Austin, TX — Women injured on the job have a better chance of qualifying for workers’ compensation disability payments and receiving higher payouts when a female doctor evaluates their claim, according to a recent study.

Salem, OR — Oregon OSHA is seeking public comment on proposed rules that would increase worker protections against extreme heat and wildfire smoke, calling them “the strongest such protections in the nation.”

Silver Spring, MD — Claiming the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is “once again responding to political pressures from those desperate to remove any safety protocols during this deadly pandemic that is still causing unacceptable numbers of infections, hospitalizations and deaths every day,” the nation’s largest union and professional association of registered nurses is calling on the agency to reverse its most recent COVID-19 guidance.

Washington — Contending that “safety is compromised when truck parking is not readily available,” the leaders of the American Trucking Associations and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association are calling on the Department of Transportation to prioritize funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to address the issue.

Did you know that all vehicle recalls must be repaired for free? Vehicle Safety Recalls Week is a great time to see if your vehicle has any current recalls.

Washington — In response to an “increase in incidents involving grating” on offshore energy platforms, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement has issued a safety alert.

Copenhagen, Denmark — Performing “simple and brief strengthening exercises designed to strengthen the primary muscles used during work” – known as micro-exercise – while on the job may help prevent long-term sickness absences, according to a recent study out of Denmark.

Arlington, VA — The Mine Safety and Health Administration is reminding miners working near oil and gas wells to remain aware that “an inadvertent intersection with one of these wells” could be hazardous.

Geneva — As telework grows more common, the World Health Organization and the International Labor Organization are encouraging employers to develop programs to help make the practice “healthy and safe.”

Washington — The Senate on Feb. 17 passed legislation intended to help prevent suicide, reduce burnout, and address mental and behavioral health conditions among health care professionals.