Labor Division

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Lexington, KY — The Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center has issued a hazard alert after data from 2016 showed that 405 workers in the state were treated in emergency rooms for job-related traumatic brain injuries.

Washington — OSHA’s efforts to require employers to report occupational fatalities and certain injuries in a timely manner lack “sufficient guidance on how to detect and prevent underreporting,” the Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General states in its semiannual report to Congress.

New Orleans — OSHA can issue citations to general contractors who fail to control hazardous conditions at multi-employer worksites, even if those conditions do not directly affect their own employees, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit ruled Nov. 26.

Triangle, VA — The United Mine Workers Association is suing the Mine Safety and Health Administration and its administrator, David Zatezalo, over the legality of the agency’s removal of a Sophia, WV, mine from Pattern of Violations status.

Washington — In an effort to help stem the rising rate of workplace violence against health care and social service workers, Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT) has proposed legislation that would direct OSHA to issue a standard requiring employers in those industries to develop and implement workplace violence prevention plans.

Washington — NIOSH is asking for stakeholder input on overcoming barriers to participation in the free health screenings offered through its Coal Workers’ Health Surveillance Program, according to a notice published in the Nov. 13 Federal Register.

Amsterdam — The Global Reporting Initiative has updated its occupational health and safety reporting standard, GRI 403, in an effort to address concerns over a lack of robust management, the organization recently announced.

In a memo sent Oct. 11 to regional administrators and state designees, the agency outlines examples of acceptable drug testing, and states that incentive programs that withhold prizes because of an injury are compliant “as long as the employer has implemented precautions to ensure that employees feel free to report an injury or illness.”

Maywood, IL — Educating new doctors on emotional intelligence could provide a method to help stem an elevated rate of burnout in the profession, the results of a recent Loyola University Medical Center study suggest.

Emmitsburg, MD — Eighty-seven firefighters were killed on the job in 2017, four fewer than in 2016, according to an annual report recently released by the U.S. Fire Administration.