Eleanor Kernkamp

Keeping exits and aisleways clear is an important part of emergency planning. In the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in March 1911, 146 women and men died because they could not get out of the building.

Dollar General has now been fined $15.5 million by OSHA for safety violations, many of which involved blocked exits.

In an emergency employees need to be able to exit quickly and safely. Not being able to find an exit or get to it can cost someone their life. As OSHA says:

Exit routes should be:

• Clearly marked and well lit.
• Wide enough to accommodate the number of evacuating personnel.
• Unobstructed and clear of debris at all times.
• Unlikely to expose evacuating personnel to additional hazards.

Develop a map of your facility (it doesn’t have to be perfect or to scale) that includes exit routes. Go around your facility to make sure the exits are easy to find and accessible, and that they lead to a safe location away from the building.

The CDC reports that each day about 2000 U.S. workers sustain a job-related eye injury that requires medical treatment. Workers can help greatly reduce their risk by wearing the appropriate protective eyewear (goggles, face shields, safety glasses, or full face respirators) for the task they are doing.

Despite this alarming statistic, when doing walkthroughs of facilities, one of the most common issues we note is a lack of eye protection worn by employees. OSHA specifically requires appropriate eyewear for any tasks that involve exposure to flying particles, molten metal, liquid chemicals, acids or caustic liquids, chemical gases or vapors, or potentially injurious light radiation. But, given how common eye injuries are, only wearing safety glasses at these times is not best practice.

If eye injuries are common in your industry, it is a good idea to have a personal protective equipment policy that requires safety glasses on the shop floor at all times. This ensures that employees are wearing them whenever they are vulnerable to eye injuries. Management and supervisors should lead by example. You cannot expect employees to be good about wearing eye protection when their leaders are not.

When selecting safety glasses for your facility:

• Only provide safety glasses that are ANSI-approved.
• Ensure that employees are given comfortable options and that they are in good condition. Safety glasses will not be worn if they are uncomfortable, scratched or dirty. Employees should be responsible for keeping their safety eyewear in a safe location where they will not become dirty or damaged.
• Consider providing employees who wear prescription glasses an allowance to purchase prescription safety glasses. These will likely be much more comfortable than safety glasses designed to fit over prescription glasses.
• Remember that face shields are not a substitute for safety glasses. Face shields should be worn in combination with safety glasses, not instead of them.

Yeah, going up and down off a ladder to move it a few inches is a nuisance, but trying to reach too far or move the ladder while you are on it will likely result in your unplanned descent and hard contact with the ground. Whether you are using a stepladder or extension ladder, always stay in the center, between the side rails. A good rule is keep your belt buckle between the side rails.

Other quick tips on ladders:

• Set them up on flat, non-slippery surfaces
• Fully open step ladders with the spreader bar locked in place
• Inspect all ladders before use. If there are damaged components, don’t use it
• Maintain at least three points of contact. Use a tool belt to carry items on the ladder or use a tag line to hoist items up
• Clean up spills and dirt on the rungs

For additional information, tips and training videos, check out resources at Werner Ladder.

“Report unsafe conditions to your supervisor.” That was OSHA’s reminder recently. Seems so simple, but it isn’t. For an employer to request that employees report unsafe conditions, both parties have to hold up their end of the agreements—employees need to report and employers need to respond to those reports.

My husband works in an office. He told me a co-worker has been having back pain from sitting. She was going to buy her own standing work station. She had not reported her concerns to her employer. As a safety person, this was really frustrating to me.

First, she has a right to work in a safe environment, which includes addressing ergonomic issues, such as sitting all day or a chair that isn’t adjusted for her. And, she has protection under the workers’ compensation system—if her back is bothering her at work, that is likely a work-related injury. Under workers comp, she would get appropriate treatment.

She did report it. And the company brought her a sit-stand workstation. But apparently it falls when it is in the standing position. Having done many ergonomic assessments and having experience with the sit-stand workstations in our office, I know the desk probably just needs to be tightened with a hex wrench. Maybe a five-minute fix with the right tools. But, again, the employee has not said anything.

I don’t know why she hasn’t told her supervisor. Is she afraid of some kind of retaliation? Is she concerned that she’ll be judged? Does she believe nothing will be done, so there is no point in saying anything?

It is one issue if an employer refuses to address hazards and another issue if they are willing to address issues but need employees to speak up. Not reporting is not fair to you, as the employee. It also is not fair to your employer. How can an employer address hazards that they are not aware of?

Employers in Minnesota are required to provide certain notices and posters to their employees. Minnesota Department of Labor & Industry recently updated or added the following:

Posters:

• Minimum Wage: Minimum wage rates will increase on January 1, 2024. All employers are required to display this poster.
• Veterans Benefits and Services: Employers with 50 or more employees are required to display this poster beginning January 1, 2024.
• Earned Sick and Safe Time: Minnesota’s new sick and safe time law goes into effect on January 1, 2024. Employers are encouraged to display this poster explaining earned sick and safe time.

Notices:

• Earned Sick and Safe Time: Employers are required to provide notice about earned sick and safe time beginning January 1, 2024. The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry has created an informational poster about earned sick and safe time and a sample notice that employers can modify.
• Employer-Sponsored Meetings or Communications: Employer’s must provide notice about Minnesota’s employer-sponsored meetings or communications law. The Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry does not provide a poster for this notice.

More information and all required posters can be found here.

To reduce strains from lifting, think about how something will be stored before doing so. Is it light and easy to lift? Then it could go at or above shoulder height. If it is heavier, store it in the power zone: roughly top of your thighs to shoulder height.

Do you even have to lift the object (let’s say it is a box)? Is it something that could be slid onto a cart to eliminate having to lift it? Then you want to store it about at the height of the cart.

Take into consideration the height of other people who may need to lift or move the box. The power zone for someone who is 6’2” is very different than for someone who is 5’. When reaching for objects that are stored higher, a stepstool is a great tool. However, you do not want to be getting a heavier box off a higher shelf and have to step off a step stool. What could possibly go wrong? Well, the main thing is losing your balance. We’ve seen wrist fractures, head injuries, twisted ankles and more from this kind of action.

So, think about ways you can reduce or eliminate lifting and keep whatever you are lifting close to your body to make it easier.

October is fire safety month. Remember to check your fire extinguishers monthly:

• Are they hung up? (secured to the wall, not on the floor)
• Are they accessible? (not blocked)
• Can you find them? If you stand in the middle of your facility, can you identify where the extinguishers are located?
• Are they properly charged? Look for the gauge to be in the green zone.