ANSI Board Rejects Appeal
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Board of Standards Review (BSR) rejected an appeal to withdraw the adoption of the ANSI/ASSE A10.40-2007 voluntary consensus standard “Reduction of Musculoskeletal Problems in Construction,” which aims to reduce musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in the construction industry.
The Construction Industry Employer Coalition, a coalition of five construction trade associations, brought the appeal of the standard's adoption. The ANSI BSR denied the appeal because the coalition failed to provide sufficient evidence to demonstrate the ANSI/ASSE A10 Accredited Standards Committee (ASC) did not obtain a consensus of materially affected interests with respect to the A10.40 standard. The BSR found the coalition also failed to demonstrate that the committee was unbalanced or dominated by one interest group.
Ill Effects of Workplace Bullying
Workplace bullying, which can include belittling comments and persistent criticism, appears to inflict more harm on employees than sexual harassment, researchers said during a March 8 conference in Washington, D.C.
Both bullying and sexual harassment can create negative work environments and unhealthy consequences for employees, but the researchers found that workplace aggression has more severe consequences. Employees who experienced bullying, incivility or interpersonal conflict were more likely to quit their jobs, have lower feelings of well-being, be less satisfied with their jobs and have less satisfying relations with their bosses than employees who were sexually harassed, the researchers found. Additionally, bullied employees reported more job stress, less job commitment and higher levels of anger and anxiety.
MSHA Reduces Asbestos Exposure Limit
MSHA published a final rule raising protections for miners exposed to asbestos at metal, nonmetal and underground coal mines, stipulating it will reduce the asbestos exposure limit by 95 percent.
The new rule, published Feb. 29 in the Federal Register, matches OSHA protections already in place for almost all other workers.