labor lawAdivision of labor law center

Reports received by OSHA show that workers have lost their control over the chainsaw whenever the plastic handle broke during heavy use. It has injured some workers with severe bruises and some with wrist sprains and burns in the fingers.

According to the Vermont worker safety alert, two types of chainsaws that are popularly used in many industries are affected. They are the brands of Troy-Bilt and Craftsman chainsaws being powered by a two-cycle gasoline engine ranging in size from 46cc to 55cc. Their cutting blades have length of either 18 or 20 inches.

It was the Vermont OSHA office that issued a warning recently on these two brands of chainsaw that are widely used in industry.

OSHA works along with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) to take necessary steps required in this aspect. The CPSC’s main aim is to protect the consumers from unknown and unreasonable risks caused by more than 15,000 varieties of consumer product incidents which come under its jurisdiction. $700 billion per annum is the estimated cost towards the damage caused to property by these products. The CPSC works towards the protection of the safety of workers and consumers from the mechanical, the chemical or the electrical hazards posed by the products.

The OSHA agency insists that every employer must be aware of the dangerous hazards created by the chainsaws. It emphasizes that the workers must stop using these products immediately.

The two brands of the chainsaws have already been voluntarily recalled by the manufacturers in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and OSHA. The employers must take action to remove the chainsaws from the workplace in order to ensure their workers’ safety. Proper measures must be taken to equip the chainsaws with additional safety kits. The information on the same can be obtained either from the manufacturers or the OSHA.

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