Safety and Workplace Violence
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EEOC Accuses Security Firm of Sexual Harassment Against Male Workers
A two male employees from a North Carolina-based security firm allegedly made offensive comments to their male subordinates, solicited nude pictures from them, asked male employees to undress in front of them and solicited male employees for sex.
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IHOP Franchisee Settles EEOC Sex Discrimination Lawsuit for $1 Million
After complaints were made about Lee Broadnax's behavior, IHOP failed to take reasonable measures to prevent and promptly correct sexual harassment allegations, according to court documents.
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Tougher Law in Hawaii Aims to Protect Harassed Workers
Although many employers are complying with Act 206, some 'felt that it didn't need to be required,' notes employer group attorney.
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Health, Safety Lapses in Lab Tied to Fungal Meningitis Outbreak
Investigators found “serious health and safety deficiencies” at the compound pharmaceutical lab tied to the fungal meningitis outbreak, according to a preliminary report released Oct. 22.
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Trash, Recyclable Collector Deaths Spike in 2011
On-the-job fatalities among trash and recycling collectors dramatically increased last year, making the job the fourth most dangerous in the land.
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Trucking Firm Ordered to Reinstate Whistle-Blower, Pay $315,000
The award reflects $280,000 in back wages and interest, $15,000 in compensatory damages and $20,000 in punitive damages, OSHA said. The federal agency does not release the names of employees involved in whistle-blower complaints.
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OSHA Steps Up Safety Inspections in South
Beginning August 20, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration will increase the number of unannounced inspections it performs at worksites in Region 4, which encompasses eight southern states east of the Mississippi River.
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Four Times More Public Waste Workers Get Hurt, Sick Than Private
An average of 4,017 public collection workers missed at least one day of work annually between 2008 and 2010. That compares with an annual average of 1,070 collection workers in the private sector.
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YouTube Workplace Safety Video on Response to 'Active Shooter' Goes Viral
The city of Houston's Mayor's Office of Public Safety and Homeland Security produced the informational video, titled 'Run. Hide. Fight. Surviving an Active Shooter Event' and released it after the Colorado movie theater incident.
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Mine Safety Agency Cites Tire, Mining Companies in Worker's Death
Purcell Tire & Rubber Co. said it will contest citations from the Mine Safety & Health Administration over the Oct. 28, 2011, death of a mining tire technician at the Newmont USAgold mine in Carlin, Nevada.
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Worker Fired After Urinating on Co-Workers' Chairs
Police reportedly are trying to determine whether they can charge the 59-year-old information technology worker with criminal mischief, according to the Des Moines Register.
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Waste Companies, Workers Adapting to Phone Ban
Trash collectors around the country are getting used to stringent federal rules that severely restrict the use of cell phones while they are behind the wheel.
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Homicides Accounted for 11 Percent of Workplace Fatalities in '09: NCCI
From 1993 to 2009, the rate of workplace homicides fell 59 percent while the overall rate of homicides fell 47 percent, according to the study.
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Employer Must Pay Workers' Compensation for Concurrent Job: Court
William Thomas worked as a light equipment operator for the Warren County Department of Public Works when he was injured in 2009. Court records show that Thomas also was employed by a janitorial service at that time.
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Report: California Program has Little Effect on Worker Injuries, Fatalities
While safety standards listed under the state Injury and Illness Prevention Program typically improve safety, the commission said it's unclear whether state mandates cause employers to be safer than companies that voluntarily implement such practices.
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California Prevention Program Has Little Effect on Worker Injuries, Fatalities: Report
The California Commission for Health, Safety and Workers' Compensation released a draft of the study on Jan. 12.
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Top 5 Workplace Injury Causes Make Up 72 Percent of Direct Workers' Comp Costs: Analysis
Overexertion—or injuries caused by lifting, pushing, pulling, holding and carrying—costs businesses $12.5 billon in direct annual expenses and accounts for more than 25 percent of the national burden, according to Liberty Mutual's Workplace Safety Index.
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UPS Pilots' Union Says FAA Fatigue Rule Threatens Public Safety
Under the new rule finalized Dec. 21, cargo pilots are exempt from a sweeping overhaul of commercial airline pilot scheduling, where pilots would fly shorter shifts and be given longer rest periods, the FAA said in statement.
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OSHA Issues Safety Guidelines for Black Friday Retailers
In a tip sheet posted Nov. 17, OSHA said workplace injuries during jam-packed holiday sales have increased, and cited the 2008 death of an employee trampled by Black Friday shoppers.
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OSHA Tightens Its Fall Protection Rules
The new directive states that all residential construction industry employers must protect their workers who are engaged in work at six feet or more above lower levels by conventional fall protection systems or by other fall protection measures.
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Court: Workers' Comp Is Exclusive Fix for Construction Injury
Charles DeFrates sought to sue Robert Clark, sole owner of R.G. Clark Construction Inc. in Calpella, California, for personal injury after he slipped and fell while working on the roof of Clark's new duplex, court records show.
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Hospital Employee Sues Employer After Being 'Traumatized' in Hostage Drill
In the complaint, Ourida Diktakis alleges that the hospital's administrators intentionally did not inform her or the ICU staff of the drill.
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Court Rules Employer Liable for Accident Involving Employee's Vehicle
A contractor can be held liable for an employee hitting and injuring another worker with a truck, even though the accident involved the employee's personal vehicle, a California appellate court has ruled.
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The Impact of Motors & Mobiles
Experts recommend that employers establish and enforce policies about talking or texting while driving on the job. As many companies have discovered, distracted drivers are a liability to themselves and other motorists—as well as the employers for whom they work.
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EEOC Sues Albuquerque Dealership for Sexual Harassment
The suit alleges that managers retaliated against men who reported incidents to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
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Drug Arrests at Boeing Plant May Reveal Bigger Workplace Worry
Employers nationwide have learned that some workers' compensation claimants are becoming addicted to opioid painkillers prescribed for their work-related injuries; they are also discovering that employees using those prescription drugs may also drive workplace injuries.
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Annie, Get Your Gun ... and Bring It to Work
A new Texas law gives gun owners a new right to store a weapon in their vehicle while at work. Where does that leave employers?
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Sexual Harassment Bills Proposed for Hotels
The proposed laws come in the wake of two alleged attacks by high-profile people in New York hotels, including the alleged sexual assault by Dominique Strauss-Kahn at the Sofitel in Manhattan.
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Ford Improves Worker Safety, Hollywood-Style
Researchers are creating a multinational avatar based on Ford’s North American virtual workers Jack and Jill. The new avatar will reflect the sizes and shapes of workers at assembly plants across the globe.
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Spider-Man Fall Puts Focus on Safety
The $65 million musical, the most expensive and ambitious ever done on Broadway, has faced many setbacks and delays in its attempt to open on the Great White Way. Most recently, the show’s producers announced they were delaying opening night by four weeks to Feb.
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Taking Control of Anger Management
Experts believe the recession has put more employees on edge because of heavier workloads and worries about job security as colleagues are pushed out the door.
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Fatalities Decline Among Solid Waste and Recycling Firm Workers
Total fatalities for all waste management and remediation service employees—including collection, landfill workers and other jobs—fell from 74 to 43 from 2008 to 2009.
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'There Is a New Sheriff in Town' What Employers Need to Know About OSHA Compliance Today
The officials responsible for federal programs aimed at worker safety and health emphatically reject what they perceive as the failure of the Bush administration to protect employees.
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Court Executives Who Own Parking Lot Can Be Sued in Fall
Executives of Connecticut employers may face new liability exposures, after a state court ruled that the workers’ comp exclusive remedy doctrine only shielded companies, not individuals from a negligence lawsuit by an injured employees.
