Hackensack Workers' Compensation Law Blog

Loading docks can be a dangerous area for workers in New Jersey to find themselves in. The good news is that there are basic steps that companies can take to minimize the opportunity for an accident to occur. One such step is to provide training as it relates to using forklifts. To comply with OSHA regulations, employees should be taught how to use the specific machines that they will be working with on the job.

Workers should be equipped with safety gear such as footwear that won't cause them to skid or slide on a dock floor. They should also be given protection for their ears, eyes and face. Helmets may protect employees from objects falling from shelves or similar objects. The dock itself should be dry and in good condition at all times. Doing so may prevent workers from slipping, tripping or falling.

Construction site owners in New Jersey should be aware that falls are the leading cause of death in the construction industry according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. On average, 310 construction workers die every year in falls, and 10,350 are seriously injured. In the effort to prevent falls, NIOSH has released a fact sheet on roof, scaffold and ladder safety for both employers and workers.

The fact sheet stresses the importance of adequate training. Employers must additionally have a fall protection program in place for roof workers and have them use the buddy system. Fall arrest systems should have the correct anchorage. It's also best to monitor the weather.

Construction workers in New Jersey may face a range of dangers on the job. They often deal with heavy equipment and complicated machinery, and they may work on partially constructed buildings or other open structures. These problems are exacerbated by employers that fail to live up to federal standards for workplace safety, exposing construction workers to serious risks. Indeed, workers in construction lose their lives on the job five times as often as those in any other industry. On average, 14 people are killed every day while doing construction work.

Various types of construction accidents have also seen an escalation, with deadly workplace injuries related to being struck by equipment growing by 34 percent in the past 10 years. As a result, responsible companies, worker advocates and regulators have been looking for solutions that could provide a greater level of safety to employees in construction. Some are turning to technology for the answer, including adopting artificial intelligence mechanisms to increase workplace safety. There are several ways that AI could help make a construction site safer. Some of the riskiest events that happen on the job are a surprise of some kind, from equipment mishaps to serious falls.

Farm machines such as tractors, combines and skid loaders are known for vibrating at intense levels. The European Union has developed a system for measuring workers' exposure to whole-body vibrations, establishing an "action level" beyond which the vibrations may be detrimental to one's health. New Jersey residents should know that one NIOSH-funded study has reviewed the link between farm machine vibrations and back pain.

University of Iowa researchers attached floor and seat sensors to 112 pieces of farm machinery and measured vibration levels as 55 workers operated them. With the seat sensors, they analyzed how well the seats reduced floor vibrations. They concluded that 56 percent of the machines met the EU's action level for exposure after eight hours of operation and that nearly 30 percent met it after only two hours.