Top 5 Safety Violations for Illinois Public Works Departments

SPRINGFIELD – Worker safety is the primary mission of Illinois OSHA, a division of the Illinois Department of Labor. Documenting dangers is one way to avoid them in the future, and with that in mind Illinois OSHA is releasing the Top 5 safety violations for municipal public works departments for fiscal year 2019 in the state of Illinois.

“The old saying is that we learn from our mistakes. We hope by pointing out the most common safety violations that our inspectors have documented at public works departments around the state, that we can avoid or lessen these dangers going forward,” said Ben Noven, director of Illinois OSHA.

Illinois OSHA’s jurisdiction is over public employees while federal OSHA covers private sector employees.

Top 5 Public Works Safety Violations

• 1. Hazard communications – This involves label warnings of hazardous chemicals, data sheets for such hazardous materials and training of employees on these hazards.

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• 2. Machine guarding – This involves requiring that safety guards be in place on machinery that could pose a threat of injury or death to workers.

• 3. Lockout/Tagout – This involves disabling and identifying machinery that if unexpectedly was energized could harm a worker.

• 4. Walking working surfaces – This involves keeping walking surfaces clean, orderly, in good repair, dry whenever possible and free from hazards such as sharp objects or loose boards.

• 5. Emergency action plans – This involves a plan that is communicated to all employees for actions to be taken in an emergency such as a fire, including evacuation plans.

Illinois OSHA protects the health and safety of public employees through the inspection, investigation and evaluation of public facilities and working conditions to ensure compliance with occupational safety and health standards and conducts educational and advisory activities to assure safe and healthy working conditions.

Illinois OSHA is partially funded by two federal grants. The State Plan is a shared 50 percent state/50 percent federal funding. The On-Site Consultation Cooperative Agreement is funded 90 percent by a federal grant with 10 percent state funding.

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