Employers generally will be required to promptly correct unsafe conditions even while they are in the process of appealing safety citations, under a new law signed by Governor Gregoire. Currently, the time clock for correcting unsafe conditions doesn’t start ticking until any appeals have worked their way through the system. The new law changes that approach for any violations that are labeled as serious, willful, repeated serious, or failure to abate a serious violation by the Washington Department of Labor and Industries (L&I). Employers who choose to appeal a citation will have the option of asking L&I and the Board of Industrial Insurance Appeals to hold off on enforcement during the appeal, but the law directs the agencies to deny the request if death or serious physical harm is likely. The new law will take effect 90 days after the legislature adjourns (SSB 5068, 2011 Wash Laws, Ch. 91).

Tips: Contact your Vigilant safety representative if L&I pays you a visit. Better yet, ask Vigilant for an on-site review of your safety compliance, so you can ensure your house is in order before L&I comes knocking. In the event of a fatality or hospitalization, you must promptly report the incident to L&I. For more information, see our Legal Guide, “Catastrophe/Fatality Notification Procedure” (3576).

Hot sun and no shade? Check. Long hours of physical labor? Check. Non-breathable clothing and no water? Check. Sounds like you’ve got everything you need for a heat illness!

As summer approaches, employees who work outdoors in direct sunlight or in hot environments are increasingly susceptible to heat-induced illnesses such as heat stress, heat exhaustion or the more serious heat stroke. Symptoms of heat exhaustion or heat stroke include confusion, irrational behavior, loss of consciousness, abnormally high body temperature and hot, dry skin.

Employers in California and Washington are required to protect workers by following their state’s heat illness prevention rule, but all employers should help employees stay healthy by providing plenty of water and frequent rest periods in a cool recovery area. Check out OSHA’s fact sheets, “Protecting Workers from Effects of Heat” and “Working Outdoors in Warm Climates,” and call your Vigilant safety professional for more heat illness prevention information and recommendations.

Many participants in Vigilant’s Washington Group Retro Program soon will be receiving refunds on a portion of their workers’ compensation premiums. Retro participants whose claim losses are less than the premium they pay can look forward to refunds. The program passed an important milestone this year, with a total of $100 million in premiums returned to Vigilant members in the last 25 years!   

Each plan year runs from July 1 through June 30. The group refunds are as follows:

• First adjustment return for the 2008-2009 plan year is 16 percent.
• Second adjustment return for the 2007-2008 plan year is 14 percent.
• Third adjustment return for the 2006-2007 plan year is 18 percent.

Each participant’s refund is based on their performance and may be different than the group refund. Vigilant staff will be delivering Retro refund checks to members during the week of June 14, 2010. For information about joining the Washington Group Retro Program, contact Trish Leimbach (800-733-8620 or t.leimbach@vigilantcounsel.org).  

Governor Kulongoski has signed SB 1006, which makes immediate changes to Oregon law that requires a “place of public assembly” (including workplaces) to keep an automated external defibrillator (AED) on site, as follows: 

• A covered “place of public assembly” must be a single building with at least 50,000 square feet of indoor floor space. Previously, it was unclear whether an employer with multiple buildings on one site was obligated to add the square footage from separate buildings.
• The law raises the minimum number of people who congregate on a normal business day at a place of public assembly to at least 50 (instead of 25) individuals. Keep in mind that your count must include not only employees, but also vendors, visitors, contractors, or others who typically gather at your building. A special section for health clubs reduces the minimum number of people at the facility to 50 (previously 100), thus making it consistent with the standards for places of public assembly.
• To be a place of public assembly, it still must be a location where business is conducted, or where the public congregates for purposes such as deliberation, shopping, entertainment, amusement, or awaiting transportation. Buildings used primarily for worship or education associated with worship aren’t required to have an AED.
• The new law requires community colleges and state institutions of higher education to have at least one AED on campus, including one in each building that qualifies as a place of public assembly.
• Anyone who uses or attempts to use the AED is immune from a lawsuit, with two exceptions:  1. The person acts with gross negligence or reckless, wanton or intentional misconduct; or 2. The use, attempted use or nonuse of the AED occurs at a location where emergency medical care is regularly available (Vigilant believes this refers to hospitals or medical clinics).  

The governor also signed SB 1033, which eliminates existing exceptions for facilities owned by an education service district, public charter school or school district, effective January 1, 2011. Also, every school campus in a school district, private school campus and public charter school campus will be required to have at least one AED on the premises no later than January 1, 2015. If you have questions about how the new AED law applies to your business, contact your Vigilant safety representative.