Iowa On-Site Safety and Health Consultation
and Education
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Random OSHA Inspections Save Employers Money:
A study published May 18 in the prestigious journal
Science documents significant
benefits to employers that received a random occupational safety
and health inspection and to employees of those business.
Employees benefitted from a 9.4% reduction in annual injuries,
and the employers benefitted from a 26% reduction in the costs
of injuries. The economists who performed the study were
not able to find any negative impact on wages, employment, or
firm survival.
The study matched 409 California business that received random
OSHA inspections with similar businesses that did not.
Each business was in a high-injury industry, had at least 10
employees, and had only 1 worksite.
"This study confirms what many firms have long known:
safety pays," said Labor Commissioner Michael Mauro.
Significant Changes to OSHA Hazard Communication
Standard are Coming: Businesses that use,
transport, and sale hazardous chemicals will be impacted by new
hazard communication requirements. Deadlines for
implementing the changes range from December 1, 2013, to June 1,
2016.
Click here for deadline details.
Under the current system, chemical manufacturers may be subject
to a variety of different requirements for transporting,
exporting, importing or selling their products. Different
countries and different agencies have different protocols that
can make compliance difficult. Many stakeholders and
agencies cooperated over a period of several years to develop a
globally harmonized system for chemical hazard communication.
It is anticipated that by harmonizing requirements, the new
system will result in significant savings to businesses.
Material safety data sheets (MSDS) are a primary component of
the OSHA system for hazard communication. The new standard
will utilize a Safety Data Sheet
(SDS) rather than a MSDS. There will be a
standardized format for the SDS to
allow users to find important information more quickly.
For more information about the hazard communication changes,
please visit
http://www.osha.gov/dsg/hazcom/index.html or
contact the Iowa OSHA Consultation
and Education Bureau at 515-281-7629.
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Iowa
OSHA's Consultation Service offers free and confidential service to help
Iowa employers comply with the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration standards and to remove existing hazards in the
workplace. Consultation's services are totally separate from
enforcement and do not result in citations or penalties.
Upon
written request from an employer, trained Industrial Hygienists and/or
Safety Consultants will visit the workplace, assist in identifying
hazards and improving the employer's safety and health management
system.
An
on-site consultation may include, but is not limited to, identification
of hazards in the workplace; review of written safety and health
programs; review of OSHA 300 logs for injury and illness trends, review
of the safety and health management program; exposure monitoring for
fumes, dusts, or noise; and evaluation of engineering controls as
necessary.
Both
private sector and government employers may request Iowa Consultation
services by completing the Request for On-Site
Services. The employers' obligation is to correct serious job
safety and health hazards in a timely manner.
Qualified employers may participate in OSHA Consultation SHARP (Safety
and Health Achievement Recognition Program). The program
recognizes employers who have demonstrated exemplary achievements in
workplace safety and health by receiving a comprehensive safety
and health consultation visit, correcting all workplace safety and
health hazards, adopting and implementing effective
safety
and health management systems, and agreeing to request further
consultative visits if major changes in working conditions or processes
occur that may introduce new hazards. Employers meeting these
specific program requirements may be exempt from general scheduled OSHA
inspections for one year.
Iowa OSHA Education Services
Iowa
Education offers free training on safety and health topics.
Consultants are also available to attend seminars and conferences.
Employers may request training by completing the
Request for Services by Educational
Staff.
Iowa
Education section offers a variety of
safety education videos that can be borrowed, free of charge,
for public use. Please contact Ylonda Shook at
shook.ylonda@dol.gov or (515)
281-0202 if you have questions about the videos.
Iowa
OSHA has adopted the Federal OSHA Standards 29 CFR 1910, 1926 and 1928.
Copies of these standards can be found on
www.osha.gov. In addition, Iowa has additional requirements
related to the Right to Know Standards. These requirements can be
found under Iowa Administrative Rules 875–Chapter
110 and
Chapter 130.
Additional Iowa OSHA Hazard
Communication Training can be found under Iowa Administrative Rules 875–Chapter
3.22.
The Voluntary Protection
Program (VPP) for the State of Iowa is administered through the
Education Services. If you have questions about this recognition
program, please contact Shashi Patel at
patel.shashi@dol.gov or (515)
281-6369.
The Compliance Assistance
Specialist (CAS) is available to answer your questions regarding
recordkeeping, OSHA regulations, partnerships, alliances and is a
resource for safety and health assistance. The CAS is available to
provide outreach and training on OSHA topics at seminars, safety
meetings and conferences. To reach Iowa's Compliance Assistance
Specialist, contact Mike Whitmore at
whitmore.mike@dol.gov or
(515) 281-0862.
For more information
regarding OSHA Consultation and Education services, please contact our
office by calling (515) 281-7629 or (515) 281-0202.
