Federal Agencies

Washington — OSHA has published an overview of its most common COVID-19-related citations – and a reminder of employer requirements.

Washington — OSHA and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration will host virtual public meetings Nov. 19 in preparation for a pair of United Nations meetings.

Arlington, VA — Fatalities involving miners clearing material and obstructions in confined spaces have prompted the Mine Safety and Health Administration to issue a safety alert.

Washington — The Senate Appropriations Committee is seeking to cut OSHA’s Susan Harwood Training Grant Program, although it’s unclear if that will come to fruition in fiscal year 2021.

Washington — Aimed at ensuring proper ventilation in indoor workplaces amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a new OSHA safety alert lists measures employers and building managers should take.

Washington — The field of occupational safety and health must adapt as “technology, globalization, shifts in demographics, and other economic and political forces create new challenges for workers, employers and those who work to protect them,” two NIOSH researchers say.

Washington — The number of nonfatal work-related injuries and illnesses in the U.S. private sector remained unchanged in 2019, as did the incidence rate of total recordable cases, according to annual data released Nov. 4 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Washington — In a reversal of preliminary findings that the chemical substance Pigment Violet 29 poses no unreasonable risk of injury to humans or the environment, the Environmental Protection Agency is seeking public comment on a revised draft risk evaluation that states the chemical substance presents unreasonable risk to workers under certain conditions, according to a notice published in the Oct. 30 Federal Register.

Washington — The Department of Labor Office of Inspector General intends to conduct an audit of the number and types of inspections OSHA is using to protect workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as OSHA’s plans to address future pandemics, according to a fiscal year 2021 audit work plan released Nov. 2.

San Francisco — The Washington State Nurses Association is among four labor unions suing Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia and OSHA in an effort to compel the agency to move forward with rulemaking on an infectious diseases standard that would require employers in the health care industry to protect workers from exposure to harmful infectious diseases such as COVID-19, Ebola and influenza.