"Existential Angst" wrote in message
...
"Tim Wescott" wrote in message
...
Randy wrote:
On Tue, 4 May 2010 06:50:28 -0700 (PDT), rangerssuck
wrote:

Quick question -

What companies are regulated by OSHA? I'm sitting here watching John's
Landscaping Contracting, Inc. do my neighbors yard. Forget for the
moment that they are using five people with five leaf blowers to chase
a few leaves off a 50' x 100' plot (that's total size, including the
house). These people have no ear protection, no eye protection, no
dust masks, no gloves. They are using leaf blowers, chain saws, weed
whackers, a lawn mower big enough to do Giants Stadium and a chipper,
all without the benefit of any of the aforementioned safety equipment.

If it's noisy enough in my office, with the windows and doors closed
that I won't be able to have a phone conversation until they're done,
it's just common sense that these people's hearing is in danger, not
to mention their eyes, lungs and hands.

Now, I know that most of them (though probably not John himself) are
probably illegal aliens, and many of you think they should be used up
and then thrown away, but in general, are there ANY laws concerning
worker safety that apply to such an operation?


I beleive OSHA laws kick in fully if you have 50 or more employees.
Less than 50 and OSHA will only respond to complaints against an
employer.

Not to mention that getting employees to actually _use_ their safety
equipment can be a battle in itself. Ear muffs and goggles are
uncomfortable and unmanly. It's much better to be blind and deaf when
you're old -- then you can't notice what your more able age-mates are
doing with your wife while you're boasting about your youthful exploits.

Or you don't care.

Rubber ear plugs are very good, not so uncomfortable in the heat.
I use them at work, where they stay in for an hour at a time, and use good
muffs in my shop, where they come on and off.
I gotta remember to carry plugs wherever I go, cuz in NYC, between the
subways and construction, you can go deaf just being a mass transit
pedestrian. Also filters out some of the rap music.
Incredible that we have to listen to that ****.....

I think the thing that scares me the most, eye-wise, is the wire wheel.
Strange, tho, I've never been pierced by a hurtling wire. They must make
them really well.
--
EA



huh! on numerous occasions i've plucked wire out of my clothes and/or
embedded in my skin after using a cup brush on a angle grinder. that was an
eye opener, so to speak. and finding stuff (twigs, straw, etc.) embedded in
my clothes and/or skin flung from a weed whacker. i ALWAYS wear eye
protection when using a cup brush or a weed whacker. i am flabbergasted
when i see guys using a weed whacker without eye protection. jeez, story,
something i feel/felt AWFUL about. i put a carbide saw blade on my weed
whacker, works great on saplings. participated in a road side clean up.
*I* had eye protection on, one of the guys who was working 15/20 feet away
didn't. i hit a rock and something (maybe a carbide saw tip) hit him in the
lip, cut open his lip. i mean, it wasn't BAD but he was bleeding. i felt
AWFUL. (he did too.) i set out to do a good deed and ended up nearly
possibly blinding someone(!).

b.w.