Don’t overlook OSHA’s bloodborne pathogen standard

US Labor Department's OSHA fines Wisconsin-based meat packing company VPP Group $369,500 in penalties for 38 safety and health violations

NORWALK, Wis.  The U. S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited VPP Group LLC with $369,500 in proposed penalties for 38 alleged serious, willful, and other-than-serious safety and health violations at the company's meat packing facility in Norwalk.

As a result of two inspections earlier this year, OSHA has issued four alleged willful citations with proposed penalties of $280,000 for failing to perform hearing tests on employees exposed to extremely high noise levels, and failure to record more than 125 injuries that occurred from 2007 through 2009 in the required OSHA 300 injury log. A willful violation is one committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law's requirement, or plain indifference to employee safety and health.

"The company's disregard for OSHA's injury and illness recordkeeping requirements could be seen as an attempt to hide poor health and safety practices," said OSHA Area Director Kim Stille in Madison, Wis. "Indifference to safe practices and OSHA regulations is inviting tragedy into the lives of their workers."

Twenty serious citations with proposed penalties of $75,500 have also been issued. Some of these alleged serious violations include the company's failure to provide proper fall protection and hand rails; failure to provide hazardous energy control and fork lift training; lack of eye wash stations; improper hazardous chemical storage; overexposure to high noise levels; lack of proper personal protective equipment; and lack of required worker protection against blood borne pathogens.

An OSHA violation is serious if death or serious physical harm can result from a hazard an employer knew or should have known exists.

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Question: What do Bram Stoker, OSHA, and USDA inspected establishments have in common?

Answer: The bloodborne pathogens standard as defined in 29 CFR 1910.1030(g)(2), which requires employers to provide training (and at least annually thereafter) to any employees who have occupational exposure to human blood or other potentially infectious materials, such as employees assigned medical or first aid duties by their employers.

The standard at 29 CFR 1910.1030(b) defines occupational exposure as "reasonably anticipated skin, eye, mucous membrane, or parenteral contact with blood or other potentially infectious materials that may result from the performance of an employee's duties. "Under the same section the standard further delineates bloodborne pathogens as being “pathogenic microorganisms that are present in human blood and can cause disease in humans. These pathogens include, but are not limited to; hepatitis B virus and human immunodeficiency virus.”

Any injuries or illnesses requiring first aid in the general industry that occurs at the workplace, federal OSHA’s first aid standard 29 CFR 1910.151(b) comes into play, requiring trained first-aid providers at all workplaces of any size if … there is no “infirmary, clinic, or hospital in near proximity to the workplace which is used for the treatment of all injured employees.”  

Federal OSHA has in the past defined “close proximity” as being emergency care that is available “three to four minutes away” from the workplace. OSHA has consistently taken the view that the reasonable availability of a trained emergency provider, such as fire department paramedics, would be equivalent to an infirmary, clinic or hospital.

When OSHA promulgated this standard back on Dec. 6, 1991, they were zeroing in on the healthcare sectors and other related fields because of the potential risks of cross-contamination posed from human blood and other bodily fluids between patients and health care-providers; including potentially infectious materials such as needles, soiled garments and the like.

However, despite the industry at hand, if an employee is trained in first aid and is identified by their employer as responsible for rendering medical assistance as part of his/her job duties, then that employee is covered by federal OSHA’s bloodborne pathogens standard which includes the offering of the hepatitis B vaccination shot. In addition, a written exposure program is required by OSHA that would identify the unique exposure hazards at your establishment. Model templates of OSHA’s bloodborne pathogen standard can be viewed by tapping here.

I’m not aware of any personal protective equipment (PPE) that’s available that would protect one from a nocturnal centuries-old count’s bite from Transylvania, save for oversized tattooed crosses on both sides of ones neck. However, there are plenty of 21st century PPEreadily available whenever one renders basic first aid and CPR that will protect both parties from potential cross-contamination of bodily fluids.

OSHA has cited USDA inspected establishments in the past for failing to abide to the bloodborne pathogen standard. Follow the provided link to OSHA's most frequently asked questions concerning the bloodborne pathogen standard for more information concerning this frequently overlooked OSHA standard.

1/26/2011 Meatingplace.com (revised 03/06/22)