Document G6M4Lp8L9Gev9v0zY9w2w7LQr

GAAnderson/BRLedch/PEReed RJDowling/ARGrant/PWJonmaire CBWesterhoff/IAPrager/MOzkan RJMazaika HEPercy-Geismar RMHall-Painesville RRCarpenter-Gastonia OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY & HEALTH REPORTER ( A ,\ee> V review of occupational safety and health developments Volume 10, Number 27 THE BUREAU OF NATIONAL AFFAIRS, INC December 4, 1980 URL 03601 HIGHLIGHTS OF CURRENT REPORT A LEAD STANDARD STAY requested by the cinogen, no studies indicate that exposure to I'd Lead Industries Association, Inc., would not petroleum asphalt presents health hazards, the serve the public interest, the U.S. Solicitor commentors suggest (p. 715). General asserts in a memorandum filed with the U.S. Supreme Court. Employee monitoring and medical testing requirements currently imposed by the standard provide direct evidence of whether employees are facing a dangerously high level of lead exposure, according to the memorandum (p. 713). FOUR MORTALITY STUDIES involving chemical workers and morticians exposed to for maldehyde found no excessive cancer rates in those groups, researchers tell a Chemical In dustry Institute of Toxicology conference. The meeting also is told that a matter for further study involves the differences in the way various NO EXCESSIVE RATES of leukemia or any species of animals respond to formaldehyde (p. other forms of cancer are found by the National 716) . Institute for Occupational Safety and Health at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine. Results of a two-year investigation in dicate that 39 cases of leukemia were found in a cohort of 25,000 workers, as compared with 41.5 expected, NIOSH reports (p. 713). THE MOST HAZARDOUS JOB in the U.S. con tinues to be firefighting, the International Association of Fire Fighters asserts in issuing a survey of death and injury rates for 1979. The un ion finds that firefighters last year suffered 70 deaths and 45,070 injuries in the line of duty (p. ( PESTICIDE EXPOSURE HAZARDS maybe addressed by the Occupational Safety and Health 717) . WALKAROUND PAY RULES proposed by Administration in a performance-oriented stan OSHA are criticized by the U.S. Chamber of dard, OSHA announces. The agency schedules a Commerce. In a letter to Assistant Labor series of public meetings to gather information Secretary Eula Bingham, the Chamber's senior pertaining to the creation of such a standard, in vice president charges that OSHA's shortening of cluding data on the risks of pesticide exposure the public comment period for the proposal during manufacture and formulation, as well as represents a "transparent effort" to enact a new the need for such a regulation and its possible walkaround pay standard before the Reagan Ad costs (p. 713) . . . Text of agency notice of ministration takes office (p. 717). meetings and request for information (p. 730). THE COTTON DUST STANDARD should be rejected because OSHA made no attempt to determine if the benefits of the rule are reasonable in light of its costs, the American Tex tile Manufacturers Institute and the National Cot ton Council of America argue in petitions to the U.S. Supreme Court. The industry represen tatives charge that OSHA treats the costs of standards as being "totally irrelevant" until they reach an undefined point at which the rules would "cause the destruction of an entire industry" (p. 714). INCLUSION OF ASPHALT and various other substances under the "candidates list" of the car cinogens standard is criticized as unwarranted by several industries and individuals in comments to OSHA. While coal tar pitch is a known car | FILE THIS CURRENT REPORT and those following through May 28, 1981, in the December-May Current Reports binder. Remove the 1979-80 issues and indexes from that binder but retain the index tab. It is the policy of Occupational Safety & Health Reporter to supply subscribers with two j Current Reports binders as part of their j regular service. Each is designed to hold six i months of reports. Should you wish a Univer- j sal Transfer binder, which will hold a one-year volume of Current Reports, they are available for $10 each from Oc- I cupational Safety & Health Reporter, The | Bureau of National Affairs, Inc., 1231 25th St., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20037. i Section 1 Copyright * 1980 by The Bureau of National Affairs. Inc 009S 3237'M'SOO SO In this tout . . . OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY & HEALTH REPORTER TOPICAL SUMMARY CALIFORNIA CAL/OSHA standards board clarifies guarding re quirements for moving rolls .................................. 721 CARCINOGENS Inclusion of aspbalt on candidates list draws criti cism from industries ................................................ 715 ENFORCEMENT Attempt to rush walkaround pay rule charged by Chamber of Commerce official .............................. 717 OSHA refers job-related fatality to Justice De partment for evaluation .......................................... 718 FIRE SAFETY Firefighting most hazardous job, according to union survey ........................................................................ 717 FORMALDEHYDE No excessive cancer levels found in mortician. chemical worker studies ........................................ 718 FULL TEXT Request for data on pesticide exposure in formu lation, manufacture ................................................. 730 JOURNAL Brief coverage of coming events .............................. 734 LITIGATION Lead standard stay opposed by Solicitor as not in public interest .......................................................... 713 Lost wages awarded to employees at Whirlpool in work refusal case ................................................ 717 OSHA cotton dust standard contrary to intent of Act, industry claims ................................................ 714 MEETINGS NACOSH, construction group to meet in Washington in December ............................................................. 721 1981 Industrial hygiene conference slated for May 24-29 In Portland, Ore............................................... 721 PESTICIDES OSHA seeks information, comments to design 'performance-oriented' rule .................................... 713 PROGRAM DIRECTIVES Clarification of proof test standard for alloy steel chains issued............................................................. 720 PUBLICATIONS Fertilizer self-evaluation guide, dry-cleaning con trol study available ................................................. 722 Latest NIOSH toxic effects registry includes chemi cal mutagenicity data ............................................. 722 RADIATION No excessive death rates found by NIOSH in shipyard study .......................................................... 713 RECORDKEEPING Guidelines for access to opinions in records de tailed In field notice ................................................ 718 RESEARCH International nickel producers form safety/health research group ......................................................... 721 REVIEW COMMISSION Weekly report of commission activity ..................... 723 UNIONS 1 'Reinforcement' use of bargainingrecommended r by engineering union chief 719 This issue of Occupational Safety & Health Reporter consists of two sections: Section 1 Current Report; and Section 3. Decisions. URL 03602 OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY & HEALTH REPORTER Occupational Safety St Health Reporter (ISSN 0093-9297) is published weekly except last week of year for $927.00 per year by The Bureau of National Affairs. Inc., 1291 25th Street, N.W.. Washington, D C 20037. Telephone: 452-4200 (Area Code 202). Second-Class postage paid at Washington, D C and additional mailing offices- POSTMASTER: Send address changes to: The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc., 12tl 25th Street, N.W., Washing ton. D C. 20037. William A. Beltz, Editor in Chief Stanley E. Degler. Executive Editor Patricia R. Westlein. Associate Editor BOARD OF EDITORS Managing Editor: Michael H. Blake. Jr. Assistant Managing Editor Stanley Pond Melanie M Aclander Fred Biosser James D. Crowne Larry E. Evans John Herzfeld Anne Kobut Rose Lally-Knowles Michael M. McCann Mary M. Miller Matilda E. Monroe Kathryn J. Scott Glenn Totten Debra M. Waugh Mary Wheeler Senior Legal Editor: Stanley J. Gilbert Senior Scientific Editor: Girard L. Ordway Chief Index Editor Suxanne L. Geigle Editor Emil Toth First year subscription rate (payable in advance) 1927, renewal $316 per year. Correspondence concerning editorial content should be directed to the managing editor. The code at the bottom of some pages of this report indicates that copies of the pages for use beyondthat permitted by Sections 107 and 109 of the new U S. Copyright Act may be made upon pay ment of a Sb-cent per page copy tee to the Copyright Clearance Center. Inc.. P.O. Box 765. Schenectady, N.Y. 12301, or directly to The Bureau of National Affairs. Inc. Copyright 1980 by The Bureau at National Affairs, Inc. All rights reserved by the copyright owner. Printed in U.S.A. 12-4-aO Occupot'ona! Solfrfy & Hrol**' Reporfei 0096-3237/eO'WQ 60