Occupational Safety and Health Administration News

US Mandates Vaccines or Tests For Big Companies by Jan. 4

Tens of millions of Americans who work at companies with 100 or more employees will need to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by Jan. 4 or get tested for the virus weekly under government rules issued Thursday. The new requirements, …

After ‘Rust’ Shooting, a Look at Other Notable Set Accidents

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The shooting death of a cinematographer on the set of the set of the Alec Baldwin movie “Rust” is a reminder of the dangers that can exist on film and television sets. As authorities investigate why …

Cadmium Spiked at Lead Factory, Workers Didn’t Get Help

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — In June 2014, an air monitor strapped to a worker inside a Tampa lead factory picked up an unmistakable red flag. The level of cadmium, a toxic metal known to cause cancer, had soared to more …

Biden Administration Unveils Plan to Address ‘Silent Killer’ Extreme Heat

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is moving to protect workers and communities from extreme heat after a dangerously hot summer that spurred an onslaught of drought-worsened wildfires and caused hundreds of deaths from the Pacific Northwest to hurricane-ravaged Louisiana. …

Small Agency, Big Job: Biden Tasks OSHA With Vaccine Mandate

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Occupational Safety and Health Administration doesn’t make many headlines. Charged with keeping America’s workplaces safe, it usually busies itself with tasks such as setting and enforcing standards for goggles, hardhats and ladders. But President Joe Biden …

Biden Vaccine Mandate Will Test OSHA’s Authority

WASHINGTON — The U.S. agency in charge of the Biden administration’s new rules requiring COVID-19 vaccination at many private workplaces faces stiff challenges in developing and enforcing the mandate. President Joe Biden announced on Thursday that all staff at U.S. …

Fines Appealed After Nitrogen Kills Six at Georgia Plant

GAINESVILLE, Ga. (AP) — Three of four companies are appealing federal workplace safety fines following a January liquid nitrogen leak that killed six workers at a Georgia poultry processing plant. The U.S. Department of Labor says plant owner Foundation Food …

Feds Inspected Illinois Chemical Plant Weeks Before Blast

A northern Illinois chemical plant that was rocked by an explosion and massive fires that prompted evacuations was inspected by a federal agency less than a month before the blast sent debris raining down onto nearby areas. Inspectors from the …

Walmart Sales Soared, Essential Workers Got Scant Protection

COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP) — Sandra Kunz had been worried for her safety while working as a cashier at a Walmart in Aurora, Colorado, during the pandemic, said her sister, Paula Spellman. The 72-year-old had lung disease, Spellman said. She …

Complaint May Spur Review of Meat Industry’s Virus Response

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A union complaint about whether an Oklahoma meatpacking plant is doing enough to protect workers from the coronavirus could test the industry’s response to the pandemic because Seaboard Foods says it is following recommendations from the …