August 2013

Studies have shown that most Americans spend more than 90% of their time indoors – an environment that’s significantly more contaminated than the outdoors. Maintaining a pollutant-free indoor environment can help raise productivity, reduce potential legal liability for building owners and managers, and improve the health of workers.

Fungi, a biological contaminant that flourishes in moist environments, can trigger a wide variety of health problems and complaints. The best way to curb fungal growth is to monitor and avoid water leaks, moisture migration through masonry walls, and condensation. (For example, high humidity levels might be due to running a chilled water air conditioning system at too high a temperature).

To help manage the moisture and water infiltration that breeds fungi, experts recommend following these rules of thumb:

1. If the fungal growth is on a hard surface, scrape it off as soon as possible.
2. If the fungus is growing on a porous surface – such as plasterboard, carpet, or ceilings –have it removed carefully to prevent the uncontrolled release of fungal spores. (Removing or disturbing materials contaminated by fungi can increase airborne fungal levels by a factor of 10).
3. Dispose of fungal-contaminated materials under controlled conditions to prevent contamination of clean areas and protect building occupants and the area from elevated exposures.
4. Dry any porous materials where water infiltration has occurred within 24 hours.

Increasing concern by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and state health departments about exposure to fungal spores reinforces the need for keeping the spread of fungi under control.

We’d be happy to offer our advice on helping keep your building fungus-free – and its occupants healthy.

Employment-related accidents behind the wheel are the leading cause of death from traumatic injuries in the workplace, killing some 2,200 people a year and accounting for 22% of job-related fatalities. Deaths and injuries from these accidents increase costs and reduce productivity for employers – while bringing pain and suffering to family, friends, and coworkers.

Preventing work-related roadway crashes poses a significant risk management challenge. The roadway is a unique work environment. Compared with other work settings, employers have little ability to control conditions and exert direct supervision over their drivers. The volume of traffic and road construction continue to increase, while workers feel pressured to drive faster for longer periods, and often use mobile electronic devices that distract them behind the wheel.

To help reduce this risk, for both long-distance truck drivers and employees who occasionally use personal vehicles for company business, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) recommends that employers follow these precautions:

• Require drivers and passengers to use seat belts.
• Ensure that employees who drive on the job have valid licenses.
• Incorporate road fatigue management in safety programs.
• Provide fleet vehicles with top quality crash protection.
• Make sure employees receive training to operate specialized vehicles.
• Offer periodic vision screening and physicals for employees whose primary job is driving.
• Avoid requiring workers to drive irregular or extended hours.
• Prohibit cell phone use and other distracting activities such as eating, drinking, or adjusting non-critical vehicle controls while driving.
• Set schedules that allow drivers to obey speed limits.
• Follow state laws on graduated driver’s licensing and child labor.

For more information about how to prevent work-related driving deaths and injuries, just give one of our Risk Management experts a call at any time.

If you have teenagers, you’re well aware that they’re all too prone to take risks. Four in five U.S. teen (80%) have part-time jobs. Of these, more than half (52%) are in the retail sector, which includes restaurants and fast food establishments.

To help keep themselves safe on the job – and thus reduce their employers’ risk-management exposure – teenagers who work in restaurants and agriculture can use interactive web-based training tools provided by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

According to OSHA, educating and training young people about safety in the workplace can help prevent injuries today and lead to a healthy workforce in the future. These resources provide practical information to protect young workers from hazards in industries where many of them are likely to work during high school and college.

The Teen Worker Safety in Restaurants eTool highlights the most common hazards in these workplaces and offers safety and health suggestions, safety posters, and electronic links to educate young workers about job safety. Areas of focus include serving, clean-up, drive-thru, cooking, food preparation, delivery, and worker rights and child labor laws.

The Youth in Agriculture eTool presents case studies that describe common hazards and offers safety solutions for teenage workers in such areas as farm equipment operations, confined spaces, and prevention of c injuries g from falls, electrocutions, and chemical exposures.

The OSHA Teen Workers page offers educational resources such as fact sheets on workplace rights and responsibilities, hazards on the job, ways to prevent injuries, work hours, job restrictions, etc.

Letting teenage workers know about these resources can benefit them – and their employers. What’s not to like?

If you think of your business as a safe place, think again. Security experts recommend taking these precautions:

1. Parking Lot Security/Lighting. Because crime flourishes in the dark, implement a “buddy system” to ferry workers to and from cars. Limit parking lot access and keep the lots – and your entire facility, inside and out – well lit during non-business hours. Entrance Area Safety. Keep a receptionist on duty at all times. Provide a registration system for visitors (even if they’re dressed as service personnel). Have locks on doors and windows. Use badge or other photo ID systems, with frequent checks of entry codes. Never let employees prop open an outside door with a chair so it doesn’t lock behind them during a break.
2. Suspicious Activity. Urge employees to report anything suspicious around the building. Instead of allowing employees to open suspicious packages, give them to the authorities for search and disposal.
3. Information Safety. Because it’s increasingly easy for hackers or disgruntled employees to steal your organization’s vital data, use updated security software with regular backups. Shred paper documents containing critical information when they’re no longer needed.
4. Equipment Security. Inventory critical equipment, hardware, and software. This is especially important as electronic devices keep shrinking in size. An inventory will also make it easier for your insurance company to process any claims if anything “goes missing.”
5. Employee Valuables. Provide secure places, such as lockable drawers and closets, for employee property. Valuables, especially those that reveal personal information, should be locked away during meetings or breaks.
6. Safety Team. Have a group of managers and employees meet regularly with a set agenda.

To learn more, feel free to get in touch with our Risk Management specialists at any time.