Blood, chemicals among hazards airport workers face: study

New York – Airport workers frequently encounter unsafe working conditions, according to a report from the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health.

NYCOSH surveyed workers employed by airline contractors at New York’s John F. Kennedy and LaGuardia airports. The committee found a wide range of preventable hazards, including exposure to unidentified chemicals, blood, needles and temperature extremes.

NYCOSH offered several key recommendations for airline employers, including:

• Conduct workplace hazard assessments.
• Provide workers with necessary materials, such as cleaning products for disinfecting soiled wheelchairs, to ensure health and safety.
• Provide health and safety training for hazards involving blood and chemicals.
• Provide personal protective equipment when needed.
• Ensure fall protection during use of mechanical conveyances.
• Protect workers against exposure to temperature extremes.
• Reduce exposure to harmful noise levels by turning off engines when feasible, using quieter equipment, distancing workers from the source of the noise and providing hearing protection such as earplugs and earmuffs.