Workplace safety

[peavey123]

Hi All,

I'm just posting this because I'm not sure what I should be doing here. I've had a couple issues regarding my health at work and they do not seem to be properly acknowledged.

Propane Forklift in shop without proper ventalation. My office is upstairs fumes pour into my office making my light headed etc. I often just leave the shop when this is going on , but even after the forklift has been off, it still seems to linger causeing headaches, can't concentrate on my design work. Generally feel ****ty.

Spray painting without proper ventalation. Same as above, but there might be one door open like 20ft away from where the painting happeneing. My office is pretty far away, but still, headaches, slight light headed feeling. It's like the air flows through my office somehow..wierd because you'd think I'd be okay up here...

Anyways, I don't knwo what to do, I've brought it up many times and I either get laughed at or nothing gets said at all, or I know it within my right to leave without punishment etc. but we're so busy I can't just leave. Plus I can't afford to leave and get docked pay...

I honestly feel like a ***** for even bringing it up to you and to my boss and co-workers. I should also mention none of this affects them physically. Well that they notcie..not sure what to do...******* joke...sorry frustrated I can't concentrate becasue I'm just thinking about how I feel funny..

thanks,
Peav.

 

[eahicks]

https://www.osha.gov/as/opa/worker/complain.html

 

[CreatedDesigns]

Yep just a complaint to OSHA should get the ball rolling. After they receive a complaint they will send a letter to the employer stating the problem and the company will have a set time to monitor, and remedy the issue. OSHA will not show up. But if complaints keep coming in they will come in and inspect the place and fine them for whatever they find. So it is in the companies best interest to comply and install proper ventilation and also install a scrubber on the forklift if adaquate makeup air is not available.

 

[Marlene]

do you have OSHA up there? call them

 

[webguru]

http://www.ccohs.ca/

 

[rjssigns]

Laughing at you when you say you're getting sick from fumes shows very little regard for you. You may have to leave the job.

 

[TimToad]

Don't let that machismo, "Oh, we don't feel anything, it must be in your head" garbage discount what you feel. No job is worth getting ill from and you never know what the long term health effects could be from the combination of stuff wafting its way up to your office. If there are industrial scale welding, painting, sanding, forklifting, etc. by products in the air, its all going to move upward in the air currents until it settles as dust and the particulates are as bad as the fumes. Where do you eat your lunch?

I can guarantee you that even an anonymous call to your worker's safety agency will result in retribution. I'd be well into a job search before exposing yourself to that.

Good luck and hopefully your next employer puts his own and the health of his workers ahead of cutting corners on such an important issue.

I broke into this business working for the world's largest outdoor advertising company at the time and despite all the school tours, ad agency execs trotting in and out, regular OSHA inspections, high emphasis on publicizing a concern for safety, all the proper safeguards and gear, we still were put in harm's way EVERY DAY in order to maximize productivity and profits. The OSHA inspector would literally warn the super when he was coming. Our higher ups (all of whom came from the same workforce) would follow us around all day and spy on us, not to make sure we were wearing our safety harnesses up on the billboards, but to hammer us for not getting more done.

I almost got tossed off a scaffold from 75' up because they sent out a rookie to act as our helper. With rope and pulley scaffolds, you were half bulletin painter, half monkey. The young guy always had to do the tie offs. I was on the stage securing things after we had pulled the scaffolds back up to where we were working. On a big, high wall job it was normal to drop down a bit to get off on the fire escape for lunch and he was on the ground and didn't understand that he was supposed to hold tight until I got to his side of the scaffold and secured the line in the stirrup. He started letting it go before I fully had it under control and the scaffold abruptly dropped about 10' before my journeymen could knock him out of the way and grab the line. I dove for the line and got it tied off but was way too stressed to continue. We went back to the plant and the first question out of our super was "How much did you get done?"

The moral of my prattling on is that only one person can watch out for your safety and that is you. Good luck. If you have skills and a good work ethic, you'll find a clean, safe place to work.

 

[GAC05]

Not how it works up north but with OSHA here you can request a consultation.
They'll come in and do a walk through with management and help them get up to code.
Long, long ago when we did radiator repair we had them come in and for a week we wore monitors around our necks to see if the fumes from the acid, flux & lead soldering was doing anything to us (me).
As far as I know I was fine except for my inability to write/spell & a tendency to vote republican.
Might be worth a call.

wayne k
guam usa