Out Loud Blog

Does OSHA need to “resurrect the process” for developing standards? Yes, says former NIOSH Director John Howard, M.D., J.D., who said in a world increasingly looking to the European Union for standards leadership, OSHA runs the risk of becoming “irrelevant.”

Howard, speaking at a symposium on “The Future of Occupational Safety and Health” sponsored by the International Safety Equipment Association, said the main issue contributing to the charge of irrelevance against OSHA is “the lack of connectivity between the current causes of worker injury, illness and death, and the absence of standards that address such causes.” more

A recent experience caused me to realize that EHS managers more and more frequently are becoming not just road warriors, but international road warriors, subjected to hours and even days spent traveling every week. I’m going to start this category off with my own road warrior story, but feel free to add your own comments and suggestions for ways to proactively utilize time spent in airports, train stations, taxis, etc., or, better yet, ways to get around recorded customer service messages to find a real person who can help.

I flew out to the National Safety Congress this year on a sunny Sunday morning, looking forward to landing just a couple of hours after I left – the benefit of east to west travel – and enjoying some relaxing hours by my hotel pool before the serious work started. I made the mistake of taking an airline I’ve heard nothing but complaints about and connecting in O’Hare, the nation’s second busiest airport. Recipe for disaster right? RIGHT! more