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March 03, 2025OSHA Changes, Confined Spaces and the Future of Safety Training: What You’re Reading in February
A look back at February’s most popular content, as determined by you.
Whew! February felt like January, the sequel.
The past few weeks were a figurative and literal trudge through the snow, but I’m starting to see some small seeds of change. The snow is melting, the sun has peered through the clouds a few times and I’m starting to feel changes take root.
I’ve always found that when you’re toiling in the weeds, that it’s a lot of faith and trust: in yourself, in the process, in patience. When it seems like nothing is happening—or perhaps that something should have happened by now—you usually have to wait a few weeks longer.
I can see that in our metrics for February, too. You’re checking to see what’s going on in the our nation’s capital because you want to know -
March 03, 2025OSHA’s Final PPE Rule for Construction: What Contractors Need to Know
Making sure that your workforce has proper fitting PPE will avoid OSHA violations for the new rule, says Matthew Cox of Smith Currie Oles LLP.
OSHA’s final rule took effect regarding the standard for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in the construction industry. (See U.S. Dept. of Labor Release No. 24-2453-NAT, incorporating 29 CFR § 1926.28 though 29CFR 1926.95(c)).
PPE, which includes hard hats, gloves, goggles, safety shoes, safety glasses, welding helmets, hearing protection, respirators, coveralls, vests, harnesses, and full body suits, is now required to be made available in proper sizes by companies in the construction industry to their workforces. (See 29 CFR § 1926.95 (Criteria for personal protective equipment); see also https://www.osha.gov/personal-protective-equipment/construction). -
March 03, 2025Top 7 trends in health and safety for the Middle East in 2025
From upgrades to breakthroughs, 2025 is set to bring new innovations for health and safety across the Middle East and Africa. Discover the trends, tech, and transformations defining the future.
From sustainability to smart PPE, discover the top trends shaping workplace health and safety across the Middle East and Africa in 2025. Credit: patcharee pornsipak/istock
In brief:
Focus shifts: IOSH and NEBOSH prioritise sustainability, leadership and mental health.
Tech innovation: Intersec 2025 highlighted wearables, AI analytics, hydrogen safety and digital twins.
Key insights from NEBOSH Day: Leadership, governance and sustainability as central themes.
In detail:
2025 is shaping up to be a transformative year for health and safety in the Middle East and Africa.
With technological advancements, regulatory developments and evolving risks in high-hazard -
March 03, 2025New Guidance to Prevent MSD Injuries
The National Safety Council says resource provides research-backed strategies to address musculoskeletal disorders.
Musculoskeletal disorders, or MSDs, remain the most common workplace injury of the 2.6 million workplace injuries and illnesses reported in 2023, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The cost of these injuries is $18 billion a year for U.S. businesses in the private sector, said the National Safety Council.
To address this critical safety challenge, the group released a new resource on February 25, The Importance of Musculoskeletal Disorder and Related Injury Surveillance: An Organizational Approach.
"MSDs are entirely preventable, and prevention starts with understanding where and how these injuries occur,” said Katherine Mendoza, senior director of workplace safety -
February 24, 2025What Changes Will Happen with OSHA?
An analysis of the regulatory climate and advice on how companies can manage the changes.
With the uncertainty around how OSHA will look under the new administration, I took the opportunity to answer a few questions about the proposal and OSHA's evolving regulatory environment.
So far in early 2025, there’s a proposal to abolish OSHA, an ongoing effort to shrink the federal government and reduce the federal labor force, and an executive order to repeal 10 existing regulations for every new regulation. What can we say about how things are likely to play out based on what we’re seeing now?
First, let’s take stock of where things are now, and what’s likely to happen, making as few assumptions as possible.
Let’s tackle the big question first, about the proposal to abolish OSHA. Arizona representative Andy Biggs -
February 24, 2025A Safer Warehouse Starts with an Engaged Workforce
To enhance warehouse safety, you must identify the limitations of the technologies you have deployed.
No matter the industry, it seems that technology continues to move ever more swiftly. Each June, on National Forklift Safety Day, as the material handling industry focuses on the importance of forklift safety, attention often turns toward the latest technologies that can help maintain and strengthen a healthy safety culture, giving forklift operators the tools, training, feedback and confidence they need to do their jobs more proficiently.
Industrial Truck Association
forkliftsafetyday202401
There are technologies available today that simply didn’t exist, even just a few short years ago. For instance, a growing number of operator assist technologies can help operators prioritize -
February 24, 2025The Future of Safety Training
Key insights from the 2024 State of Safety Training Survey offer direction on how to elevate your safety program.
Throughout the first half of 2024, EHS Today partnered with SafetyNow to produce the 2024 State of Safety Training Survey, which offers a revealing look into the challenges and opportunities shaping workplace safety today. With input from over 5,000 safety professionals and responses from a massive outreach to more than 400,000 individuals, the findings give practical direction for anyone looking to elevate their safety programs.
Here are the key takeaways—and what they mean for you.
The Future of Safety Training is Blended
If you’re still relying solely on traditional classroom-style safety training, it’s time to rethink your approach. Over 90% of surveyed professionals agree that blended learning—mixing -
February 19, 2025ASSP Issues New Training Standard for Construction Sites Types of applicable training on construction and demolition sites include new hire, site safety, regulatory, pre-job, supervisor leadership and retraining.
On February 18, the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) published a new national voluntary consensus standard for safety training on construction and demolition sites.
These sites, notes ASSP, are among the most hazardous work environments.
ANSI/ASSP A10.2-2025 “Safety, Health and Environmental Training for Construction and Demolition Operations,” establishes training practices to help organizations across the country eliminate hazards and risks that cause injuries, illnesses and fatalities.
“Uniform practices for training construction personnel can create much safer jobsites," said Gary Gustafson, chair -
February 10, 2025The New Blueprint for Construction Safety
AI-powered platforms for enhanced insight into emerging risks.
In 2023, construction fatalities hit the highest number since 2011. This statistic demonstrates the need for a new approach to protecting workers. The industry has the opportunity to make 2025 a transformative year for safety.
It won’t be easy. This year, the construction industry will continue to struggle with a workforce shortage, creating a number of safety and operational challenges. However, new frameworks and technologies give organizations powerful ways to enhance their safety practices. Events that could have — but did not — result in a serious injury or fatality (SIF-p) should command more attention, and safety leaders can leverage AI-powered platforms for enhanced insight into emerging risks.
These changes can help the industry evolve beyond outdated approaches, combining cultural shifts and innovative technologies to better protect its -
February 10, 2025EPA Launches Wildfire Hazardous Material Removal Effort
Having completed reconnaissance at 6,022 properties, the next phase of debris removal has begun.
On Jan. 24, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order Emergency Measures to Provide Water Resources in California and Improve Disaster Response in Certain Areas. This directs EPA to complete its hazardous materials mission responding to the Los Angeles wildfires as soon as practical. EPA’s work removing hazardous materials is Phase 1 of the federal cleanup response.
The Phase 2 debris removal in the burn footprints, and to prevent these materials from being released into the environment. Phase 2 will be conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as coordinated by FEMA. Once Phase 1 has been completed at a property, Phase 2 will begin automatically.
And on February 3, the EPA announced that it has completed reconnaissance at 6,022 properties due to the wildfires. This includes 3,636 properties impacted
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