Despite a rise in violations, tougher enforcement of workplace regulations has reduced the number of on-the-job accidents in recent years, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

In its annual enforcement statistics, OSHA recently confirmed that the agency’s enforcement programs are producing positive results for the benefit of American workers. Fatality, injury and illness rates have continued to decline to record lows.

The injury and illness incidence rate of 4.4 per 100 employees for calendar year 2006 was the lowest that the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has ever recorded.

Despite a rise in violations in 2007, tougher enforcement of workplace regulations has reduced the number of on-the-job accidents. Last year, the United States Department of Labor’s agency conducted 39,324 workplace inspections, citing 88,846 violations of standards and regulations, a 6 percent increase from 2006, the agency reported.

Though citations increased, fatality and injury rates continued to decline in calendar year 2006 — 3.9 fatalities per 100,000 employees — an all-time low, according to OSHA.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing a safe workplace for their employees. OSHA’s role is to reduce on-the-job fatalities, injuries and illnesses by promoting workplace safety and health.

Yet, while OSHA is a well-known entity in manufacturing for occupational safety and health, not all organizations look to it as the only go-to group for their workers. United Auto Workers (UAW) union members, for instance, do not rely solely on the federal government to safeguard their health in the workplace.

The UAW explains:

Diesel particulates need to be strictly monitored and controlled, and workers with a union contract have the ability to negotiate standards that reduce workplace hazards. That’s what happened when UAW bargainers won significant improvements in diesel particulate levels at International Truck and Engine. The UAW used that requirement as the basis of its contract language on diesel particulates reached at Freightliner in Cleveland, N.C. That contract calls for tracking the “best practice” within the heavy truck industry.

While there is always room for safety improvement in the U.S., the situation internationally is just as bad, if not worse.

“Workplace fatalities, injuries and illnesses remain at unacceptably high levels and involve an enormous and unnecessary health burden, suffering and economic loss, amounting to 4 percent to 5 percent of gross domestic product (GDP),” according to the United Nations’ World Health Organization (WHO) and International Labor Organization (ILO).

Based on their estimates for the year 2000, there were 2 million work-related deaths per year. WHO estimates that there are only 10 percent to15 percent of workers who have access to a basic standard of occupational health services.

To illustrate the difficulty some overseas workers face as they strive to work safely, The Wall St. Journal recently offered some insight on cadmium poisoning at a Chinese plant: “Last year, at least 20 workers at a Panasonic Corp. cadmium-battery plant in Wuxi were found to have elevated levels of the toxin, and two were diagnosed as poisoned.”

“In 2005,” the WSJ article continued, 1,000 workers at a battery manufacturer in Xinxiang, Henan were also found with cadmium exposure.” After tests were performed, 177 laborers had cadmium levels above China’s safe-exposure level, and “dozens were immediately hospitalized.”

Representing 3 percent of total battery sales today, cadmium batteries are used to power numerous toys, power tools, cordless phones and other gadgets. These batteries are cheap and safe to use. But they can be hazardous to make, too, causing damage to the lungs, kidney disease and, as determined by the International Agency for Research on Cancer and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, cancer.

Although only two American companies still make cadmium batteries today, U.S. laws require them to follow strict guidelines on worker safety and environmental protection. In China, government standards on cadmium exposure are in line with those endorsed by the WHO. And without question, there are safe cadmium plants in China.

Having rules and enforcing them, however, are two very different things.

Sidebar
In the spirit of assuring safer workplaces, and because the weather has been getting pretty darn cold, we offer some tips suitable for the season.

With winter upon us, OSHA’s Cold Stress Card provides some tips to protect employees who work outdoors from harm:

• Recognize the environmental and workplace conditions that may be dangerous.
• Learn the symptoms of cold-induced illnesses/injuries and what to do to help employees.
• Train employees about cold-induced illnesses/injuries.
• Encourage employees to wear proper clothing for cold, wet and windy conditions.
• Be sure that employees in extremely cold conditions take frequent, short breaks in warm dry shelters to allow their bodies to warm up.
• Try to schedule work for the warmest part of the day.
• Avoid exhaustion or fatigue because energy is needed to keep muscles warm.
• Drink warm, sweet beverages and avoid drinks with caffeine or alcohol.
• Eat warm, high-calorie foods.
• Remember that employees increase their risks when they take certain medications, are in poor physical condition or suffer from illnesses.

Exposure to freezing and cold temperatures for extended periods “may cause trench foot, frostbite and hypothermia,” OSHA cautions. “Danger signs include uncontrolled shivering, slurred speech, clumsy movements, fatigue and confused behavior.

“If you notice any of these, get help.”

Resources

OSHA Records another Successful Enforcement Year in FY 2007
U.S. Dept. of Labor – OSHA, Dec. 28, 2007

OSHA Enforcement: Striving for Safe and Healthy Workplaces
U.S. Dept. of Labor – OSHA

UAW Particular about Particulates
by Vince Piscopo
United Auto Workers

U.N. World Health Organization: Occupational Health

Toxic Factories Take Toll on China’s Labor Force
by Jane Spencer, Juliet Ye and Sky Canaves
The Wall St. Journal, Jan. 15, 2007

OSHA Offers Tips to Protect Employees during Cold Weather
U.S. Dept. of Labor – OSHA, Jan. 9, 2008