January 2023 Safety Update

Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.

BWC Featured News

Ohio Safety Congress and Expo®

Registration is open for the 2023 Ohio Safety Congress and Expo®. The event returns in-person to the Greater Columbus Convention Center March 8-10, with a select number of sessions streamed.

Safety Intervention Grant

The Safety Intervention Grant Program (SIG) is now accepting applications! Employers can complete their application and their reporting requirements online.

The SIG program provides 3-to-1 matching funds up to $40,000 for state fund private and public employers. The funds are available to purchase equipment to substantially reduce or eliminate injuries and illness associated with a particular task or operation. 

January BWC In Person Training, Safety Webinars, and Virtual Training Classes

A new year brings new BWC training opportunities. View the full list.

Two New Safety Talks: Landscapers and Mowers and Office Safety

Download Safety Talks from our website. These talks help you train your employees on a wide variety of topics.

Workforce Safety Innovation Center (WSIC)

The WSIC recently awarded the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center $1.4 million in grants for The Buckeye Pause Bundle: Augmenting State of mind and Body as the Ultimate PPE. Watch now for a closer look.

Library Question of the Month

A question received by the library over the past month with our response.

Question:

Could you please provide resources to help our emergency medical services (EMS) workers recognize bed bugs while out in the field? What precautions should workers take if they think they’ve been exposed to bed bugs?

Answer:

Ohio cities regularly appear on lists for places in the U.S. that are treated for bed bugs. These lists are produced by popular extermination companies like Terminex and Orkin.

To help identify bedbugs, and to learn more about bed bug biology, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have pages that provide links to resources and information. Luckily, bed bugs are not known to be transmitters of disease. The EPA has a printable wallet card you can provide to your employees to aid in recognizing bed bugs while on the job.

According to the National Fire Protection Agency’s NFPA 1851: Standard on Selection, Care, and Maintenance of Protective Ensembles for Structural Fire Fighting and Proximity Fire Fighting, using temperature extremes is a good way to kill bed bugs in potentially contaminated clothing. In section A.7.5.3, the standard recommends washing clothing above 140 degrees F and drying it above 105 degrees F for at least thirty minutes. As an alternative, it recommends freezing clothing at -5 degrees F for at least eight hours, which has been shown to be effective at killing bed bugs at all lifecycle stages. To view NFPA 1851 in its entirety, follow the instructions on NFPA’s Free Access page.

If you need help training your employees on bed bug hazards, contact BWC’s Division of Safety and Hygiene. Consultation services are no cost for those with a BWC policy. Find out more on our website.

If you have question related to occupational safety and health, email the library at library@bwc.state.oh.us.

Other Safety News

Employer-Reported Workplace Injuries and Illnesses, 2021

Private industry employers reported 2.6 million nonfatal workplace injuries and illnesses in 2021, a decrease of 1.8% from 2020. Ohio had 2.2 reportable cases per 100 workers, lower than all surrounding states.

Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, 2021

The United States had 5,190 fatal work injuries in 2021, an increase of 8.9% over 2020 and the highest annual rate since 2016. Ohio reported 171 fatalities, a rate of 3.4 fatalities per 100,000 workers.

OSHA Region 5 Local Emphasis Program

US Department of Labor initiative seeks to protect food processing workers

in Illinois, Ohio amid significantly higher injury rates. OSHA began a Local Emphasis Program focused on manufacturing facilities in Illinois and Ohio where year-round and seasonal workers manufacture and process confectionery, animal, fruit, and vegetable-based products. The details are found here Local Emphasis Program for Food Manufacturing Industry (osha.gov)

Working in Winter Weather

As we come into the peak of the winter season, here are some tips from OSHA about how to keep your employees safe in this season of cold, snow, and ice. Winter Weather - Hazards/Precautions | Occupational Safety and Health Administration (osha.gov)

New Data Bulletin on Electrical Injuries and Citations in Construction

The Center for Construction Research and Training created a bulletin on electrical injuries DataBulletin-November2022.pdf (cpwr.com). The document contains an overview of the topic along with numerous charts and tables. There are links to slides of the charts and spreadsheets of the data.

The Ohio BWC Library of BWC’s Division of Safety & Hygiene compiles and distributes this newsletter each month.   

BWC's Division of Safety & Hygiene provides a variety of programs, services, and resources to help Ohio employers create a safe and healthy workplace.  

Visit bwc.ohio.gov or email BWCDSH@bwc.state.oh.us or call 1-800-644-6292. 

Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation

Vision: To transform BWC into an agile organization driven by customer success.
Mission: To deliver consistently excellent experiences for each BWC customer every day. Core Values: One Agency, Personal Connection, Innovative Leadership, Relentless Excellence.

Established in 1912, the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation is the exclusive provider of workers’ compensation insurance in Ohio, serving 257,000 public and private employers. With nearly 1,600 employees and assets of approximately $21 billion, BWC is one of the largest state-run insurance systems in the United States. For more, visit www.bwc.ohio.gov.