Occupational Exposure to Benzene and Chromosomal Structural Aberrations in the Sperm of Chinese Men

Background: Benzene is an industrial chemical that causes blood disorders, including acute myeloid leukemia. We previously reported that occupational exposures near the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration permissible exposure limit (8 hr) of 1 ppm was associated with sperm aneuploidy

Campus Update: March 1991 v. 3, no. 3

Monthly newsletter of the BU Medical Campu

100 Days for America's Workers: Policies to Jump-Start a Living Wage Recovery

Putting America's workers front and center on the federal policy agenda requires that we get serious about the urgent jobs crisis facing the nation. Simply put, we do not have enough jobs for all who want and need to work, and increasingly, our jobs do not pay the living wages and provide the benefits needed for a recovery that extends economic security and opportunity to all of America's workers. The jobs crisis is already devastating millions of working families while keeping the economy weak, and unless we intervene now, it promises to reap dividends of despair in the future too.In this document, NELP lays out five straightforward and concrete policy proposals for the first 100 days of the new term -- 100 Days for America's Workers -- that will improve the lives of millions, while giving the economy a sustained boost

America\u27s Anti-Violence Campaign: The Use of Mediation to Reduce the Incidence of Workplace Violence

The author recommends that companies incorporate a mediation program into their anti-violence plans

Underlying causal factors associated with construction worker fatalities involving stepladders

Stepladders are frequently utilized on construction projects as a means of access to elevation. Stepladder heights commonly range from 4 feet (1.2 m) to 14 feet (4.3 m). Since these heights are not extreme, there is a common misperception that stepladder use presents a low risk. On the contrary, extreme care must be exercised to ensure that work on stepladders is performed safely, as described in the conspicuously located recommendations and brightly-colored warnings that adorn virtually all newly-purchased equipment. Despite this, accidents involving stepladders occur on a regular basis.  This study was conducted to better understand the underlying causes of these accidents. The narrative descriptions of 180 stepladder-related fatalities were obtained from the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration and were analyzed to identify the at-risk behaviors that preceded the fatality incidents. The results showed that most of the incidents should have been anticipated and could have been avoided. Unsafe practices such as improper lockout-tagout of electrical equipment, loss of balance, working on a folded stepladder, over-reaching, straddling the ladder, “walking” the ladder, poor footing, and unstable/shifting ladders, among others were identified. Virtually all of these fatalities could have been avoided by adhering to the guidelines posted on the stepladders and by complying with basic safe construction practices.

Fertile Women May Now Apply: Fetal Protection Policies after Johnson Controls

In its recent interpretation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the U.S. Supreme Court leaves little room for permissible occupational sex discrimination. However, its decision has wider implications. Here, Professor Grumet takes a look at some of them from both a legal and a social perspective, including matters such as employees\u27 reproductive freedom and employers\u27 potential liability for a variety of possible injuries to employees\u27 offspring

Workplace Codes of Conduct in China and Related Labor Conditions

This report provides an overview of U.S. interests and policies regarding China’s labor conditions. It compares a cross section of labor codes of conduct utilized by U.S. corporations and their suppliers that manufacture toys, shoes, apparel, and other labor intensive merchandise in China for export. Many consumer goods imported from China to the United States are produced by Hong Kong, Taiwanese, and South Korean factories in China for U.S. brands. Serious labor rights abuses have been reported in many of these factories. All of the codes sampled in this report mandate labor standards that are consistent with International Labor Organization core covenants and China’s Labor Law. The standards compared in this report pertain to: child labor, forced labor, disciplinary actions, discrimination, health and safety, and the environment. However, many of the codes do not provide extensive guidelines for monitoring and verifying compliance

Campus Update: October 1990 v. 2, no. 8

Monthly newsletter of the BU Medical Campu

Source reduction for prevention of methylene chloride hazards: cases from four industrial sectors

BACKGROUND: Source reduction, defined as chemical, equipment and process changes that intervene in an industrial process to eliminate or reduce hazards, has not figured as a front-line strategy for the protection of workers' health. Such initiatives are popular for environmental protection, but their feasibility and effectiveness as an industrial hygiene approach have not been well described. METHODS: We investigated four cases of source reduction as a hazard prevention strategy in Massachusetts companies that had used methylene chloride, an occupational carcinogen, for cleaning and adhesive thinning. Three cases were retrospective and one was prospective, where the researchers assisted with the source reduction process change. Data were collected using qualitative research methods, including in-depth interviews and site visits. RESULTS: Motivated by environmental restrictions, a new worker health standard, and opportunity for productivity improvements, three companies eliminated their use of methylene chloride by utilizing available technologies and drop-in substitutes. Aided by technical assistance from the investigators, a fourth case dramatically reduced its use of methylene chloride via process and chemistry changes. While the companies' evaluations of potential work environment impacts of substitutes were not extensive, and in two cases new potential hazards were introduced, the overall impact of the source reduction strategy was deemed beneficial, both from a worker health and a production standpoint. CONCLUSION: The findings from these four cases suggest that source reduction should be considered potentially feasible and effective for reducing or eliminating the potential hazards of methylene chloride exposure. Especially when faced with a hazard that is both an environmental and worker health concern, companies may chose to change their processes rather than rely on local exhaust ventilation equipment or personal protective equipment that might not be as effective, might transfer risk and/or not be integrated with financial goals. However, technical assistance sensitive to environmental and health and safety impacts as well as production issues should be provided to guide companies' source reduction efforts

INVESTIGATION OF ALUMINUM TOXICITY AMONG WORKERS IN ALUMINUM INDUSTRY SECTOR

The study was conducted to evaluate urine aluminum concentration among a total of 150 participants (80 aluminum technicians and 70 non- aluminum technicians as a control). Data were collected through a previously prepared questionnaire which consists of two parts. The first part concerned with demographic data such as age and nationality. The second part concerned with occupational data such as working hours, working years, smoking, and diseases. The mean concentration of aluminum is 51.62+ 29.59 μg/l and the mean concentration of group control 16.32 + 12.49 μg/l. The following variables were associated significantly with aluminum concentration: age, weekly working hours, smoking and daily smoking packets.According to our study, aluminum workers have high concentrations of urine aluminum compared with other studies, in addition to that the incidence of diseases in relation to exposure is low, simply because: 1-Self reported questionnaires may be not a proper way to collect data about diseases. 2- Traditional surveillance approaches used in public health practice are difficult to apply to metals poisoning because adverse health effects related to metal exposure may not be clinically diagnosed, except at very high exposure levels, and are not usually listed as reportable diseases.Finally Special safety precautions and educational programs are also needed to limit the aluminum exposure in this industrial group