Taking the time to hire the right person for your available position is worth the time and expense. It takes a lot of time and money to train new hires. If they are not right for position, you are wasting that time and money. The wrong hire can also affect employee morale and safety. They can be injured or injure other employees. Taking extra time to screen the potential employees at the start can go a long way toward a successful hire. Implement a hiring process and stick to it. By having a system in place, you will be more efficient and organized. Where will you list your job openings? What will your base job listing say? What will you add to your base job listing for different departments of your business? Develop a list of the job duties, including the physical requirements for your positions. Design an informative employment application. These are the first steps toward finding qualified candidates for your open positions. Once you find a qualified candidate, there are another series of steps to take. Look for these in next month’s WCA Shout Out. If you have questions, please call us at (561) 500-FLWC (3592). This is one of the extra services provided by Work Comp Associates, Inc.

A New Jersey man is facing fraud charges after surveillance video appears to show him fake a fall at his former place of work. It looks like break time at the workplace cafeteria in the crystal-clear footage sent out by the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, but investigators say the man you see in the video is looking for more than just a drink from the soda machine. Click here to see the video:

StartFragmentThe new year is a good time to resolve to keep your workplace safe and sound by establishing and maintaining an effective safety and health program. The Safe + Sound Campaign can help your business take a step in the right direction no matter where you are on the road to developing a program. During the year, the Safe + Sound Campaign will support your efforts through periodic safety and health program messaging and communications; free webinars; resources from campaign organizers; and local events to support safety and health program development.EndFragment Click to read more:

Are you aware of the steps that need to be taken if you’re in a situation where a coworker gets a small cut or you see someone suffering from a heat-related illness? If you have been certified in First Aid/CPR, you should be able to say a confident ‘yes’ to this question! The importance of these trainings goes beyond simply having a certification card. It means that in a possibly life-threatening situation, you are equipped with the knowledge of how to react and the next steps to take. Join us for our next Webinar on Wednesday, October 18, 2017 at 3:00 PM EDT/12:00 PM PDT where we discuss the importance of First Aid & Bloodborne Pathogen Training and how it could save more lives than you think! Webinar has already passed

In the event of an emergency, an emergency action plan can result in reducing the number of injuries and even saving lives. The purpose of an emergency action plan (EAP) is to organize and develop safe procedures for employers and employees to follow in emergency situations. The more organized the emergency action plan is, the better. A disorganized evacuation can result in injuries, damages, and overall confusion among employees. OSHA requires an employer to keep a written emergency action plan in the workplace that is available to all employees to review. Click here to read more:

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has resumed normal enforcement throughout most of Florida and Georgia. The agency had ceased most programmed enforcement actions following Hurricane Irma. In the hurricane’s aftermath, OSHA provided compliance assistance and outreach to employers and workers involved in the clean-up and recovery operations. Thousands of crews and individual workers received job safety and health technical assistance. OSHA retained the right to inspect fatalities, catastrophic accidents, employee complaints, and employers who repeatedly exposed employees to serious hazards during cleanup and recovery activities. Click here to read more:

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited L.I. Aluminum Design Inc., a Naples-based patio and pool enclosure manufacturer and installer, for failing to protect employees from fall hazards. Proposed penalties total $40,096. OSHA investigated the company after an employee installing patio screen enclosures suffered a fatal fall. L.I. Aluminum was issued four serious citations for failing to provide fall protection to employees working at heights of 10 feet or more; exposing employees to falls; and failing to train employees on fall hazards and the proper use of ladders. Click to read more:

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited Douglas N. Higgins Inc., a South Florida utility company, after an employee suffered fatal injuries at a Naples Park worksite. The company faces $162,596 in proposed penalties, the maximum allowed. The employee suffered the fatal injuries when a steel plate fell on him as he installed sewer lines. OSHA cited the company for permitting employees to work in a trench without adequate cave-in protection; failing to provide safe entry and exit from a trench, perform atmospheric testing, and train employees on signals used when moving trench boxes; and allowing employees to use defective equipment to hoist a compactor. The Agency cited the company for a similar violation in January 2017 after three employees succumbed to toxic gases while working in a manhole. Click to read more:

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited C.W. Hendrix Farms Inc. for failing to protect workers from recognized hazards after lightning struck and killed an employee at the Parkland, Florida, farm. OSHA inspectors determined that Hendrix Farms exposed employees to lightning strikes as they picked vegetables in inclement weather. The company faces a penalty of $12,934, the maximum amount allowed. Click to read more:

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited PGT Industries Inc. – operating as CGI Windows and Doors Inc. in Hialeah, Florida – for machine guarding hazards after an employee suffered a partial finger amputation while working on an unguarded punch press. The window and door manufacturer faces $398,545 in penalties, including the maximum amount allowed by law for the violations that can cause life-altering injury. Click here to read more:

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Compass Group USA Inc. – operating as Chartwells Dining – for exposing employees to burn and chemical hazards at its cafeteria in Coral Gables, Florida. The company faces $134,880 in penalties. OSHA cited Compass Group for exposing employees to hazards associated with exit routes, failing to provide suitable facilities for quick drenching for employees who work with cleaning chemicals, and for not providing effective training to the employees working with the chemicals. Click here to read more:

Electrical hazards accounted for 19 deaths in Florida in 2017. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), fatal work related injuries for calendar year 2017 in Florida totaled 299, of which 19 were the result of exposure to electricity. Though this is a decrease in electrical work related fatalities from that of 2016, which experienced 23 fatalities, there has been a general upward trending of electrical related workplace fatalities within Florida since 2011. This indicates a need for increased awareness of potential electrical hazards in the workplace, requiring the attention and involvement of personnel at all levels of every workplace. Most electrical incidents result from one or more of the following three factors: • unsafe equipment or installation, • unsafe environment, or • unsafe work practices. Some ways to prevent these incidents are through the use of insulation, guarding, grounding, electrical protective devices, safe work practices, and probably most importantly; training on recognizing and reporting electrical hazards. Click to read more: