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The importance of Safety Data Sheets

They’re “essential for a compliant hazard communication program,” one expert says. (Bonus: Take our quiz to find out how much you know about SDSs.)




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User Experience, Integration Pace Wholesale Monitoring Trends

Monitoring centers are focused on improving customer contact and providing tools for ease of use and quicker response.




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ONVIF Celebrates 15th Anniversary, Reaches Conformant Products Milestone

ONVIF, a standardization initiative for IP-based physical security products, has surpassed 25,000 conformant products and is celebrating its 15th anniversary.




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Public Safety

In a thumbnail: $ 90 Billion Justice/law enforcement (BusinessWeek) $ 69 Billion Corrections (ACA) Federal, state prisons; state, local jails. All expenses including new construction and private prison management; home




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2000 :: Same Story; New Challenges; Looming Threats

Dealers and installers of electronic security systems say 1999 was a repeat of the previous year, and that this year they face challenges most related to the economy, home building




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National Farm Safety and Health Week set for Sept. 19-25

Peosta, IA — A series of daily webinars is planned for National Farm Safety and Health Week, scheduled to take place Sept. 19-25.




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New website offers health and safety resources for farmers and ranchers

Covington, LA — Helping farmers and ranchers navigate occupational risks and providing information on health and safety issues is the goal of the AgriSafe Health Hub, a new website.




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National grain safety week set for April 4-8

Washington — OSHA and its Alliance Program partners in the agriculture industry are teaming up to host the sixth annual Stand Up 4 Grain Safety Week – slated for April 4-8.




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National Farm Safety and Health Week set for Sept. 18-24

Peosta, IA — A series of daily webinars is planned for National Farm Safety and Health Week, scheduled for Sept. 18-24.




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Great Lakes facility becomes fifth NIOSH center for ag worker safety and health

Washington — NIOSH has established the Great Lakes Center for Farmworker Health and Wellbeing. Based at the University of Illinois at Chicago, the Great Lakes Center becomes the 11th center for agricultural safety and health – or Ag Center – nationwide.




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EPA withdraws interim decision on glyphosate in response to court decision

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency has withdrawn its interim registration review decision for glyphosate, a commonly used herbicide.




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Fungi that can make outdoor workers sick are now nationwide, researchers say

St. Louis — Workers in construction, landscaping, agriculture and other outdoor industries may be at risk of infections caused by soil fungi that historically had been found only in certain regions of the country, researchers at Washington University in St. Louis say.




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Purdue professors expand safety training for young farm workers

West Lafayette, IN — Two Purdue University professors have used a federal grant to expand their safety and health training program for beginning agricultural workers ages 12-20.




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National grain safety week set for March 27-31

Washington — OSHA and its Alliance Program partners in the agriculture industry are teaming up to host the seventh annual Stand Up 4 Grain Safety Week.




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Summer’s a busy (and dangerous) time for landscaping workers, OSHA says

Washington — Vehicles, moving machinery parts, falling trees, toxic chemicals and heat exposure are some of the many hazards that workers in landscaping are exposed to throughout the summer months.




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2022 saw 24 deaths in ag-related confined space incidents: report

West Lafayette, IN — At least 83 incidents involving confined spaces in the agriculture industry were documented last year – up 41%, according to an annual report recently released by Purdue University.




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Wisconsin sanitation worker bill signed into law

Watertown, WI – New legislation in Wisconsin doubles the maximum and minimum fines for traffic violations that endanger sanitation workers.




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Florida extends ‘move over' law to sanitation, utility workers

Tallahassee, FL – Florida legislators have expanded the state’s “Move-Over Act” to include protections for workers who operate or ride in or on sanitation and utility service vehicles.




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‘In danger every day’: Report details hazards facing sanitation workers in NYC

New York – Injuries and fatalities are prevalent in the New York City commercial waste industry despite being easily preventable, according to a recent report from the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health.




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SWANA calls for renewed focus on safety amid ‘unacceptable’ surge in sanitation worker deaths

Silver Spring, MD — Seventeen sanitation workers – including 13 in the United States and four in Canada – were killed in the first three weeks of 2019, the Solid Waste Association of North America reports, a development the organization calls “unprecedented” and “unacceptable” as it urges industry employers and employees to renew their commitment to safety.




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Sanitation worker deaths down slightly, but still high: analysis

Silver Spring, MD — At least 30 sanitation workers died from on-the-job injuries in the first seven months of this year – a 9.1% decrease from the same period last year, according to a recent Solid Waste Association of North America analysis.




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Sanitation worker safety still a concern for SWANA despite ‘small decline’ in deaths

Silver Spring, MD — At least 53 sanitation workers in the United States (44) and Canada (nine) died from on-the-job injuries in 2019 – a 10.2% decrease from 2018, according to a recent analysis from the Solid Waste Association of North America.




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COVID-19 pandemic: Association asks public to help keep sanitation workers safe

Silver Spring, MD — The Solid Waste Association of North America is asking the public to take simple steps to help protect sanitation workers from exposure to COVID-19. That includes holding off on cleaning projects that generate large amounts of trash.




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COVID-19 pandemic: Sanitation workers association distributing millions of cloth facial coverings

Silver Spring, MD — The Solid Waste Association of North America has submitted to the Department of Health and Human Services orders for more than 2.4 million complimentary cloth facial coverings to be distributed to sanitation and recycling workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.




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‘We can and must do better’: Report analyzes sanitation worker deaths

Silver Spring, MD — At least 52 sanitation workers in the United States and Canada died from on-the-job injuries in 2020 – a figure that remained steady from the prior year, according to a recent analysis from the Solid Waste Association of North America.




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Sanitation worker deaths down in first half of 2021: analysis

Silver Spring, MD — At least 12 sanitation workers suffered fatal injuries on the job during the first six months of the year – a 57.1% decrease from the same period in 2020, according to a recent analysis conducted by the Solid Waste Association of North America.




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Electric vehicles: Safety agency, auto group offer guidance for towing, recovery and recycling workers

Richmond, British Columbia — New safety guidelines from WorkSafeBC and Canada’s Automotive Retailers Association are intended to protect workers from shock-, fire- and fume-related hazards associated with electric vehicles and the high-voltage lithium-ion batteries that power them.




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Sanitation worker deaths climbed sharply in 2022, industry association says

Silver Spring, MD — At least 46 sanitation workers in the United States and Canada died from on-the-job injuries last year – a 64.3% increase from 2021, a recent analysis shows.




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Lockmasters, a Dominus Capital Portfolio Company, Acquires JLM Wholesale

Based in Oxford, Mich., with locations in Plano, Texas, and Charlotte, N.C., JLM has grown substantially since its founding in 1984 by Janet Mirku. 




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Disposable respirator

Easier breathing and more comfort are what you get when you wear an AirWave Respirator.




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Government inspections and fines lead to safer workplaces, researchers claim

Toronto – Government safety and health inspections that result in penalties for non-compliant employers encourage organizations to take action to reduce work-related injuries, according to research from the Institute for Work & Health.




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Former mine CEO Blankenship asks Trump to reject calls for harsher punishments for safety violators

Washington – Days after his May 10 release from federal prison after serving a one-year sentence for violating mine safety laws, former Massey Energy Co. CEO Don Blankenship sent a letter to President Donald Trump asking him not to consider legislation that would strengthen punishments for mine supervisors who knowingly flout safety rules.




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Rep. Mark Pocan introduces bill to vet federal contractors for safety violations

Washington – Rep. Mark Pocan (D-WI) has introduced legislation intended to protect employees of companies that perform work for the federal government.




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California Supreme Court: Employers can face civil penalties for safety violations

Santa Ana, CA — California law permits prosecutors to seek civil penalties against employers facing accusations of workplace safety violations under the California Occupational Safety and Health Act, the state’s Supreme Court has ruled.




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Oregon bill calls for stiffer penalties for safety scofflaws

Salem, OR — Legislation recently introduced in Oregon would significantly increase civil penalties for safety violations that contribute to worker injuries and deaths.




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Does a strong corporate culture lead to fewer safety violations?

Helsinki — A strong corporate culture is linked to many positive workplace safety attributes, a recent research review concludes.




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OSHRC marks anniversary of language-assistance order

Washington — Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission officials say a long-standing Executive Order that provides interpretation and document translation to people with limited English proficiency helps ensure federal services “reach and benefit all intended communities.”




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New guidelines recommend topical NSAIDS as first-line treatment for musculoskeletal pain

Philadelphia — Two physician groups are recommending topical nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs – with or without menthol gel – as a non-opioid “first-line therapy” for treating acute pain from non-low-back musculoskeletal injuries.




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Long-term disability claims related to MSDs rose over past decade: report

Chattanooga, TN — Long-term work disability claims for musculoskeletal issues have climbed 40% overall and 62% among men since 2010, and are especially prevalent among workers in occupations that require heavy lifting, repetitive motion or prolonged sitting, a recent analysis from insurance company Unum shows.




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‘Like dancing with a really bad partner’: Exoskeletons can confuse the brain, researchers say

Columbus, OH — The physical benefits that exoskeletons provide to the musculoskeletal system may be negated by the “mental strain” that results when workers wearing the devices perform tasks that require them to think about their actions, results of a recent study conducted by researchers from Ohio State and Texas A&M universities indicate.




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NSC and Safetytech Accelerator announce innovation lab for MSD prevention

Itasca, IL — The National Safety Council MSD Solutions Lab is partnering with Safetytech Accelerator to design, build and operate an open innovation lab with the goal of facilitating the development of next-generation technology aimed at preventing work-related musculoskeletal disorders.




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‘Empowering organizations to transform workplace safety’: virtual summit

Make plans now to attend the “MSD Pledge 2.0: Empowering Organizations to Transform Workplace Safety” virtual summit, set for 1 p.m. Eastern on Nov. 16.




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NIOSH says new research supports OSHA fit-testing requirements

Pittsburgh – The percentage of improperly fitted respirators increases with the length of time between worker fit tests, giving support to the annual fit-testing requirements in OSHA’s Respiratory Protection Standard, according to new research from NIOSH.




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Routine use of reusable respirators can help health care facilities prepare for emergencies: report

Washington — Reusable respirators could prove a “viable option” for health care facilities’ respiratory protection programs, especially in preparation for a public health emergency, a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine concludes.




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A salute to ‘the history and the future’: NIOSH Respiratory Protection Week set for Sept. 3-6

Washington — In recognition of 100 years of efforts to advance workplace respirator awareness, NIOSH has marked Sept. 3-6 as its inaugural Respiratory Protection Week.




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Sterilization process allows for safe reuse of N95 respirators, researchers say

Durham, NC — In an effort to preserve the supply of N95 filtering facepiece respirators used by health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers at Duke Health say they have successfully tested a decontamination process that allows the masks to be reused safely.




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Study identifies three effective methods to sanitize N95 respirators for reuse

Bethesda, MD — Three methods to decontaminate N95 filtering facepiece respirators for reuse are being recommended by the National Institutes of Health after researchers at the agency successfully tested their effectiveness and the repeat functional integrity of the respirator after each sanitization.




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Modifications can improve effectiveness of FRRs with exhalation valve, NIOSH says

Washington — Filtering facepiece respirators with an exhalation valve can be modified to reduce respiratory particle emissions – improving their effectiveness as a source control, according to a technical report recently published by the NIOSH National Personal Protective Laboratory.




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FDA to health care facilities: OK to ‘transition away’ from reusing disposable respirators

Washington — Prompted by an “increased domestic supply” of NIOSH-approved respirators, the Food and Drug Administration is recommending health care facilities transition away from strategies intended to conserve supplies of disposable respirators amid the COVID-19 pandemic.




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FDA revokes emergency use authorization for non-NIOSH-approved disposable respirators

Washington — Prompted by an “increased domestic supply” of NIOSH-approved respirators, the Food and Drug Administration has revoked its emergency use authorizations for non-NIOSH-approved disposable respirators as well as decontamination and bioburden reduction systems.