OSHA Issues Final Ergonomics Program Rule


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		OSHA Issues Final Ergonomics Program Rule

In a move that has already generated heavy criticism from industry, OSHA announced on November 14 the release of its ergonomics standard. The rule, which is intended to regulate work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs), will cost employers $ 4.5 billion annually to comply with it, but reduce worker's compensation costs by $ 9.1 billion (both OSHA figures). According to OSHA, it will also reduce the number of workplace injuries by 460,000 annually. The effective date for the rule is January 16, 2001, but implementation dates do not start tolling until October 15, 2001, when employees must be given (1) basic information about MSDs and their signs and symptoms, (2) the importance of reporting MSDs and their signs and symptoms early and the consequences of failing to report them early, (3) how to report MSDs and their signs and symptoms in your workplace, (4) the kinds of risk factors, jobs and work activities associated with MSD hazards, and (5) a short description of the requirements of OSHA's ergonomics program standard. By January 16, 2002, employers must implement policies that provide for MSD management.

The standard contains an ``action trigger,'' which identifies jobs with risk factors of sufficient magnitude, duration, or intensity to warrant further examination by the employer. This action trigger acts as a screen. When an employee reports an MSD, the employer must first determine whether the MSD is an MSD incident, defined by the standard as an MSD that results in days away from work, restricted work, medical treatment beyond first aid, or MSD symptoms or signs that persist for 7 or more days. Once this determination is made, the employer must determine whether the employee's job has risk factors that meet the standard's action trigger. The risk factors addressed by this standard include repetition, awkward posture, force, vibration, and contact stress. If the risk factors in the employee's job do not exceed the action trigger, the employer does not need to implement an ergonomics program for that job. If an employee reports an MSD incident and the risk factors of that employee's job meet the action trigger, the employer must establish an ergonomics program for that job. The program must contain the following elements: hazard information and reporting, management leadership and employee participation, job hazard analysis and control, training, MSD management, and program evaluation. The standard provides the employer with several options for evaluating and controlling risk factors for jobs covered by the ergonomics program, and provides objective criteria for identifying MSD hazards in those jobs and determining when the controls implemented have achieved the required level of control.)

The complete text of the rule is available at AcuSafe.com (.HTML, 2,759K). A PDF version with complete figures and tables is not available as of the writing of this article, but will be available shortly and will be posted to AcuSafe at http://www.acusafe.com/osha-epa/Other-OSHA-regs.htm. For other AcuSafe resources on human factors, please go to http://www.acusafe.com/Hazard_Analysis/Human_Factors.htm. The ErgoEaser software, a new software package that has been developed to aid in identifying, evaluating, and preventing work-related musculoskeletal disorders is also available at http://tis-hq.eh.doe.gov/others/ergoeaser/download.html.