Articles Posted in Worker’s Compensation

The Occupational Safety & Health Administration has cited the U.S. Postal Service for willful and serious safety violations after reports that employees were exposed to electrical hazards that could have led to a serious or fatal Shrewsbury, Massachusetts work accident.

Our Boston workers’ compensation lawyers frequently report on the dangers faced by employees in the workplace. Electrocution is a danger that doesn’t always get mentioned with other leading types of fatal work accidents, like falls and transportation accidents. However, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 168 workers were killed in work accidents caused by exposure to electrical current last year. Another 63 died after being exposed to overhead power lines.

OSHA has proposed $238,000 in fines against the Central Massachusetts Processing and Distribution Center.

“These sizable fines reflect the Postal Service’s knowledge of and failure to address these hazards,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Dr. David Michaels. “For years, the Postal Service knew that allowing untrained employees to work on electrical equipment exposed workers to serious injury or worse. Despite this knowledge, the Postal Service did not take the necessary steps to change its practices and eliminate the hazards.”

Inspections began June 29 in response to an employee complaint and found that unqualified employees were permitted to work on electrical circuits and equipment. Additionally, the equipment was not de-energized prior to being serviced and employees were not supplied insulated tools and other safety equipment. As a result, the Postal Service was issued three willful citations, which means an intentional or voluntary disregard for the safety and health of employees. Those fines total $210,000.

Four serious citations were also issued totaling $28,000. Those fines cite a lack of proper employee safety training in electrical work practices, lack of proper personal safety equipment, and failure to perform periodic inspections of the Shrewsbury facility’s energy control procedures.
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The Somerset Herald News reports a sanitation worker suffered a Massachusetts work accidents after falling off a garbage truck last week.

The employee reportedly suffered a head injury, although indications are that he would be back at work this week. Our Massachusetts’ workers compensation attorneys urge anyone injured on the job to undergo a through evaluation, particularly when a head injury is involved. Consequences of a head injury may take weeks, or months, to become apparent but can have serious or even fatal health consequences.

Reports indicate heavy rain may have been a factor in the accident, which happened after 5 p.m. at the intersection of New Boston Road and Freelove Street. The paper reports the Fall River Department of Public Waste has had its share of accidents. Two other workers have been seriously injured in the past several years and at least three others have been hurt, primarily from falling off the trucks.

A spokesman noted that neither private nor public waste removal services use helmets or safety tethers to help reduce the risk of falling from trucks. One employee lost both legs after falling from the truck and being pinned by another vehicle.

Eight members of the 71-employee department are currently out on Massachusetts workers’ compensation claims, including three who have been off work for upwards of a year or more.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics ranks trash collection among the Top 10 most dangerous occupations, with injury rates surpassing even those reported by law enforcement.

More modern trucks use side-loaders instead of crews. Only 3 of the city’s 18 trucks are newer side-load models.
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The Occupational Safety & Health Administration will hold hearings in January on ways to reduce work accidents caused by slip, trip and fall hazards.

Our Boston workers’ compensation attorneys know that fall accidents are among the leading causes of serious Massachusetts work injuries. Nationwide, 617 workers died in fall injuries last year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Eleven peopled died from falls on the job in Massachusetts.

“These public hearings will provide an important opportunity for stakeholders who will be impacted by the rule to share their concerns and provide input on the proposal,” said OSHA Assistant Secretary Dr. David Michaels. “Injuries and fatalities from fall hazards are a leading cause of work-related injuries and we need to have the best rule possible to ensure that we effectively address this serious hazard.”

The new rules aim to reduce the more than 3,700 cases of lost-time accidents resulting from work-surface fall accidents.
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The Occupational Safety & Health Administration has announced immediate changes to how companies must conduct outreach safety training programs after concern that employers were cramming training into unreasonably long workdays, thereby endangering employee safety.

Our Boston work injury lawyers are too often called to represent an injured employee after a Massachusetts work accident that could have been prevented with proper training and/or safety equipment. Unfortunately, employers sometimes put profits before safety. Amid the current economic challenges, OSHA became concerned that employees were not being provided adequate time to digest information provided in 10-hour and 30-hour training courses — primarily because companies were holding the training sessions in one-day or three-day marathon sessions.

The revisions permit a maximum of 7.5 hours of safety training a day. Ten-hour sessions must be held over at least two days. Thirty-hour sessions must occur over a minimum of four days.

“Limiting daily class hours will help ensure that workers receive and retain quality safety training,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA David Michaels.

The government was also concerned that the minimum training hours were not being met during 13- or 16-hour training days after breaks, lunch and other down time was taken into account.

A safety training fraud hotline has also been established, where fraud can be reported by employees or other interested parties.

The Outreach Training Program involves more than 17,000 independent trainers who teach employees workers’ rights and how to identify and prevent workplace hazards. The 10- and 30-hour classes are for construction, general industry and maritime, while a 16-hour class is provided for disaster site workers.
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A Boston work accident resulting from a collapsing gas-line trench has resulted in a $36,500 proposed fine, the Occupational Safety & Health Administration reported.

OSHA cited National Grid for six alleged serious violations of trenching safety standards after an employee was injured by a falling rock. The June 21 collapse of the gas line trench happened on Woodbine Avenue in Boston.

Boston workers’ compensation lawyers understand the inherent dangers faced by workers in trenches. Excavated dirt left at the edge of the trench can increase the pressure on trench walls. Heavy equipment working at the edges can increase vibrations in the ground and increase the risk of a trench collapse. Employers have an obligation to provide employees with the proper training and equipment necessary to stay safe when excavating or working in trenches.

Construction accidents caused by trench collapses result in an average of more than 70 deaths a year. Ten times as many workers are injured.

In this case, OSHA found the trench lacked protection against wall collapse and exposed workers to being struck by falling rock and soil. The workers also lacked proper training and the trench had not been properly inspected.

“This is precisely the type of incident OSHA’s excavation standards are designed to prevent,” said Brenda Gordon, OSHA’s area director for Boston and southeastern Massachusetts. “A competent inspection would have identified and allowed these hazardous conditions to be fixed before workers ever entered the trench. I urge employers to prevent incidents such as this one by always following proper procedures and ensuring effective trenching safeguards at all jobsites.”
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