Wes Bucey
Prophet of Profit
While the violations on the annual OSHA Top 10 list don't typically change from year to year, experts say they should serve as a reminder to employers to learn how they can appropriately apply the safety standards in their workplaces.
The preliminary annual list of OSHA's most frequently cited workplace safety violations was released at a recent meeting of the National Safety Council. They are:
Wes's take:
Not only employers, but employees need to be aware of the on the job risks and hazards and stay alert when working in such an environment. Today, at my YMCA, I saw a worker standing on a relatively unstable chair to reach and wash a high window instead of using a long pole or a step ladder. The administrator looked at me like I was from Mars when I pointed out the hazard. The worker was even more scornful, but a fall to a tile floor can still break a bone or dislocate a joint, or worse, result in death, even when the height of the chair is only about two feet - the head of a six foot man travels eight feet to the floor.
REMEMBER: this is only a list of "reported" violations - think how many more go unreported.
The preliminary annual list of OSHA's most frequently cited workplace safety violations was released at a recent meeting of the National Safety Council. They are:
- Fall protection -- general requirements (1926.501). Total violations: 7,250.
- Hazard communication (1910.1200). Total violations: 4,696.
- Scaffolding (1926.451). Total violations: 3,814.
- Respiratory protection (1910.134). Total violations: 2,371.
- Ladders (1926.1053). Total violations: 2,310.
- Machine guarding (1910.212). Total violations: 2,097.
- Powered industrial trucks (1910.178). Total violations: 1,993.
- Electrical -- wiring methods (1910.305). Total violations: 1,744.
- Lockout/tagout (1910.147). Total violations: 1,572.
- Electrical -- general requirements (1910.303). Total violations: 1,332.
Wes's take:
Not only employers, but employees need to be aware of the on the job risks and hazards and stay alert when working in such an environment. Today, at my YMCA, I saw a worker standing on a relatively unstable chair to reach and wash a high window instead of using a long pole or a step ladder. The administrator looked at me like I was from Mars when I pointed out the hazard. The worker was even more scornful, but a fall to a tile floor can still break a bone or dislocate a joint, or worse, result in death, even when the height of the chair is only about two feet - the head of a six foot man travels eight feet to the floor.
REMEMBER: this is only a list of "reported" violations - think how many more go unreported.