Hazards

Washington – OSHA has announced it will issue a proposed rule to revise the agency’s standards on occupational exposure to crystalline silica.

Sacramento, CA – California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health has proposed a new standard on safe patient handling for part of the health care industry.

Washington – NIOSH on Aug. 12 released a free online course intended to help nurses and other health care professionals recognize and prevent workplace violence.

Washington – A group of organizations representing livestock transporters has requested a permanent exemption from the 30-minute rest-break requirement in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s hours-of-service regulations, citing animal safety concerns.

Winston-Salem, NC – Housing for migrant farmworkers may not provide adequate relief from hot temperatures, reducing workers’ ability to rest and recover from work exposure to heat, according to a new study from the Wake Forest School of Medicine.

Chicago – The U.S. Public Health Service has published new guidelines for how health care personnel should handle occupational exposure to HIV.

Washington – OSHA has launched a Regional Emphasis Program on noise hazards targeting select New England manufacturing and food production facilities.

Washington – A joint OSHA-NIOSH hazard alert issued July 31 highlights the dangers of the solvent 1-bromopropane.

Washington – Workers are dying as a result of the delays in the rulemaking process, witnesses told a Senate subcommittee on Aug. 1.

To help truck drivers be physically and mentally prepared for the demands of their jobs, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration mandates a minimum number of hours drivers must sleep on days they drive. What these regulations cannot take into account, however, is whether drivers who have a sleeping disorder have actually achieved restful sleep before getting behind the wheel.