Text For Citation: 04 Item/Group: 001 Hazard: ERGONOMIC

Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970: The employer did not furnish a place of employment that was free from recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees in that employees were required to perform material handling tasks involving ergonomic risk factors including, but not limited to, forceful exertions, repetitive motions, and awkward postures occurring for prolonged durations which had caused, are causing, or are likely to cause injuries: a.Beginning on or about December 16, 2003, and continuing at least through at least December 19, 2003, bay delivery drivers and full service drivers were observed performing repeated manual lifting/lowering, pushing, pulling, bending, reaching, twisting, and other tasks associated with the delivery of product from trucks or trailers to customer establishments. These actions required employees to handle items such as boxes of syrup and beverage cases, to remove plastic shrink wrap from products, and to frequently manually transport loads weighing up to 845 pounds on carts, exposing employees to hazards which had caused, are causing or are likely to cause serious injuries involving the back, shoulder, and arm. Abatement: While some risk factors can be reduced or eliminated by implementing a single means of abatement, in most cases a process that includes analysis of the worksite, medical management, training and education of employees (in both recognition of injury and avoidance of injury), and hazard prevention and control will provide the most effective method of addressing the risk factors. The employer may adopt any measures that are effective in reducing or eliminating the risk factors. Examples of such measures include: Engineering controls: 1) On bay delivery and full-service trucks/trailers, provide devices such as grab handles, pull-out steps, and portable platforms to reduce bending, twisting, and elevated and extended reaches. 2) Provide plastic shells with easily accessible handles or handholds which can be lifted with a power grip, and an underside surface that allows the packaged bottles to be pulled with minimal force across stacks. 3) Provide appropriate material handling equipment such as hand trucks with stair climbers, powered stair climbers, 2-wheel and 4-wheel hand trucks, curb ramps, etc., as appropriate per assessment of the delivery site. 4) Provide drivers with shrink-wrap/plastic cutter, such as a letter slitter hand letter opener. Administrative Controls: 1) Ensure, to the extent possible, that heavy product such as 5-gallon bag-in-box is delivered to, and stored at about two to four feet above floor level. If areas above or below this range must be used for storage, provide smaller size bag-in-box product. 2) Do not allow the use of equipment which is not properly maintained; for example, do not load wheel well bays if pull-out steps aren't functioning properly, and eliminate the use of the bay if the bay door is malfunctioning. 3) On bay delivery and full service trucks/trailers, load lighter product (i.e., 12 oz cans) in the elevated bays; load heavier product (i.e., 8-pack 2-liter bottles) in lower bays. 4) On a daily basis for each bay deliver truck/trailer, provide an accurate load diagram to the driver on each product's location in each bay. 5) Instruct sales representatives to evaluate and ensure, to the extent possible, that pathways are clear of obstruction or confinement prior to delivery of the product. 6) Provide employee training on the proper selection and use of hand trucks such as the use of hand trucks with stair climbers where product has to be maneuvered over a curb or where an adequate ramp is not present. 7) Train employees about the importance of keeping the load close to the body during lifting and minimizing the amount of weight lifted at one time. Implement a standard positioning practice to, slide the product close to the body before lifting and lift only one case of heavy product, such as bag-in-boxes, case of 20-ounce bottles, or 8-pack 2-liter bottles at a time. Work Practice Controls: 1) Ensure loading of product in bay does not restrict access to inside grab handles. 2) On bay delivery and full service trucks/trailers, ensure that employees complete pre- and post-trip inspections and that maintenance information is documented and communicated to the service department so that deficiencies in bay doors, door straps, pull-out steps, etc., are promptly fixed. Bay doors and pull-out steps should be maintained in accordance with manufacturer's specifications. 3) Maintain pneumatic handtruck tires to the manufacturer's recommended tire pressure. 4) Prior to bringing product into an establishment evaluate the site and ensure a clear path and ample work space so employees do not need to work in confined, restricted, or awkward postures. Some examples of methods to facilitate proper work postures include: *Provide devices such as wedges or straps to hold doors open when the situation allows. *Where the normal delivery entrance presents a hindrance due to obstructions in pathways, stairs, or steep ramps, use an alternate entry to reduce exposure to difficult material handling tasks. *Ensure that there is adequate space at the delivery site so employees can access all products on hand trucks without extended reaches. 5) Avoid unnecessary lifting of hand trucks such as when stacking empty hand trucks on top of each other for transport from the establishment to the truck/trailer or storing hand trucks in bays of the truck/trailer, especially in the elevated bays over the wheels. 6) Avoid impaired visibility and load instability by limiting load height. On 4-wheel hand trucks avoid stacking product above the push bar; on a 2-wheel hand truck do not stack product above the load bar at the top of the hand truck. 7) Ensure that medically recommended job-restrictions are followed. 8) On bay delivery and full service trucks/trailers ensure that drop-down or pull-out shelving is moved out of the way, or properly positioned, to provide maximum accessibility to products during unloading. ABATEMENT CERTIFICATION IS REQUIRED.TION