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We all remember what it felt like to enter the workforce, especially the first time we landed a “real” job on a construction site or in some kind of industrial facility. We were handling serious work and earning serious money for it. We were strong, energetic, eager, and much smarter than those “old guys” around us — or so we thought. Now that we’re one of the “old guys” (or gals) on the job, we found ourselves working with newcomers to our workplaces. While we appreciate their energy and eagerness, we also see that familiar delusion that they’re smarter than everyone they encounter. However, we know something they don’t, and that’s the fact that it’s not unusual for younger workers to be injured on the job during their first few months of work. As their supervisors, we bear responsibility for making sure that they don’t become a statistic. We need to help them understand the owner’s or employer’s safety culture, and encourage them to take responsibility for their own safety. Click to read more;

Heat is a condition that affects all worksites, whether indoors or out. In Florida, the heat, combined with high humidity, brings its own special issues. When you combine high temperatures and high humidity with strenuous physical activity, you are upping the ante for a heat-related illness to occur. Every year, thousands of workers become sick or die due to heat stress. Labor-intense activities in hot weather can raise body temperatures beyond the level that normally can be cooled by sweating. Heat illness initially may start as heat rash or heat cramps, but can quickly escalate to heat exhaustion and then heat stroke if simple preventative measures are not followed. Heat related illnesses aren’t just a problem for outdoor workers. In addition to the weather, heat can be generated by machinery and increase the average temperature of the surrounding area. The usage of personal protective equipment (PPE), while helpful and often necessary, can be an additional source of warmth. A hot indoor environment, aided by the outdoor climate (whether that means that doors have to be left open or that your building isn’t well insulated) can slow down reaction times and create an unsafe workplace. Develop a heat-related injury and illness safety program: Training is crucial to ensure managers and employees understand the true impact of heat. Follow the simple guidelines to ensure your workers aren’t at risk this summer: Educate Employees — have a Heat Illness Safety Talk (link to Heat Illness Safety Talk) — so workers can recognize symptoms, know about proper clothing and how to tell if they’re hydrated. Provide fresh water — have water on hand close to the work area and remind workers to frequently drink small amounts of water every 20 – 30 minutes. Rest/Shade — new workers should gradually increase their workload or take more frequent breaks the first week. Schedule frequent rest periods with water breaks in shade or areas with air condition. Monitor — keep an eye on your workers to be sure they aren’t showing signs of heat illness. Have them pair up to work if possible. Most of the time, a worker may not realize what is happening to them until heat sickness strikes. Heat Safety Tools: To help plan for outdoor work activities, OSHA and the National Institute for Occupation Safety and Health (NIOSH) have developed the OSHA-NIOSH Heat Safety Tool. Click here for link to tool: This mobile app, available in English and Spanish on both IPhone and Android, allows workers and supervisors to calculate the heat index for their worksite, and, based on the heat index, displays a risk level to workers. Then, with a simple "click," you can get reminders about the protective measures that should be taken at that risk level to protect workers from heat-related illness. Additionally, OSHA has training posters to prevent heat illness in outdoor workers available in English and Spanish Click here for link to training posters:

The best method to keep OSHA away is to make sure reports are accurate to begin with. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) doesn’t often do mulligans. Even if an employer later discovers that it filed an injury report by mistake, they shouldn’t expect the agency to cancel a follow-up onsite inspection. “It is our experience that once the horse is out of the barn—that an accident has occurred, regardless of severity—OSHA is unlikely to agree not to inspect the workplace,” say attorneys David Klass and Travis W. Vance of law firm Fisher Phillips “That is because, while the severity of the injury may affect how a citation is classified (serious, other-than-serious, etc.), whether a violation may exist is based on the fact of injury itself as well as what else the company has reported to OSHA regarding the cause of the injury.” Click to read more:

The difference between a freelancer, independent contractor, and employee, explained. An editor at Epicurious seemed super excited last week when he announced “an amazing job” opportunity for a food writer on Twitter. Except that the details of the “full-time freelance” job he described — being paid hourly for 40 hours a week with zero benefits — didn’t seem so amazing. In fact, the setup sounded illegal. So did the details of another recent job opening on Medium, which sought writers to work full-time hours but as independent contractors. Both job postings prompted viral outrage from journalists on Twitter, who accused hiring managers of trying to misclassify employees as contractors to avoid paying taxes and benefits. Journalists reported both job postings to the New York Department of Labor; the agency now says it’s investigating the Epicurious job posting. It’s unclear if the agency is also looking into the Medium posting. The entire back-and-forth on Twitter was quite remarkable, but not for the obvious reasons. Employers misclassify workers all the time, and yes, it’s illegal. They often get away with it because job candidates don’t realize what the labels mean and because the penalties for breaking the law are minimal. Click to read more:

New research suggests that drivers who use hands-free electronic devices, as opposed to handheld ones, are not increasing their risk of getting into a crash. According to the research from Virginia Tech Transportation Institute, with hands-free technology, drivers can make calls and perform a variety of other tasks while still keeping their hands on the wheel and eyes on the road. “Any activity that places either visual or manual demands on the driver — texting, browsing or dialing a hand-held phone, for instance — substantially increases crash risk. However, our recent study has found that the primarily cognitive secondary task of talking on a hands-free device does not appear to have any detrimental effects,” said Tom Dingus, the principal investigator of the study. Click to read more:

Are employees injured at work more likely to file under workers’ compensation instead of group health insurance when their group health plan has a higher deductible? The Workers Compensation Research Institute (WCRI) found evidence they do in a new study it says has great relevance since the number of workers in health insurance plans with high deductibles is growing. “In years past, workers may have chosen to have a work injury covered within their group health plan. But the increasing cost of deductibles may cause them to consider having the injury covered where it potentially belongs in the workers’ compensation system, where there are no deductibles or copayments for the medical care they receive,” said John Ruser, WCRI’s president and CEO. Click here to read more:

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Olin Landscaping – based in Venice, Florida – for failing to protect employees working in excessive heat after an employee succumbed to fatal heat-related symptoms while performing lawn maintenance at a residence in Nokomis, Florida. The heat index reached between 97 and 103 degrees on August 25, 2018. OSHA cited Olin Landscaping for exposing employees to outdoor heat hazards, failing to protect employees from heat-related illnesses and injuries, and failing to report the workplace fatality to OSHA within 8 hours, as required. The company faces $16,102 in penalties. “This preventable tragedy underscores the requirement that employers take precautions – such as ensuring access to water, rest, and shade – to keep workers safe while working in extreme heat,” said OSHA Tampa Area Office Director Les Grove. Click to read more:

OSHA requires employers who had 11 or more employees at any time during the calendar year to keep a record of serious work-related injuries and illnesses. These injuries and illnesses are recorded on 300 Logs, and if you’re an employer who is required to complete them, you may be already be aware of how to complete them. However, below are some common mistakes that employers make regarding recordkeeping. Click here to read more:

Well, who knew a holiday week post on customer service would be so popular? It appears we struck a nerve there, perhaps driven as much by universal frustration with big “service” companies as anything else. What does this mean for you? Find out what your customers want, and do it right the first time. They will love you and reward you for it. Click here to read more:

The core of customer service is this: the customer wants to feel valued, that they are important to the seller. There are two basic ways of achieving that – thru organizational policy and by individual employee actions.EndFragment Click here to read more:

Florida Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jimmy Patronis and Insurance Commissioner David Altmaier spoke with insurance company executives today and called on the industry to step up more to aid in Hurricane Michael recovery. CFO Jimmy Patronis said, “Before Hurricane Michael hit, I put Florida’s insurance industry on notice that I expected they would move quickly to help residents recover. Unfortunately, this hasn’t been the case all around. My office has noticed several alarming trends since the storm made landfall including delays in processing claims. What is even more troubling is that 13 percent of complaints to my office were related to claim denials. Click here to read more:

New Senate President Bill Galvano is promising to revisit Florida’s workers’ compensation insurance laws, despite two decreases in rates for employers. Galvano said the laws need to be looked at because of two state Supreme Court rulings, including one that eliminated caps on fees charged by attorneys who represent injured workers. He said there is a chance the rulings could result in rate hikes in the future. “I don’t want to be in a situation where they spike and then we are running to fix it at that point,” Galvano, R-Bradenton, told reporters Friday. “I’d rather look at the system and make any changes that are necessary while we have the luxury of not having high rates.” Click to read more: