News
A draft final rule of OSHA’s updated Silica Standard has been sent to the Office of Management and Budget for review, one of the last steps a rule takes before being publicly published.
OSHA withdrew from OMB review a final rule that would address slip, trip and fall hazards, but the agency says it remains committed to publishing the standard.
Notable proposed fines
$366,300 to a St. Louis steel manufacturer for multiple, including personal protective equipment, sanitation and lockout/tagout, and failing to correct previously cited hazards after a worker’s electrocution
$162,000 to an Illinois contractor for allegedly exposing workers to falls greater than 14 feet due to unguarded floor openings and windows and other fall hazards at a residential framing project
$109,000 to a railroad contractor for a defective crane whose boom pinned and killed a worker at a Texas petrochemical loading and unloading facility
$101,500 to a Missouri warehouse for failing to report the hospitalization of three workers who were injured when numerous pallets of glass bottles collapsed, among other violations
$87,000 to a Pennsylvania railcar parts and steel product manufacturer for personal protective equipment, lockout/tagout, and other violations related to a worker’s injury in which he suffered second- and third-degree burns from an arc blast
$43,560 to a screen printing shop in Wisconsin for guarding and lockout/tagout violations following a worker’s finger getting fractured when it was caught in a mechanical power press
Happening this week
Jan. 8 – Full enforcement of OSHA’s Confined Spaces in Construction for residential construction goes into effect
Review Counter
Below is a count of how many days recent OSHA proposals have been under review, as of Jan. 4:
| # of Days | OSHA Proposal |
| 91 | Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses (final rule) |
| 14 | Silica (final rule) |
The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs – part of the White House’s Office of Management and Budget – reviews proposed regulations. The process is required for most rules before they can move forward, and typically takes 90 days.
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