This health, safety and environment electronic update comes from Chip Dawson and the Rochester Business Alliance as a service to member companies. There are currently 285 names on the list.
 
Pallet Racking Hazards...A recent fatality in Ontario caused by the collapse of a pallet racking system has prompted the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) to issue a comprehensive hazard alert with several excellent suggestions. The suggestions address installation (by trained installers), training, maintenance and inspection. To see the alert, click here.
 
Ergonomic Productivity...A 2003 University of Texas Health Science Center year-long study of 200 computer workers examined the link between ergonomic well-being and economic performance. One group got training and an ergo chair, another got only training, the control group got neither. By years end, the first group showed a 17.8 percent productivity increase worth $25,000 per worker! Chair and training cost $1,000 per worker and was recovered in just ten days!
 
Hotel Drinking Glasses...This link takes you to a TV report believed to have been shot in the Atlanta area. The story needs no further explanation, especially for those of you who travel for either pleasure or business.
 
Sun Safety...Now seems like a wonderful time to let you know about a fairly recent NYS labor law. The NYS Public Employees Sun Safety Law, §218-a, requires NYS public-sector employers to provide sun safety information to employees who spend more than five hours per week outdoors. No requirement for the private sector, but it does suggest that sun safety information is a prudent consideration for all employers.
 
Cost of Vehicle Crashes...The National Safety Council has recently updated its figures on the economic cost of motor vehicle crashes. The costs include wage and productivity losses, medical expenses, administrative expenses and employers' uninsured costs—clearly, costs that heavily impact the employer. Here's the data for 2006:

• Death — $1,210,000
• Nonfatal Disabling Injury — $55,000
• Property Damage Crash — $8,200

All figures to consider when determining the value of driver improvement training for your people.
 
Making Sense of Office Ergonomics...We asked ergonomist Sue Rodgers a while back for some advice on addressing office ergonomics issues. Here's what she told us. Do not throw a lot of equipment at the problem. Most often, awareness training for in-house ergonomic coordinators to allow them to assess the problem is sufficient. Typically, Sue says, the problems stem from office layouts or improper location of equipment. If a company wants to try some simple equipment such as foot rests or wrist rests, buy a couple of samples and set up a lending library so that operators can try them to see if they work. If a device really makes a difference, have the supervisor buy only what's needed. A good place to start with awareness training is the OSHA eTool on Computer Workstations. Click here for more information. If you need more help, let me know.
 
Common Mistakes with Chemicals...A while back, one of the safety resource lists on which I participate had an exchange on the most common errors people make working with chemicals. Here are the responses in no particular order:

• Confusing inorganic acids (nitric, sulfuric, etc.) with organic acids (acetic, formic, butyric). Inorganics are oxidizers and organics are fuels, so mixing causes an exothermic reaction.
• Not realizing that alkalis are just as harmful to flesh as acids.
• Blending bleach (sodium hypochlorite) with solutions such as ammonia or rust remover, which releases chlorine gas.
• Failure to verify the material with which one is working and pouring it into another, causing a violent reaction.
• Super heating chemicals.
• Adding water to acid.
• Storing incompatible chemicals together.
• Storing chemicals in the back of a fume hood being used for experiments.
• Using a bunsen burner with flammable liquids…really!
• Cleaning bench tops with benzene.
• Identifying chemicals by tasting or smelling.
• Keeping unlabeled and/or undated chemicals.

Accidental deaths Increasing...According to the National Safety Council, accidental deaths in the United States are rising at an alarming rate, more than 20 percent over a 10-year period, reaching 113,000 deaths in 2005. The NSC warns that at the current rate, the nation's all-time high of 116,385 accidental deaths, set in 1969, could be surpassed in the next few years. For people between 1 and 41 years of age, accidents are the leading cause of death in the nation.
 
Health and Safety Standards Set In Social Accountability Standard...While it's been around since 2001, the International Standard on Social Accountability (SA8000) is getting increasing attention worldwide. As of June 2007, more than 680,000 workers employed in 1373 facilities in 65 countries and 70 industrial sectors were covered by SA8000. As the first international standard on ethical behavior, it covers guidance on a number of subject areas that demand good ethical treatment, health and safety being one of them. In addition to a section that sounds much like the OSHA General Duty clause, the standard required a senior management representative in charge of health and safety, regular training for all new and experienced personnel and a system to detect, avoid or respond to potential threats to the health and safety of all personnel. You can download the standard here.
 
What are Safety Pros Working On?...The most recent ISHN magazine (www.ishn.com) White Paper has some answers. Basically, according to editor Dave Johnson, it's organizational issues. Here's his list:

1. Improving safety attitudes and behaviors throughout the organization (80 percent)
2. Upgrading personal leadership skills (72 percent)
3. Improving cultural safety consciousness
4. Management systems (46 percent)
5. Making the business case for safety and health investments (44 percent)

Flexible Jobs Yield Healthy Habits...A study by the Wake Forest University School of Medicine has found that workers, both office and production, who perceive flexibility in their jobs develop healthier habits (such as more physical activity, use of stress management programs, participation in health education, healthful sleep habits and general lifestyle improvement). Flexibility was defined as options for compressed work weeks, flextime, job sharing and telecommuting. For more information, click here.
 
Safe Use of Cleaning Products...Cleaning products, those chemicals used by housekeepers and janitors, can contain a variety of nasty ingredients that lead to problems when used in confined areas, in combination with other products, or for long periods of time. To reduce the risks to cleaning personnel and others exposed, the UC Berkeley Wellness Newsletter recommends the following:

• Have plenty of ventilation
• Use the smallest amount of product possible
• Dilute with water, even product in a spray bottle
• Rinse surfaces thoroughly with water after cleaning
• Recap containers right away
• Store products away from occupied spaces
• Wash out cleaning equipment with water and take disposables such as paper towels to outside trash
• Read labels
• Never mix cleaning products
• Wear a disposable mask when applying spray products
• Avoid products with fragrances
• If it will do the job, consider plain soap and water, a vinegar solution or baking soda.

For information about environmentally green products, click here.
 
Work Injury Costs Rise...Each year, the National Safety Council estimates the total economic cost (wage and productivity losses, medical expenses and administrative expenses) of workplace deaths and disabling injuries. For 2006, the figures have gone up to $1,240,000 per death and $39,000 per disabling injury. These figures provide an easy way to estimate the total impact on your organization. Chances are, when you run your annual calculations, you'll be talking real money.

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Lawrence H. "Chip" Dawson
Dawson Associates
Rochester Business Alliance Coordinating Consultant for HSE
6 Saddle Ridge Trail
Fairport, NY 14450-9584
(585) 425-1639