHA has withdrawn from its website a guidance document for compliance officers who inspect grain storage facilities, stating that it is working on a new version to ease concerns that the guidance ignored a law exempting family farms from OSHA inspections.

Des Plaines, IL – Culture change and training are needed to help prevent violence against nurses, according to a recent study from the Emergency Nurses Association.

Boston – Eating a Mediterranean-style diet may help improve the heart health of young workers, according to a new study from Harvard University and Cambridge Health Alliance.

Washington – A new special issue of the Journal of Safety Research features research projects from the 2011 National Occupational Injury Research Symposium.

Arlington, VA – A new voluntary consensus standard for determining whether personal protective equipment meets performance standards has been approved by the American National Standards Institute.

Washington – The Spray Foam Coalition – part of the American Chemistry Council’s Center for the Polyurethanes Industry – has adopted a new code of conduct aimed at improving health and safety among its member companies.

Washington – Is OSHA overstepping its authority and ignoring congressional mandates? This question was debated at a Feb. 4 House Workforce Protections Subcommittee hearing, during which subcommittee chair Rep. Tim Walberg (R-MI) suggested the agency has circumvented the public rulemaking process through several actions that “dramatically” changed existing policies.

Arlington, VA – Mine safety has been on an upward trend since 2010 thanks to a number of initiatives from the Mine Safety and Health Administration, agency head Joseph A. Main said Jan. 30.

Washington – Dorothy Dougherty has been appointed as OSHA’s new assistant administrator, the agency announced Jan. 30.

East Lansing, MI – Conducting work at home on a smartphone at night may make it hard for employees to sleep, leaving them with less energy the next day, according to two new studies from Michigan State University.