Safety

Last week, Health Canada issued an interim enforcement policy for workplaces covered under Canada’s Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS). The interim policy provides exemptions for a number of safety data sheet (SDS) and supplier label requirements established under the Hazardous Products Act (HPA), Hazardous Products Regulations (HPR) and Hazardous Materials Information Review Act (HMIRA). […]

This year, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is commemorating 50 years since the enactment of the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act, which was signed into law on December 29, 1970. In honor of this major milestone, OSHA is announcing its re-commitment to the Agency’s fundamental mission of ensuring safe and healthful […]

Multiple sources have reported a recent and significant increase in calls to poison control centers concerning harmful exposures to cleaning and disinfecting products. It is especially important during these challenging times that we not worsen the situation through unsafe use of cleaning chemicals, including application of cleaning products to the human body, or intentional or […]

Whether you are conducting an injury investigation or seeking countermeasures to address a hazard, the quality of your root cause analysis will have a direct bearing on the effectiveness of your solution. Unfortunately, many root cause analyses go off course and pursue ineffective paths. For example, a few years ago I was reviewing data on […]

When companies re-start operations, leadership must consider the physical deconditioning of workers.  It is important to investigate ways to reintegrate employees into standard work without increasing musculoskeletal disorder (MSD) risk and without impacting manufacturing production and product quality. Tips for Workers When Restarting Work Here are some ways to reduce physical stress on workers when […]

VelocityEHS customers serving on the front lines of the COVID-19 response — including hospitals, health care facilities, fire depts and other emergency responders — can now access VelocityEHS’ Respirator Fit Test product at zero cost. For six months, eligible customers will be able to access the full-featured product, which includes links to COVID-specific educational videos […]

The global COVID-19 pandemic has had a massive impact on workplaces, as levels of operation change or even cease due to lockdown measures, and employees find themselves more geographically spread out than ever. Unfortunately, these challenges may also reveal gaps in our EHS management system that we didn’t know about before.  During “normal” times, we […]

The global COVID-19 pandemic is causing massive disruptions to businesses, with many scaling back or closing their operations entirely. Many others, including healthcare establishments, face even greater demand for their goods and services during these dangerous and uncertain times. Risks of exposure to the SARS CoV-2 virus and COVID-19 are everywhere, even our workplaces, and […]

What is Risk? In light of the COVID-19 pandemic and its widespread social, financial and economic impacts, I’d like you to take a moment right now to think about what ‘risk’ means to your business. Seriously, just take a moment. Your business’s unique risk exposure will ultimately depend on a wide variety of factors including […]

During the COVID-19 outbreak, good housekeeping practices are essential to safety in the workplace, as well as in the home. But even household cleaning products, if used improperly, can create serious dangers. With our increased reliance on these products for preventing the spread of COVID-19, we must always remember to handle them safely to avoid […]