April 26, 2004—A new OSHA alliance focuses on protecting building service employees from methylene chloride, electrocutions, and lead exposures. Methylene chloride is a substance to which building service workers may be exposed while cleaning marble and metal surfaces, stripping floors, and degreasing equipment.
Methylene chloride has been responsible for workplace fatalities and is regulated by an OSHA standard. It is sold under many alternative names, including dichloromethane, methylene dichloride and methane dichloride. Building managers, who control the products purchased for use in their buildings, have the responsibility to approve chemicals used by contractors and even building residents, points out OSHA.
The new alliance was forged by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the New York Association of Realty Managers (NYARM), and the New York State Department of Labor’s On-Site Consultation Program (NY Consultation). NYARM’s 400 members manage residential multi-family buildings.
The alliance will focus on providing guidance and training resources to NYARM members concerning the aforementioned hazards. The alliance will also provide free onsite consultation from the New York State Consultation Program for building managers who request the service.
