Nail guns are helpful tools, but they also have the potential to cause injury. NIOSH notes that nail gun injuries result in an estimated 37,000 emergency department visits every year, with 68 percent of these visits involving workers.

Washington – Dog bites, falls and vehicle collisions were the leading causes of injuries among U.S. Postal Service employees in 2012, according to a Government Accountability Office report released Sept. 26.

New York – A new report claims 42 percent of workers surveyed in New York City’s food manufacturing industry have been injured on the job.

Washington – Certain patient-moving devices and policies can help nurses avoid injuries, according to a report released June 16 by advocacy group Public Citizen.

To mark Workers’ Memorial Week, advocacy groups issued reports and called for increased worker protections and additional research to prevent on-the-job injuries.

The AFL-CIO, the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health, and the National Safety Council are among the organizations renewing the call for improved worker protections as part of Workers’ Memorial Week (April 23-30).

Washington — The state of workplace safety and health protections in the United States is a “national crisis,” according to Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO, which has released its annual report detailing the hazards that workers face every day on the job.

Washington — AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka cautioned the public not to become “numb” to workplace fatalities and illnesses, as the labor federation released its annual report detailing the hazards workers face every day.

Nearly half of all work-related injuries involving mechanical power presses result in amputation, statistics compiled by OSHA show. Around 60% of amputations involve a worker’s fingers or arm getting caught or compressed by a press or other machinery such as a conveyer, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Severed fingers and toes are injuries commonly associated with using truck liftgates. So are crushed feet.

Washington – NIOSH has developed a sound level meter mobile app designed to measure noise exposure in the workplace.

Are you confused about the requirements in OSHA’s new reporting rule? Here’s a handy chart that may help clear things up.

Columbus, OH — Golf cart users, be “FORE!”-warned: The zippy means of transportation – no longer limited to golf courses – carries “considerable risk of injury and morbidity” to drivers and passengers of all ages, especially kids and older adults, say researchers from the Center for Injury Research and Policy at Nationwide Children’s Hospital.

Washington — The Department of Labor Office of Inspector General will conduct an audit of the Mine Safety and Health Administration’s ability to complete required safety and health inspections amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Washington — Understaffed amid the COVID-19 pandemic, OSHA “lost a valuable opportunity” to better protect workers by “not identifying federal partners in a position to assist during a large-scale safety and health crisis,” concludes a Department of Labor Office of Inspector General audit report released March 31.

Denver — Deaths and serious injuries resulting from falls in the construction industry in recent years have prompted OSHA to launch an initiative to inspect worksites across Colorado’s Front Range, Montana and South Dakota on weekends, “when many employers typically do not monitor their jobsites well.”

Greenbelt, MD — Law enforcement officials issued more than 26,000 citations and warnings to passenger-vehicle, truck and bus drivers during the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s annual Operation Safe Driver Week.

Greenbelt, MD — Law enforcement officials issued more than 10,000 citations and warnings combined to passenger-vehicle, truck and bus drivers during the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s annual Operation Safe Driver Week.

Washington – Noting an increase in holiday decorating injuries last year, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued safety tips for consumers.

Washington — Citing the increased circulation of airborne viruses when temperatures drop, “indoor air quality in the workplace during cold weather is especially critical,” OSHA says in a new alert.

Miners who work in cold temperatures are at risk for cold stress, which may trigger hypothermia, frostbite, and other injuries and illnesses.

Booth #5824

BlueWater Manufacturing offers industry-leading, non-penetrating OSHA-compliant guardrail systems for fall protection on flat roof buildings and elevated platforms. Our versatile modular solutions are engineered-to-order, portable, easy to install, and never jeopardize roof integrity. We manufacture in-house, so special challenges are our specialty!

Click here for more information from BlueWater Manufacturing, Inc.

Product information is provided by manufacturers. This publication has not independently tested manufacturers' products and cannot assume responsibility for the validity of product claims.

Exposure to vibration or being required to make repetitive motions can lead to significant wear and tear on the body. The resulting injuries are known as cumulative trauma disorders.

Frequently using a computer may cause ergonomics issues, warns the Rosemont, IL-based American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.

Equipment such as adjustable chairs and ergonomic mouse pads can help prevent strain among workers sitting at a desk. But workers required to stand for long periods of time are subject to strain injuries that cannot be prevented with such equipment.

If reaching, grabbing, clenching, twisting or bending causes pain, you may have a repetitive strain injury.

What’s one way workers can cut their risk of a back injury in half? “Store it off the floor,” the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries says.

Download this white paper from Soter Analytics to learn how wearable technologies can automate ergonomic training processes, motivate workers and drive down injury rates as much as 55%.

Construction workers: Do you often perform the same task at work over and over again? Do you experience pain afterward? What starts as a minor ache or pain can quickly turn into a more serious condition – a repetitive stress injury.

Is your shoulder stiff after a day at work? Can you rotate your arm? Do you feel as though it’s not operating at full strength?

With the holiday season upon us, delivery drivers are likely to see an increase in work. Now is a good time to review safety measures these workers can take to avoid on-the-job injuries.

Chicago — Although a growing number of employers are purchasing air purifiers as part of reopening their workplaces amid the COVID-19 pandemic, one type of the technology might not be as effective as advertised, results of a recent study show.

Copenhagen, Denmark — Performing “simple and brief strengthening exercises designed to strengthen the primary muscles used during work” – known as micro-exercise – while on the job may help prevent long-term sickness absences, according to a recent study out of Denmark.

Oulu, Finland — “Even light physical activity may foster work engagement,” researchers in Finland are saying after studying on- and off-the-job data for more than 6,800 workers.

Olympia, WA – The Washington State Department of Labor and Industries has issued a hazard alert for workers who use thermal cutting tools to de-tension cables embedded in concrete structures such as bridges and freeway overpasses, warning them of the dangers of lead exposure.

Lansing, MI – The Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration is looking to protect workers from hazards linked to asbestos, lead and cadmium that may be encountered during blight removal projects, as part of a one-year state emphasis program launched in September.

Maintaining a routine, helping others and taking time to focus on self-care are among the tips one Ball State University professor is sharing to help people stay “sane and safe” while practicing physical distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Pregnancy increases the risk of heatstroke or heat exhaustion on the job because the body must work harder to cool itself, according to OSHA. Pregnant workers are also more likely to become dehydrated, “a primary contributor to heat-related illness.”

What features are commonly used in the construction of safety shoes to protect against impact and compression hazards?

Arlington, VA — Hospital units that consistently follow standard safety precautions experience nearly 40% fewer needlesticks and other sharps injuries than other units, a new study has found.

Morgantown, WV — A recent study of work-related sharps injuries shows that health care workers had a sixfold higher risk than all other workers – but other workers are at risk, too.

Waltham, MA — The higher outdoor temperatures climb, the more likely it is that a worker will be injured, according to a recent study from the Workers Compensation Research Institute.

New York — Although deaths at New York City building construction sites fell to their lowest level in nearly a decade in 2023, work-related injuries rose 25%, reports the city’s Department of Buildings.

The Guarddog Self-Closing Safety Gate from BlueWater Manufacturing, Inc. is tough, durable and easy to install. The gate is available in powder-coated, galvanized and stainless steel finishes, as well as in five nominal sizes. Provide your employees with the best safety gate available with the Guarddog.

Lifting objects or manually handling materials puts workers at risk for back injuries. More than 111,000 such injuries requiring days away from work were recorded in 2017, according to Injury Facts, an online database created by the National Safety Council.

Would you be able to provide aid to someone in cardiac arrest? Results of a recent survey suggest that for about half of us, the answer is no.

Montreal — A work-related injury followed by a mental health issue, or the other way around: Which is more likely? Two Canadian researchers wanted to find out.

Washington — Workers in private industry experienced fewer injuries and illnesses on the job last year than in 2022, according to Survey of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses data released Nov. 8 by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Washington — A new hazard alert from OSHA is aimed at increasing awareness and ensuring actions are being taken to reduce the “alarming number” of serious, preventable injuries in poultry, meat and other food processing establishments.

Morgantown, WV — Turning mundane manufacturing tasks into games may boost worker engagement, motivation and productivity – but it also may stress out some people, results of a recent study show.