A group representing over 33,000 safety engineers located throughout the U.S. told U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) officials at a hearing in Chicago today that an ergonomics standard is needed, but not the one proposed by OSHA.
Representing the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), John Cheffer, CSP, and Chair of the ASSE Governmental Affairs Committee, testified, “We believe there needs to be an ergonomic standard. However, ASSE is concerned that the flaws in the proposed rule such as the single incident trigger and its interference with established state worker’s compensation programs and the rule’s complexity may result in the rejection of the entire standard. It’s just poor policy.” Cheffer continued, “This is literally like throwing the baby out with the bath water.”
This was the final day of public hearings scheduled by OSHA in Chicago on a proposed ergonomics standard. They started again in Portland, Oregon and ended in Washington, D.C. in early May. Congress may hold additional hearings. After that, it is expected that the OSHA standards could become law by 2001, unless contested by a lawsuit.
Ergonomics is described as being the science of equipment design, such as for the workplace, intended to maximize productivity by reducing operator fatigue and discomfort. Last winter OSHA introduced the proposed standards which would require employers in manual handling and manufacturing operations to implement new ergonomics programs in their workplaces. ASSE is concerned about the proposal because, among other things, it could be triggered by just one incident in any workplace and it could displace effective workplace safety programs now in place. The agriculture, maritime operations and construction industries are not included in the proposed rule.
At the Chicago hearing Cheffer expressed a need for a stand-alone ergonomic standard, but outlined several major concerns that must be addressed before moving forward with the OSHA proposal. Cheffer also noted that the ASSE has provided OSHA with a counter ergonomics standard, based on input from its 33,000 safety engineer members, which offers a more reasonable and user friendly approach to the control of workplace musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) and ergonomic exposures than the current OSHA proposal.
“Many of ASSE’s members, who work for all types of industries, have developed and implemented cutting edge ergonomic safety programs that have led to significant decreases in the number of workplace MSDs,” Cheffer continued.
The ASSE is urging OSHA to develop a more reasonable standard which enhances occupational safety and health, and leave the issue of payment for rehabilitation, social issues and workers’ compensation reengineering to the existing federal and state laws and regulations governing these areas.
The ASSE also believes that the ‘one case’ trigger called for in the standard is poor policy because many ergonomic problems arise off-the-job and in the absence of a clear triggering incident, getting at the root cause is extremely problematic. If the cause is not in the workplace, trying to fix the workplace will not reduce or eliminate injuries.
The ASSE urges OSHA to promulgate this as a safety standard, not as a health standard as they are proposing to do and believe that ergonomic injuries should not be treated in a different manner than other workplace injuries.
“Most ergonomic problems cannot be corrected through low-tech solutions such as having an employee stand on a box, or propping up a computer monitor with a phonebook as OSHA has suggested,” Cheffer testified.
From the Daily Regulatory Reporter
