Industrial Safety and Health for Goods and Materials Services - Chapter 4 potx

4.1 PROFILE OF WAREHOUSING WORKERS’ DEATH, INJURIES, AND ILLNESSES 4.1.1 DEATHS There were 27 deaths in the warehousing sector.. The injury rate for warehousing was 9.3 per 100 full-time

4 Warehousing

Warehousing was selected to be in this book because its function was to store materials and goods that made the exposures of the workforce very similar to those faced by workers in wholesale and retail trades It is usually housed in the same grouping as the transportation sector The North American Industrial Classi fi-cation System (NAICS) lists it as follows:

Warehousing and storage (493000)

Warehousing and storage (493100)

Warehousing and storage facilities comprised 13,000 establishments in 2004 Thesefirms are engaged primarily in operating warehousing and storage facilities for general merchandise and refrigerated goods (Figure 4.1) They provide facilities to store goods; self-storage mini-warehouses that rent to the general public are also included in this segment of the industry

The deregulation of interstate trucking in 1980 encouraged manyfirms to add a wide range of customer-oriented services to complement trucking and warehousing services and led to innovations in the distribution process Increasingly, trucking and warehousing firms are providing logistical services encompassing the entire trans-portation process Firms that offer these services are called third-party logistics providers Logistical services manage all aspects of the movement of goods between producers and consumers Among their value-added services are sorting bulk goods into customized lots, packaging and repackaging goods, controlling and managing

Warehouses are containers for the transfer and storage of goods and materials

inventory, order entering and fulfillment, labeling, performing light assembly, and marking prices Some full-service companies even perform warranty repair work and serve as local parts distributors for manufacturers Some of these services, such

as maintaining and retrieving computerized inventory information on the location, age, and quantity of goods available, have helped to improve the efficiency of relationships between manufacturers and customers

Manyfirms are relying on new technologies and the coordination of processes

to expedite the distribution of goods Voice control software allows a computer

to coordinate workers through audible commands—telling workers what items to pack for which orders—helping to reduce errors and increase efficiency Voice control software can also be used to perform inventory checks and reordering Somefirms use radio frequency identification devices (RFIDs) to track and manage incoming and outgoing shipments RFID simplifies the receiving process by allow-ing entire shipments to be scanned without unpackallow-ing a load to manually compare

it against a bill of lading Just-in-time shipping is a process whereby goods arrive just before they are needed, saving recipients money by reducing their need to carry large inventories These technologies and processes reflect two major trends in warehousing: supply chain integration, whereby firms involved in production, transportation, and storage all move in concert so as to act with the greatest possible efficiency; and ongoing attempts to reduce inventory levels and increase inventory accuracy

The average annual employment for warehousing is 555,800 workers This

is approximately 0.4% of the U.S workforce and 0.7% of the service industry workforce

FIGURE 4.1 Warehousing provides for the orderly staging and storage of goods and materials

4.1 PROFILE OF WAREHOUSING WORKERS’ DEATH, INJURIES, AND ILLNESSES

4.1.1 DEATHS

There were 27 deaths in the warehousing sector These deaths account for 0.9% or the total deaths (2736) in the service industry As can be noted inTable 4.1, fall was the most frequent cause of warehousing deaths

4.1.2 INJURIES

There were 14,620 reported injuries for warehousing workers in 2004 The injury rate for warehousing was 9.3 per 100 full-time workers, while it was 4.2 and 4.8 for the service industry and all of private industry, respectively This alarming injury rate indicates the danger involved in the warehousing sector The distribution for the nature, body part, source, and exposure (accident type) for the 14,620 injuries are presented inTables 4.2,4.3,4.4, and4.5, respectively

4.1.3 ILLNESSES

In the warehousing sector, 1900 cases of occupational illness were reported; this is 1% of the total reported illnesses for the service industry Table 4.6 provides the breakdown of the illnesses

4.2 HAZARDS FACED BY WAREHOUSING WORKERS

The fatal injury rate for warehousing is higher than the national average for all industries Warehousing is often viewed as not being a very complex operation, but traffic patterns, fast pace, constant motion, and a myriad of various materials being handled and stored lead to exposure to many hazards Some of the most common hazards faced by warehouse workers are as follows:

. Unsafe forklifts

. Unsafe docks

. Improper stacking or storage of materials

. Failure to wear proper personal protective equipment

. Conveyor hazards

. Hazardous substances, materials, and chemicals

. Manual lifting and handling task

. Improper fueling and charging batteries

. Poor ergonomic design

. Potentialfires

4.3 OCCUPATIONS

The handling and storage of materials require a workforce that is not the most highly paid or skillfully qualified The perception is that anyone can do warehousing type of

work However, the more experienced, trained, and skilled the workforce, the less the chances of potential injury and death With the use of computers and automated equipment in warehouse, there is more of a presence of administrative types of workers who spend most of their time in an office environment (Safety and health for office workers is covered in Industrial Safety and Health for Administrative Services.)

Laborers and hand freight, stock, and material movers help load and unload freight and move it around warehouses and terminals Often, these unskilled employ-ees work together in groups of three or four They may use conveyor belts, hand trucks, pallet jacks, or forklifts to move freight They may place heavy or bulky items

TABLE 4.1 Occupational Death Cause by Percent for the Warehousing Sector

Source: From Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S Department

of Labor National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries in 2005 Available at http: ==bls.gov

TABLE 4.2

Nature of Injury by Number and Percent

for the Warehousing Sector

Sprains =strains a

Cuts =punctures a

Source: From Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S Department of Labor.

Workplace Injuries and Illnesses in 2004 Available at http: ==bls.gov

a

Five most frequently occurring conditions.

TABLE 4.3

Body Part Injured by Number and Percent

for the Warehousing Sector

Source: From Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S Department of Labor Workplace Injuries and Illnesses in 2004 Available at http: ==bls.gov

a

Five most frequently injured body parts.

TABLE 4.4

Source of Injury by Number and Percent

for the Warehousing Sector

Worker motion =position a

Floor, walkways, or ground surfaces a 1410 10

Source: From Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S Department of Labor Workplace Injuries and Illnesses in 2004 Available at http: ==bls.gov

a

Five most frequent sources of injury.

on wooden skids or pallets and have industrial truck and tractor operators move them (Figure 4.2)

Office and administrative support workers perform the daily recordkeeping operations for the truck transportation and warehousing industry Dispatchers coordinate the movement of freight and trucks, and provide the main communication link that informs the truck drivers of their assignments, schedules, and routes

TABLE 4.5

Exposure=Accident Type by Number and Percent

for the Warehousing Sector

Caught in or compressed or crushed 590 4

Exposure to harmful substance or environment 80 0.5

Source: From Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S Department of Labor.

Workplace Injuries and Illnesses in 2004 Available at http: ==

bls.gov

a Five most frequent exposures or type of accidents that led to an

injury.

TABLE 4.6

Occupational Illnesses by Number of Cases and Percent

for the Warehousing Sector

Source: From Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S Department of Labor.

Workplace Injuries and Illnesses in 2004 Available at http:==bls.gov

Dispatchers frequently receive new shipping orders on short notice and must juggle drivers’ assignments and schedules to accommodate a client Shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks keep records of shipments arriving and leaving They verify the contents of trucks’ cargo against shipping records They also pack and move stock Billing and posting clerks and machine operators maintain company records of the shipping rates negotiated with customers and shipping charges incurred; they also prepare customer invoices

Sales and related workers sell warehousing services to shippers of goods They meet with prospective buyers, discuss the customers’ needs, and suggest appropriate services Travel may be required, and many analyze sales statistics, prepare reports, and handle some administrative duties

Managerial staff provides general direction to the firm They staff, supervise, and provide safety and other training to workers in the various occupations They also resolve logistical problems such as forecasting the demand for transportation, mapping out the most efficient traffic routes, ordering parts and equipment service support, and scheduling the transportation of goods

FIGURE 4.2 Although forklifts are useful, they pose danger when misused

Many jobs in the warehousing industry require only a high school education, although an increasing number of workers have at least some college education College education is most important for those seeking positions in management Increasing emphasis on formal education stems from the increasing use of techno-logy in the industry Nearly all operations involve computers and information management systems Many occupations—especially those involved in scheduling, ordering, and receiving—require detail-oriented people with computer skills

A growing number of employers recommend some form of formal training Some companies provide such training in-house Other sources of training include trade

TABLE 4.7

Twenty Nine Most Frequent OSHA Violations for the Warehousing Sector

1910.178 258 Powered industrial trucks

1910.305 112 Wiring methods, components, and equipment for general use 1910.37 97 Maintenance, safeguards, and operation features of exit routes

1910.157 68 Portable fire extinguishers

1910.132 67 Guarding floor and wall opening and holes

1910.147 59 The control of hazardous energy (lockout=tagout)

1910.151 44 Medical services and first aid

1904.41 39 Annual OSHA injury and illness survey of 10 or more employees

1910.212 35 General requirements for all machines

1910.176 34 Handling materials, general

1910.304 29 Wiring design and protection

1910.36 26 Design and construction requirements for exit routes

1910.146 24 Permit-required con fined spaces

1910.253 20 Oxygen-fuel welding and cutting

1910.119 19 Process safety management of highly hazardous chemical 1910.106 18 Flammable and combustible liquids

1910.110 17 Storage and handling of lique fied petroleum gases

1910.219 16 Mechanical power-transmission apparatus

Source: From Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S Department of Labor Available at

http:==www.osha.gov

associations, unions, and vocational schools Many companies have specific curri-cula on safety and procedural issues, as well as on occupational duties

4.4 APPLICABLE OSHA REGULATIONS

One of the best ways to understand the hazards faced by utility workers is to see the types of violations that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has found during their inspections of the workplace These violations provide another way of targeting hazards that have the potential to cause injury, illness, and death of workers As can be seen from the 30 most frequently cited violations, OSHA cites this industry under the general industry standard (29 CFR 1910) (Table 4.7)

Although the violations cited in Table 4.7 were the 30 most frequently issued violations, OSHA has cited other hazards with less frequency Some of these are as follows:

. Woodworking machinery

. Overhead cranes and gantry cranes

. Hazardous waste operations and emergency response

. Hand protection

. Asbestos

. Portable metal ladders

. Emergency action plans

. Fixed industrial stairs

. Hand and portable power tools

. Arc welding and cutting

. Occupational noise exposure

. Compressed gases

. Foot protection

With the hazards faced by this sector, it is imperative that safety and health be

an integral part of doing business and with the specific purpose of protecting its employees

REFERENCES

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S Department of Labor National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries in 2005 Available athttp:==bls.gov

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S Department of Labor Workplace Injuries and Illnesses in

2004 Available athttp:==bls.gov

Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S Department of Labor Available at

http:==www.osha.gov