Hazardous Materials Managers News

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Asking, “What is crisis communications?” SHIFT Communications’ Christopher Penn offers the fundamental definition: the effort to mitigate damage to the company’s
reputation by third-party sources.

Crisis communications, Penn says, is the flipside of the
traditional goal of public relations, which is to garner positive attention and
approval of third parties. He likens it to firefighting, an apt

Chemical hazards can pose great physical, health and environmental dangers if not handled properly.  Manufacturer Labeling was the primary target of American Supply Association’s (ASA) April 10, 2013, webinar to address the revised OSHA Hazard Standard and the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals (GHS). The webinar, hosted by Ricky Bryant, Chairman of the ASA

Safety 2013, scheduled for June 24-27, in Las Vegas, NV, is ASSE’s premier event of the year. This year’s conference and exposition will host hundreds of educational workshops, numerous SH&E-related events and opportunities to network with the industry’s top experts. If you plan to attend, why not save some money on registration? The early registration discount for Safety 2013 ends today. Learn

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A new study suggests crosswalk countdown timers may pose a threat to driver safety. The timers are designed to let pedestrians know how much time they have to cross an intersection but the study indicates that drivers may be using the timers to beat traffic lights.

Arvind Magesan, assistant professor at the University of Calgary, is studying the countdown timers at pedestrian

With emerging technologies and processes in green technology, the pressure is on to help protect and restore the environment.  As the EU prepares for an influx of ‘green jobs,’ the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) investigates the implications or risks of green jobs for workers’ health and safety. 

With the publication of a new Foresight report, EU-OSHA attempts to

An explosion this weekend, at Statesville, N.C.’s, Bartlett Milling Company resulted in serious injury for one man, and serves as a reminder that incidents like this could be entirely preventable, the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health said.

Although no one was killed in last Sunday’s explosion, it was not the first safety violation for the flour and animal feed

ANSI and The Society for Standards Professionals (SES) have announced the 2013 World Standards Day Paper Competition. In conjunction with the U.S. Celebration of World Standards Day 2013, the competition has a theme of "Standards for a World at Work and Play," which represents the various ways standards are represented in everyday lives. ANSI reports the theme, ". . . reflects the many ways that

ASSE Foundation (ASSEF) has announced the recipients of its 2013 Scholarship & Professional Education Grant program. The Foundation awarded nearly $194,000 to 103 individuals who represented 37 different universities.

In other ASSEF news, the new Spring 2013 issue of The Advocate is available online. Read the new issue to learn about the Foundation’s programs and how you can help further its

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Mine Safety and Health Administration has released preliminary data for 2012 indicating record low injury and fatality rates.

Last year saw the lowest fatality rate in the history of U.S. mining, with .0107 deaths per 200,000 hours worked. The rate of reported injuries was also the lowest on record with 2.56 per 200,000 hours worked. These reductions

As the population continues to age, the workforce is changing. As more and more organizations hire on more new employees, young people and apprentices, there is an increasing number of employees needing to trade up from driving a car to a bigger commercial vehicle, which, to the inexperienced driver, could result in a road safety issue. Interactive Driving Systems stresses the

OSHA has released Firefighting Precautions at Facilities with Combustible Dust, a new, informational booklet outlining safe techniques for emergency responders who may face fires and explosions caused by combustible dust.

This booklet describes how combustible dust explosions occur and uses past incidents to illustrate how firefighting operations can prevent similar explosions. It

To protect employees from the spread of bloodbourne pathogens (BBP) and reduce substantial OSHA fines, Cintas Corporation is offering customers free BBP training with the purchase of any of it’s instructor-led training courses. 

Cintas recognizes the importance of educating employees, particularly first responders, on proper protocols for handling and limiting exposure risk to BBPs.

Construction is among the most
hazardous industries, and falls are the leading cause of death in the
construction industry, according to OSHA. In 2010, there were 774 total
fatalities in construction, with 264 due to falls. Scaffolding
was the third most frequently cited OSHA standard in 2012, with the fall
protection topping that list.

To help contractors, Kee Safety has compiled the

A new proposal for an international standard submitted by The British Standards Institution would specify requirements for an occupational health and safety (OH&S) management system. ANSI invites the public to submit comments on the proposed standard by Friday, April 26, 2013. ANSI reports that the standard would create requirements for an OH&S system, ultimately providing organizations with more

National Research Council (NRC) recently published a report focusing on the future of the energy and mining industries. "Emerging Workforce Trends in the U.S. Energy and Mining Industries: A Call to Action," is a joint effort from the Department of Energy’s National Energy Technology Laboratory and NRC to study the state of the energy and mining workforces and to ensure that they have a skilled,

The ASSE Triangle Award will honor an occupational SH&E professional for his/her outstanding heroism and dedication to fellow employees and the profession. The award was created in honor of the 146 victims of the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire in New York City, NY. The first-ever presentation of this award will take place at the 2013 NAOSH Week kick-off event scheduled for May, 6, 2013, at

“In February 2012, a worker using a product containing methylene chloride to refinish a bathtub was found dead, slumped over a bathtub in an unventilated bathroom.”

OSHA and the NIOSH- supported FACE program have linked at least 14 worker deaths with stripping agents containing methylene chloride since 2000.

OSHA and NIOSH released a Hazard Alert, encouraging employers to use alternative,

According to a survey by Aon
Hewitt, incentives are playing a larger role in encouraging employees to
improve their health. The survey of nearly 800 large and mid-size U.S.
employers found that 83% offer incentives to workers who participate in
programs that help them become more aware of their health status. Of the 83% of
employers that offer incentives:

79% offer incentives in the form of

AIHA’s Construction Committee Silica Competent Person Project Team has released a white paper, "Recommended Skills and Capabilities for Silica Competent Persons." The paper discusses the minimum body of knowledge needed by a person to provide worker protection from silica. AIHA reports that the white paper provides a list of recommended subject-specific skills and objectives that a silica

In a recent interview with NFPA Journal, ESPN Anchor Hannah Storm shares her story of how she received first- and second-degree burns from a gas grill explosion. The incident occurred December 2012, at her home when she went outside to turn on the grill. According to Storm, she noticed the flames had been blown out by the wind, so she turned off the gas, then turned it back on and hit the igniter

With NCAA’s March Madness in full swing, EHS Today recently ran the article, "Place Your Bets: Wagers in the Workplace Gaining Acceptance," which discusses a survey that reveals office betting might be becoming more acceptable. The Vault 2013 Office Betting Survey revealed that 79% of the respondents think it is appropriate to participate in office betting, and that it is seen as a way to

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According to a report from National Research Council,
despite advances in research, practices and rescue strategies to improve safety
and health for underground coal miners, more coordinated planning and training
are needed to better prepare workers to escape in the event of a mine
emergency. The committee that wrote the report says for self-escape, miners

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has scheduled a third stakeholder meeting to discuss the crane operator certification requirements in the Cranes and Derricks in Construction standard. The third meeting will be held April 3, from 1:30-4:30p.m., and will focus on the effectiveness of crane operator certification.

OSHA seeks the publics’ opinion on 1) the usefulness of

GlobalPost has published an in-depth investigative series that explores the world’s most dangerous jobs that are in part responsible for killing more than 6,000 people every day. From shipbreaking in Asia and radiological cleanup in Japan, to stone polishing in India and bus driving in Guatemala, the series paints a descriptive portrait of the workers in these industries, the jobs they endure and

"Fatal Fashion," a report from Center for Research on Multinational Corporations (SOMO) and Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC), describes the fires that ravaged garment plants in Pakistan and Bangladesh. “Hundreds of workers were killed in horrendous circumstances, and many others were severely injured,” the groups say. “Substandard buildings, poor emergency procedures, blocked fire exits,

A study published in CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, found that mobile device use while driving is more common among drivers in the U.S. compared to drivers in Europe. European countries included Belgium, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and the U.K. Drivers aged 18 to 64 were surveyed and the overall results show that about one in three drivers in the U.S. read or

President Obama has nominated Thomas E. Perez to be the next secretary of labor. If confirmed, he would replace Hilda Solis who resigned in January. Perez currently is a U.S. assistant attorney general heading the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

In making the nomination, Obama said Perez is proof that "you can make it if you try." "Like so many Americans, Tom knows what it’s like to

     The American Association of Poison Control Centers (AAPCC) encourages parents, grandparents and caregivers to learn the dangers of poisonings and how to keep children safe.

“About half of all poison exposures reported to poison centers involve children younger than 6, most often occurring when parents are busy preparing meals, caring for other children, or completing everyday

DOT’s booklet, A Parent’s Guide to Playing It Safe With Kids & Cars, provides information about current vehicle safety features, car seats and how to keep kids safe in and around vehicles. The booklet includes a list of vehicle makes and models and their safety features, along with illustrations of safety features. A guideline for choosing a proper car seat, an evaluation of car seat features

The Conference Board is hosting a webcast, “Journey
to World-Class Safety,” April 24, at 3:00 p.m. EST, sponsored by that
group’s Chief EH&S Officers’ Council. Based on a survey conducted last fall
with follow-up input from council members, the webcast will provide relevant
information on how top-tier EHS programs are managed, and how to identify
challenges to reaching and staying in the top tier

In his article “Total Performance Safety” from the latest issue of the Mining Practice Specialty’s publication Inside Global Mining, Randy DeVaul maintains that safety programs that begin with great intentions often turn into a paper-tracking nightmare or the documentation becomes the ends to the means.

To ensure that a product or service is delivered on time and that employees do their assigned

NTSB has issued a series of general aviation safety alerts
that address the most frequent types of general aviation incidents. According
to the agency, each year, about 475 pilots and passengers are killed and
hundreds more are seriously injured in general aviation incidents in the U.S., putting
general aviation on NTSB’s
most wanted list.

The agency says that in many of the 1,500 incidents