Safety Matters

SWANA Records Significant Increase in Collection Fatalities

Over the past month, there has been a significant increase in the number of fatal incidents involving solid waste collection vehicles and employees. Since March 14, the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) is aware of at least nineteen fatal incidents in the United States resulting in twenty-one fatalities, including ten in which a solid waste employee has been killed.

SWANA recognizes that many workers may be concerned about the COVID-19 pandemic, and that increased residential volume and operational changes may be disrupting routines and impacting productivity. However, even during this challenging period, it is essential for solid waste collection workers to comply with applicable safety rules, including: 

• Wearing a safety belt
• Never be on the riding step when truck is backing
• Don’t use a cell phone when truck is moving
• Always wearing personal protective equipment (PPE)
• Comply with speed limit and other traffic laws
  

Some of the fatal incidents that have occurred over the past 4 weeks were due to not following these basic safety rules. These safety recommendations are part of SWANA’s 5 to Stay Alive initiative, which provides guidance to solid waste and recycling employees who work in collection, transfer stations, MRFs, landfills, composting, and waste-to-energy facilities.

“SWANA had observed a notable decrease in fatal incidents in the first two months of 2020 compared to the past two years, but starting in mid-March, we have seen a rapid increase in the frequency of these tragic events. This coincides with the COVID-19 pandemic. Although solid waste workers are legitimately concerned about their health and the health of their families, they need to be safety-focused on the route and in post-collection operations,” stated David Biderman, SWANA Executive Director and CEO.

“We remain diligent with all safety aspects of the job now with the added safety features of latex gloves and masks,” said Sal Mastriani, Director of Risk Management of Interstate Waste Services. “Our team have responded impressively. Although we are troubled about an increase in fatal incidents nationally, we are fortunate that our incidents have decreased. In addition, I would urge everyone to keep an eye out for emotional stress and elevated anxiety among front-line workers, which may have contributed to some of the recent collisions others have seen.”

Since March 14, 2020, fatal incidents involving solid waste collection vehicles and personnel have occurred in Arizona, California, Florida, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, New York, Ohio, Ontario, Pennsylvania, Texas, and West Virginia.

OSHA Guidance for Recording Cases of COVID-19, Discretion in Enforcement During Pandemic

The U.S. Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) has issued two documents to assist employers in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, one on reporting COVID-19 illnesses and the other on enforcement of OSHA standards.

On April 10, OSHA in a memo provided interim guidance on determining if a COVID-19 case is a recordable illness for the purposes of OSHA 300 logs. Under OSHA’s recordkeeping requirements, COVID-19 can be a recordable illness, but it is recognized that it may be difficult to determine whether workers who contracted COVID-19 did so due to exposures at work. For this reason, OSHA will not require non-health care and non-emergency services employers to make the same work-relatedness determinations as normal for the disease, unless there is objective evidence that a COVID-19 case may be work-related and the evidence was reasonably available to the employer. A number of cases developing among workers who work closely together without an alternative explanation was provided as one example where it might reasonably be considered work-related by the employer.

OSHA also issued a memo on April 16 about  discretion in enforcement when considering an employer's good faith efforts during the Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Since some employers may face difficulties complying with OSHA standards due to the ongoing health emergency, OSHA Area Offices are directed to assess an employer's efforts to comply with standards that require annual or recurring audits, reviews, training, or assessments. They will be looking to determine if the employer made good faith efforts to comply with applicable OSHA standards. This includes documentation that the employer thoroughly explored all options, put in place interim alternative protections if possible, and has taken action to come into compliance as soon as possible.

This information and more is available on SWANA’s Coronavirus guidance and resources pages, which are updated regularly to include the latest information important to the solid waste industry. 

Accidents in the News

Through March 31

Bradenton, FL – A public works employee was killed in an incident involving a front-end loader. MORE

Cincinnati, OH – A man was killed after losing control of his vehicle and crossing over into an oncoming garbage truck. MORE

Lexington, KY – A contracted employee suffered head trauma while working as a helper on a garbage truck and later died from her injuries. MORE

Hornby, PA – A garbage truck driver died after leaving the road and striking a grove of trees. MORE

Dallas, TX – A worker collecting brush and bulk trash was killed by a co-worker as a result of an argument. MORE

Newaygo, MI – A driver died after his car crossed the center line and struck an oncoming garbage truck. MORE

Mankato, MN – A motorcyclist died after crashing into a vehicle hauling materials to a C&D landfill. MORE