As California struggles to contain record-setting wildfires, state lawmakers appear poised to approve legislation that would require Cal/OSHA to create a “wildfire strike team” it could deploy during dangerous air quality events to investigate agricultural workplaces for compliance with wildfire smoke worker-safety requirements.
September 18, 2026
OSHA is launching a novel nationwide suicide-prevention training initiative for the construction sector, expanding on a 2020 regional effort based in part on a study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) that found the industry’s suicide rate was four times higher than that of the general population.
A recently published study suggests that existing California OSHA (Cal/OSHA) standards for heat-related illness (HRI) do not adequately protect the state’s agricultural workers and recommends reforms similar to those labor groups and others are seeking in their petition for an OSHA heat standard.
California OSHA (Cal/OSHA) is facing competing pressures on how to rework its COVID-19 emergency temporary standard (ETS) into what is expected to become a permanent rule, including from some of its standards board members and labor unions who want more stringent protections, and from employers seeking more flexibility to adapt to changing circumstances.
California OSHA (Cal/OSHA) is facing competing pressures on how to rework its COVID-19 emergency temporary standard (ETS) into what is expected to become a permanent rule, including from some of its standards board members and labor unions who want more stringent protections, and from employers seeking more flexibility to adapt to changing circumstances.
California OSHA (Cal/OSHA) is facing competing pressures on how to rework its COVID-19 emergency temporary standard (ETS) into what is expected to become a permanent rule, including from some of its standards board members and labor unions who want more stringent protections, and from employers seeking more flexibility to adapt to changing circumstances.
OSHA’s new general-industry guidance tightening recommendations for face coverings in the workplace is drawing a mixed response from employers’ attorneys, with some praising the agency for aligning its policy with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) while others say the precise scope of the guide is still unclear.
OSHA’s new general-industry guidance tightening recommendations for face coverings in the workplace is drawing a mixed response from employers’ attorneys, with some praising the agency for aligning its policy with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) while others say the precise scope of the guide is still unclear.
OSHA’s new general-industry guidance tightening recommendations for face coverings in the workplace is drawing a mixed response from employers’ attorneys, with some praising the agency for aligning its policy with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) while others say the precise scope of the guide is still unclear.
OSHA is seeking a $1.3 million fine against a Massachusetts contractor over a Feb. 24 accident that killed two workers, in the latest step of its push to bolster enforcement against repeat, willful and severe violations of safety standards.
