Severe weather awareness week: April 8-12
We hope the snow is done for this season, so we can turn our attention to other issues, like thunderstorms, hail, tornadoes, floods and eventually heat. Do you know what to do for those weather emergencies? These are some good resources, with reminders that you can review with employees (and families):
Minnesota Homeland Security and Emergency Management
Ramsey County Severe Weather Awareness Week
National Weather Service Safety Tips
Statewide tornado drills will take place on Thursday, April 11 at 1:45 pm and 6:45 pm.
Posting OSHA 300 summaries
Your OSHA 300A, the summary of injuries and illnesses in the workplace, must be posted through April 30.
CHESS has completed the submissions of the summaries to federal OSHA. This is required if you had 20 or more employees at any time in 2023.
Are you prepared for an OSHA inspection?
Do you and your staff know what to do if OSHA is at your workplace? It helps to be prepared. Make sure front desk staff know who to contact if OSHA shows up (Enforcement won’t schedule appointments, although Workplace Consultation does). The Occupational Health and Safety Inspector (OSHI) will show credentials – a business card and their State photo ID. They will state why they are there: whether it is for a programmed or planned inspection, because of a complaint, or because of a serious injury report.
The OSHI will hold an opening conference, providing more explanation of the visit’s purpose. They will ask to see specific records, including:
- OSHA 300 logs for the last 3 to 5 years
- Any written safety programs or policies, especially AWAIR, personal protective equipment, respiratory protection, lockout/tagout, safety manual or general safety program. These may not all apply to your company.
- Safety training records, such as Right to Know/Hazard Communication training
- If respiratory protection or hearing conservation requirements apply to you, they will ask to see the medical approval to wear respirators, annual fit testing and training records, and audiograms for the hearing conservation.
Then they will do the walk around of your physical facility.
A couple of key points:
- Provide what they ask for, but you do not have to provide more.
- Ask questions if you don’t understand what they’re looking for.
- Do not provide any other inspection information or reports you may have (such as from CHESS or your insurance company)
- Never let them walk through your facility unaccompanied.
- Whatever they take pictures of, you take pictures of. Take notes.
- If they point something out and you can fix it right away (such as cutting off the male end of a damaged cord and throwing it away), do so.
- Read everything they send you with your citation packet (if you get cited). Read it carefully. Follow all instructions.
- Do not miss deadlines. You can contest the citations and penalties, but you must do it within a very strict time frame.
- Don’t hesitate to reach out to your inspector if you have questions.
- Keep good records.
If you have a maintenance contract with us, call us right away and one of us will come on site. Offer the OSHI a cup of coffee (they usually show up between 8:30 and 9:30 in the morning) and sit them down in an office or conference room that does not have a view of your facility. They will usually wait for us to arrive.
Safe driving
I recently had the opportunity to listen to Tom Goeltz, a long-time safety professional, speak about distracted driving. His safety expertise wasn’t enough to save his daughter: when she stopped at a rural intersection in Washington County eight years ago, a Saab driven by a 21-year old guy texting on his phone came flying out of a roadside ditch, crashing into her car, rolling it, and killing her. Mr. Goeltz advocated for safe driving before he lost his daughter. His advocacy has increased since his tragic loss.
Texting and speeding continue to kill people. The March newsletter of Drivesafemn.org, a public/private partnership dedicated to reducing traffic deaths, includes statistics on that, as a prelude to their April “Do It For Me” campaign. Consider joining their campaign, to encourage your employees to slow down, hang up, and drive safely – not for themselves, but for those they love.
Chainsaw safety training offered April 25
Employees who use a chainsaw need to have safety training. Alex Bildeaux, a long-time trainer and world champion chainsaw cutting competitor (with great stories), is offering an open registration chainsaw safety class.
- Date: April 25, 2024
- Location: Shoreview Community Center
- Time: 8 am to noon
- Instructor: Alex Bildeaux Jr., Bildeaux Services, 612-819-9465
- Bildeauxservices@frontiernet.net
Hazardous waste: Yes, you may need to pay two bills
If you have a hazardous waste permit and your business is in the seven-county metro area, you will get two invoices for your hazardous waste permit. One will be from the county and must be paid to renew your permit. The other will be from the MPCA. The bill from the MPCA may be for waste generated in 2022; they are a bit behind.
Tired of COVID? One (last) thing.
Yes, we are all tired of four years of COVID. It isn’t going away but recommendations have changed. The CDC now recommends that COVID be treated like the flu, RSV (respiratory syncytial virus), and other respiratory viruses: isolate until symptoms improve and you are without a fever for at least 24 hours without taking any medication for the fever. You could still be contagious, so wearing a good mask (N95) is important for the next five days.
So, why even test for COVID? Treatment for COVID may be different than for other respiratory viruses, especially if you have underlying health issues. We know that symptoms are milder than when COVID peaked, and fewer people are being hospitalized or dying from COVID. But it will likely be around as long as the flu (that is, forever).
Stay healthy. Wash your hands. Increase fresh air ventilation in buildings wherever possible.
Earth Day Clean up events
Monday, April 22 is Earth Day. This started in 1970 as “a global celebration of environmental issues.” Many communities are having clean-up events on April 20. FamilyFunTwinCities has links to a lot of events. Carol will be out helping with a park clean-up in West St Paul.
CHESS staffing change
One last note: Eleanor, who did most of our scheduling, has moved on to other opportunities. If you need to schedule training, please reach out to Janet, Carol, or Mary directly.