Bostik Inc. reported yesterday that they had determined the cause of their plant´s explosion and 4-alarm fire at their adhesive manufacturing plant in Middleton on March 14. They asserted that the explosion which injured four of their workers was due to open valves that let flammable gas permeate throughout the…
An important decision has recently been made by a Massachusetts Chief Justice who has ruled that the wife of a deceased Massachusetts construction worker can sue the contractor who oversaw a construction site where her husband was killed and son was injured, despite the fact that the contractor has already…
On May 17, 2011, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration reopened the public record on the proposed rule to revise the Occupational Injury and Illness Recording and Reporting Requirements regulation on workers’ musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). As reported in OSHA Withdraws Two Important Workplace Safety Proposals, OSHA…
Folan Waterproofing and Construction Co. Inc., of South Easton, has been cited by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for nine serious violations of workplace safety standards at a Lowell jobsite. In December of last year, an OSHA inspector found a Folan worker climbing onto…
Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley has announced that a Lynnfield asbestos removal company has been charged with the improper removal and disposal of asbestos in Marblehead, Lynn, and Beverly. Authorities report that David Harder, Jr., age 47, and Julie Rosati, age 51, of Lynnfield, their company named AEI, and Luiz…
According to a report released by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, teen work injuries remain a major issue for Massachusetts despite a slight decline over the past few decades. The report is a part of the department´s “teens at work” project that tracks teenager hospital room visits and teenager…
As summer approaches, the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently announced a national initiative to educate workers and their employers about the hazards of working outdoors in the heat and ways in which employers can prevent heat-related illnesses for their employees. Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis…
Governor Deval Patrick has recently agreed to keep Massachusetts workers’ compensation rates at their current levels after an agreement was reached between the Massachusetts worker’s compensation bureau, the state insurance division and the attorney general’s office. As earlier reported in Massachusetts Workers’ Compensation Rate Freeze, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley…
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has recently released a campaign for a safer working environment for employees who drive while working. Following national awareness and campaigns on the dangers of texting while driving, OSHA is working together with the Department of Transportation and has released a “no-texting while…
The Office of Attorney General Martha Coakley has recently announced that Maria Oliveira-Soares, a woman from Randolph, Massachusetts, has been charged with two counts of Workers’ Compensation Fraud. After a referral instigated by the Massachusetts Insurance Fraud Bureau (IFB), AG Coakley’s office began an investigation into Oliveira-Soares’ fraudulent claims for…