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Case Studies


Silica Exposure
Charleston, West Virginia

Cited by OSHA for allowing workers to wear respirators to guard against silica dust exposure without having a written respiratory protection program, a signatory masonry contractor contacted the LHSFNA. It had 30 days to develop a program. The LHSFNA conducted representative personal silica samplings while workers performed tasks that exposed them to silica dust. The tests determined that the respirators were sufficient to protect workers' health, yet the exposure exceeded the OSHA permissible exposure limit (PEL). Thus, the company had to establish a respiratory protection program, and the LHSFNA staff designed one for their use.


Office Ergonomic Training
Riverside County Courts
Riverside, California

Through a survey conducted by LIUNA Public Employees' Local 777 of the workforce at Riverside (CA) County Courts, office ergonomics emerged as a key concern. In response, the LHSFNA staff researched the relevant issues and developed a new publication, A Laborers' Guide to Computer Ergonomics, and backed it with a site visit to perform an on-site evaluation and conduct a series of training sessions.

The LHSFNA conducted six one-hour sessions with rank and file workers and a two-hour, Train-the-Trainer session for supervisors and human resource personnel. More than 150 Court employees received instruction on how to make their workstations more comfortable and less hazardous. Each participant received a copy of the new publication. Additional training at other Court locations is planned.


Penetrations
BNFL (British Nuclear Fuels)
Oak Ridge, Tennessee

At the request of BNFL, the LHSFNA conducted a site safety and health audit of the DOE Uranium Enrichment Facility in Oak Ridge, TN. The audit was to determine the extent that penetrations created a hazard and provide recommendations for feasible controls to reduce the hazard. Penetrations are floor openings and holes, and there were thousands. It was clear that they were hazardous and also violated of OSHA standards. Already, management was taking a proactive approach to the hazard - engineering controls and openings sealed to remove fall hazards to a lower level. Work rules had been implemented to keep employees away from potential overhead hazards.

However, many holes were still uncovered, and the project's safety program did not address the OSHA trip-into hazard that the penetrations represented. The LHSFNA recommended that, since many areas in the buildings already had restricted access due to radiation hazards, this practice be extended to trip hazards. Walkways were created, and worker access was limited to the walkways. Management developed a training program that discussed the hazards associated with the penetrations and how to recognize and abate them.


Safety Officer Training
South Florida Structural Concrete Contractors Association
Miami and Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

After a new contractor association was formed in south Florida and signed an agreement with LIUNA, the LHSFNA was asked to visit some local projects and talk with company officials about their safety and health concerns. The discussions revealed that the companies needed a way to train safety officers. The LHSFNA staff devised a curriculum and conducted a series of training sessions.

Today, one company, FormWorks, has five on-site safety officers, all trained by the LHSFNA. At another company, J.A.M., a former jobsite superintendent was trained as a safety officer, and he now ensures the safety program on the largest project in the company's history.


Noise and RCF Exposure
Industrial Insulations
Fontana, California

After learning of the services of the LHSFNA from the regional Tri-Fund Field Coordinator, Industrial Insulations of Fontana, California asked the Fund to conduct a safety and health audit of its facility and to recommend feasible controls to reduce exposure to refractory ceramic fibers (RCF) and noise. Air monitoring showed that line workers had fiber exposures that exceeded the industry's recommended guidelines. The LHSFNA staff recommended a safety program to address the hazard. In addition, the LHSFNA staff conducted noise monitoring and suggested cost-effective, innovative ways to reduce employee noise exposure. The safety and health audit conducted by the LHSFNA brought the company into compliance with several OSHA regulations.


Back Injury Prevention Training
Kaiser-Hill Construction
Rocky Flats, Colorado

Rocky Flats is a former Department of Energy (DOE) nuclear facility located just outside of Denver, Colorado. Today, it is a clean up and closure site operated by Kaiser-Hill Construction, LLC, which employs union Laborers from Local 720. After a lot of back injuries reported by the workforce, Northwest Region Tri-Fund Field Coordinator Doug Buman contacted the LHSFNA to request back injury prevention training. The LHSFNA staff responded and, over a three-day period, conducted nine sessions of training, involving over 300 employees of Kaiser-Hill Construction.