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Employers need to be aware that in some cases, H1N1 virus can trigger FMLA.

While H1N1 influenza, the so-called “swine flu” is not always a serious health condition under FMLA, it can be in some cases. Many people with the H1N1 report that the symptoms are very similar to – and no more severe than – the seasonal influenza. In those cases, the employee with swine flu is not entitled to FMLA.

However, if the employee is admitted to a hospital, or is incapacitated for 3 days or more and requires continuing treatment, then the FMLA threshold for a serious health condition has been met. H1N1 is most likely to be severe for children, the elderly and those with compromised immune systems.

According to the Center for Disease Control, flu-related hospitalizations are very high compared to the average for this time of year – and the flu season is only beginning.

In order to be in compliance, every employer should follow the FMLA notification process whenever an employee is absent with H1N1 virus for several days. The employer can and should require certification of the employee’s or family member’s serious health condition.

Employees are also entitled to take unpaid, job-protected FMLA leave when an immediate family member has a serious health condition. So an employee whose spouse or parent has H1N1, and meets the definition (more…)

OSHA is once again addressing regulations on combustible dust hazards in the workplace.

The U.S. Department of Labor recently announced that OSHA will issue an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on this controversial topic. The new regulations will address issues such as:

• Defining combustible dust
• Hazard recognition
• Assessment
• Communication 

OSHA has asked employers, unions, workers and other interested parties to weigh in with their thoughts on the new regulations and related enforcement methods.

Tragically, a number of workplace deaths have resulted from combustible dust explosions in the past few years. An explosion at an Imperial Sugar Co. plant explosion in Port Wentworth, Georgia killed 14 workers in February, 2008. OSHA levied $9 million in fines against the owners.

In April 2009, 3 workers lost their lives (more…)

Although the worst of the Swine Flu scare is past, it is still smart for every employer to have a plan in place for an pandemic – a global influenza epidemic.

OSHA, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, has partnered with the Southern California Education and Research Center to provide worker free safety seminars to employers.

The Southern California Education and Research Center based at UCLA is offering a one-hour webinar for employers, Preparing Your Business to Survive Pandemic Flu and Other Disasters.

Scientists say that new strains of influenza mutate spontaneously every year, so the risk will remain high for many years to come.

The SCERC offers three one-hour workshops onsite for businesses or organizations.

Topics include:  

1. Pandemic Flu – What Is It? How Can It Affect My Business?
2. Pandemic Flu – Hazards, Prevention and Exposure Reduction
3. Planning Workgroups: Individual Planning Exercises  

Employers can schedule a workshop with one, two or all three sessions.

The presentations address:

• Basic influenza info for all employees
• Operations panning for a major influenza outbreak
• Financial issues for Human Resources Pros
• Supply chain interruption
• Retaining Customers
• Resources 

For employers who prefer to participate in these free Swine Flu seminars online, there are two (more…)

OSHA has ordered a Connecticut air cargo carrier to withdraw a lawsuit for defamation against 9 former employees and pay them more than $7.9 million in wages, damages and legal fees.

Southern Air, Inc.  specializes in long haul, heavy-lift air freight operations using the company’s B747 fleet of cargo planes.  Based in Norwich, the company has been in operation since 1999 when it acquired the fleet of the former Southern Air Transport Company.

Southern Air filed a defamation suite against 9 former employees in Connecticut Superior Court in May 2008 after some of the workers raised safety concerns with Southern Air, OSHA and the FAA or Federal Aviation Administration. The workers were all former flight crew members and subsequently filed a whistleblower complaint with OSHA.

OSHA’s investigation found that the company’s lawsuit was filed in retaliation for the worker’s  protected activities under the whistle bower provision of the Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment and Reform Act for the 21^st Century or AIR21.

“This order sends a strong and clear message that these and other workers have the right to raise safety issues with their employers and regulatory agencies without fear of retaliation and intimidation,” (more…)

Effective February 1, 2009 every employer should have posted an OSHA 300A summary of work-related injuries, illnesses and accidents in 2008.

Employers are required to post only the summary, not the entire OSHA 300 log each year.

Some information on the OSHA 300A should be kept confidential by omitting the employees name or the nature of the injuries. If a female employee is sexually assulated in the workplace, for example, her name and the exact nature of the injury should not be listed. Any illness or injury that could potentially be embarrassing to the employee, should not be specified. For example, if a male employee suffered a serious injury to the groin area might only be listed as “laceration.”

The OSHA 300A summary of workplace injuries should remain posted until April 30, 2009. The record serves in part to remind employers and employees of potential hazards i (more…)