Specific Industries


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Specific Industries

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Agriculture
Construction
Health Care Safety
Shipyards
Trenching

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Legislation: Governor Signs Occupational Safety-Related Laws; New Requirements For Safe Patient Handling, Body Artists, and Pipelines
December 2011
The Legislature had a busy session in 2011, and Gov. Jerry Brown signed a flurry of bills into law this fall--including three that will affect occupational safety and health in California. We'll provide an overview of those laws. . . . more »

Trainer's Handbook: Safe Work Procedures Can Prevent Deadly Nail Gun Injuries; Train Workers to Safely Handle This Powerful Equipment
December 2011
Nail guns are used every day on many construction jobs. Although they boost productivity, nail guns also cause tens of thousands of painful injuries each year. . . . more »

OSHA and NIOSH release nail gun safety guide
November 2011
Federal OSHA and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health have teamed up to publish a new guide designed to help employers and workers prevent work-related nail gun injuries. The guid . . . more »

Contractors: Who Is Responsible for Safety on Multi-Employer Worksites? A Primer for Controlling Employers
November 2011
Cal/OSHA's rules for multi-employer worksites define the roles for four different categories of employers, with the heaviest burden falling on the "controlling employer" at each worksite. These rules are found in Article 4.5 of Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations and apply to both general industry and construction industry employers. If you're involved in a multi-employer site, you need to know who the controlling employer is and what that means for your safety responsibilities. . . . more »

Appeals Board Decisions: Do General Industry Safety Orders Apply to Construction-Related Work? The Board Weighs In
August 2011
Stacy and Witbeck, an Alameda-based construction employer, kept a storage facility in San Francisco that was used to supply its construction projects throughout the city. Materials for the projects, which involved removing and replacing old water pipes within San Francisco, were stored at the facility along with the trucks that transported them. . . . more »

Agriculture: NIOSH Study Raises Concerns About Pesticide Drift; Risk Factors and Control Strategies for Preventing Worker Exposures
August 2011
With nine of the nation's 10 top-producing agricultural counties, and nearly half of the nation's homegrown fruits, nuts, and vegetables produced here, California is an agricultural powerhouse. . . . more »

Trainer's Handbook: Keep Workers' Hands Clear; Safe Operating Procedures for Workers Using Miter Saws
May 2011
A crew from Petersen Brothers Construction in Brea was installing an adjustable paver pedestal system at a worksite in 2008 when a worker was injured using a miter saw. The worker was cutting plastic tubing, the tube "kicked," and the employee cut his thumb on the saw. A follow-up inspection by Cal/OSHA resulted in two citations against Petersen Brothers for not maintaining the miter saw in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions and not training the saw operator. . . . more »

Appeals Board Decisions: Employer Cited for Failing to Guard Sump Pit Edges; Rules for Guards Around Ditches, Pits, and Excavations Clarified
April 2011
At a dairy farm in the small Central Valley community of Pixley, a contractor was using a Caterpillar loader to transfer fertilizer from a pile on the ground into trucks. The fertilizer pile was located in an area 50 to 75 feet wide, between two sump pits containing a mixture of water and manure. . . . more »

Industrial Equipment: New Cal/OSHA Rule Requires Rollover Protection And Operator Training for Power Lawn Mowers
November 2010
On Aug. 30, 2004, Michael Petrini was mowing at the Santa Barbara Mission when the lawn tractor he was riding hit a rock and tumbled over a ledge. Petrini was killed. Because of their son's death, Petrini's parents petitioned the state Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board to amend General Industry Safety Orders Section 3563, Power Lawn Mowers, to require rollover protective systems (ROPSs) and seat belts, which they feel could have spared their son's life. . . . more »

Federal OSHA: New Rule on Cranes and Derricks in Construction Finalized; What It Means for California Employers
October 2010
On July 28, federal OSHA finalized an updated rule on cranes and derricks in construction, which is designed to prevent the leading causes of fatalities, including electrocution, crushed-by/struck-by hazards during assembly/disassembly, collapse, and overturn. . . . more »

Explosives: Cal/OSHA Clarifies Requirements for the Restricted Zone; Who Can Be Where, And When, During Blasting
October 2010
An alert Cal/OSHA inspector was driving along a public road in 2001 when he spotted an air drill lying near the roadway. The inspector recognized it as a tool used to drill blasting holes and wondered why it was so close to the road. When he stopped to check it out, he discovered that blasting holes were indeed drilled in the area--one of them was closer than 33 feet from the road. . . . more »

Featured Resource: Whole Grains Can Be Deadly to Workers; A Checklist to Prevent Grain Engulfment Accidents
October 2010
Grains have been in the news lately, and it hasn't all been good. In the past year, federal OSHA has issued millions of dollars in fines against employers across the country after incidents in which workers were engulfed in stored grain. . . . more »

Bulletin: Cal/OSHA shuts down farming operations for violations of heat illness prevention standard
September 2010
Cal/OSHA shuts down farming operations for violations of heat illness prevention standard. With many regions of the state experiencing . . . more »

Bulletin: OSHA issues new rule on crane and derricks in construction
September 2010
Federal OSHA has published its final rule addressing the use of cranes and derricks in construction. The new rule is designed to prevent the leading causes of . . . more »

Ergonomics: Back Injuries Cost California Farms More Than $22 Million Each Year; Prevent These Costly Injuries
September 2010
Life on the farm can mean back-breaking work for the workers who spend their days in the fields. Carrying heavy weights such as tools and produce, they work bent over, kneeling, reaching over plants, and twisting their wrists as they apply force. . . . more »

Hazard Identification: Food for Thought; Food Production Facilities Find Themselves on High Hazard Industries List
August 2010
Although both working conditions and sanitation have improved since the days when Upton Sinclair detailed the horrors of Chicago's meatpacking industry in his 1906 novel The Jungle, food processing and manufacturing facilities still pose serious hazards to workers . . . more »

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