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FEATURED NEWS
2026-04-20T05:00:00Z
NewsLeaveTime offHR ManagementEnglishLeaveAssociate Benefits & CompensationNew YorkSafety & HealthChange NoticesConstruction SafetyChange NoticeGeneral Industry SafetyHR GeneralistAssociate RelationsFocus AreaHuman Resources
New York paid family leave expanded
Effective date: January 1, 2027
This applies to: Employers with employees in New York
Description of change: New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a measure extending the New York paid family leave (PFL) benefits to certain construction employees.
Effective January 1, 2027, construction employees are eligible for PFL benefits if they were employed for at least 26 of the last 39 weeks by employers that are party to a collective bargaining agreement. Unpaid leave and vacation apply to the 26 weeks.
Construction employees are those who perform construction, demolition, reconstruction, excavation, rehabilitation, repairs, renovations, alterations, or improvements for multiple employers per a collective bargaining agreement.
View related state info: FMLA – New York
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RECENT INDUSTRY HIGHLIGHTS
2026-04-20T05:00:00Z
NewsIndustry NewsHeat and Cold ExposureSafety & HealthConstruction SafetyGeneral Industry SafetyAgriculture SafetyMaritime SafetyIn-Depth ArticleExtreme Temperature PreparationEnglishMine SafetyHeat StressFocus AreaUSA
How heat becomes fatal
Imagine a workplace where the real danger is something you can’t even see. Extreme temperatures don’t just make workers uncomfortable; they can silently push the human body past its limits, triggering a deadly chain reaction. When cooling mechanisms fail, organs shut down, and what starts as simple dehydration can spiral into heatstroke which kills more workers than many realize. Understanding how heat becomes lethal is the first step toward preventing tragedy.
What’s happening to the body?
No one is immune from extreme heat when controls are lacking. While some workers are more vulnerable (e.g., older workers, seasonal workers, or those not acclimatized to the heat), the human body still reacts to heat when temperatures soar.
As temperatures rise, the heart pumps harder to maintain core body temperature. Blood helps millions of sweat glands in the body to send moisture to the skin’s surface, allowing heat to evaporate into the air. This process is meant to cool the body. However, when it’s extremely hot and humid, the sweat glands just can’t keep up, and cooling becomes impossible without the additional help of cooling aids.
Humidity, or moisture in the air, prevents sweat from evaporating off the skin. This keeps the body from cooling effectively which can create overheating. As the body continues to overheat, it sweats more, which results in reduced blood volume and dehydration. This can quickly lead to two additional negative consequences:
- Blood pressure drops. The heart is required to pump more to maintain pressure so blood can reach vital organs. When blood can’t effectively reach the lungs or brain, the body begins to shut down quickly and cognitive abilities can decrease rapidly or cease altogether.
- Dehydration ensues. Typically, by the time you feel thirsty, you are already dehydrated. Continued fluid loss means the body has nothing to create sweat with to send to the skins surface.
A lack of blood flow to vital organs, along with dehydration, lead to poor decision-making and impaired judgment, which can result in serious workplace incidents; some of which can be fatal.
What are the warning signs?
The body will tell you when it’s in trouble. Heat exhaustion warning signs begin with symptoms such as:
- Excessive sweating;
- Cool, pale, or clammy skin;
- Light-headedness from a weak pulse;
- Nausea or vomiting;
- Muscle cramps; and /or
- Unusual irritability.
These are tell-tale signs that your body is dehydrated and starting to lose the ability to self-cool. If protective measures like hydration, rest, and external cooling aren’t taken right away, heat exhaustion can quickly become heat stroke. This can happen within minutes, creating a quick downward spiral to disorientation, unconsciousness, organ shutdown, and heart failure.
How can killer heat be stopped?
Heat can be deadly, but it doesn’t have to be. By applying these simple controls and safe work practices, you can help protect workers from life-threatening heat exposure:
- Water: Ensure workers consume at least 1 quart of suitably cool water per hour (or 8 oz every 15 minutes) during excessive heat. Avoiding caffeinated or sugary drinks will also help ward off dehydration.
- Rest: Encourage workers to take frequent breaks from the heat in artificially or naturally shaded areas, where there is air movement, or in an air-conditioned area.. Ensure break areas are as close as possible to the work area and are sufficient enough to hydrate, remove PPE, and cool down.
- Shade: Provide shade areas (e.g., tents), fans, air-conditioning, or cooling stations.
- Acclimatization: Gradually increase employee exposure over time so the body isn’t more stressed in the heat, then monitor workers closely during this time.
- Administrative controls: Plan more intensive work activities for cooler parts of the day, implement a buddy system for monitoring workers, and rotate workers so frequent breaks are possible. Monitor weather conditions so work can be adjusted accordingly.
- Clothing and PPE: Provide hats and cooling gear for workers and encourage them to wear lightweight, loose-fitting, and light-colored clothing.
- Training: Train workers to understand dangerous temperatures and how to recognize and respond to symptoms of heat stress.
- Be prepared! Implement a heat injury and illness prevention plan that includes quick medical access and care.
Keys to remember: Heat becomes lethal when the body’s cooling mechanisms fail, allowing core temperature to rise beyond control. Prevention methods are essential for halting heat stress that can trigger widespread cellular damage, inflammation, and organ failure.
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2026-04-17T05:00:00Z
NewsMaterials Handling and StorageSafety & HealthChange NoticesChange NoticeMaritime SafetyOccupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), DOLFocus AreaEnglishMaterials Handling and StorageUSA
OSHA Final Rule: House Falls in Marine Terminals
View final rule.
| Part 1917-Marine Terminals | ||
| Authority | Revised | View text |
| §1917.41 House falls. | ||
| Entire section | Removed and reserved | View text |
Previous Text
Part 1917-Marine Terminals
Authority: 33 U.S.C. 941; 29 U.S.C. 653, 655, 657; Secretary of Labor's Order No. 12-71 (36 FR 8754), 8-76 (41 FR 25059), 9-83 (48 FR 35736), 1-90 (55 FR 9033), 6-96 (62 FR 111), 3-2000 (65 FR 50017), 5-2002 (67 FR 65008), 5-2007 (72 FR 31160), 4-2010 (75 FR 55355), 1-2012 (77 FR 3912), 8-2020 (85 FR 58393), or 7-2025 (90 FR 27878), as applicable; and 29 CFR part 1911.
Sections 1917.28 and 1917.31 also issued under 5 U.S.C. 553. Section 1917.29 also issued under 49 U.S.C. 1801-1819 and 5 U.S.C. 553.
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2026-04-17T05:00:00Z
NewsEnforcement and Audits - OSHAWalking Working SurfacesIn-Depth ArticleUSAEnglishHeat StressOSHA Emphasis ProgramsIndustry NewsHeat and Cold ExposureOSHA InspectionsSafety & HealthConstruction SafetyInfectious DiseasesCOVID-19General Industry SafetyAgriculture SafetyMaritime SafetyStairway Railings and GuidesOSHA RecordkeepingFocus AreaInjury and Illness Recordkeeping
Expert Insights: From heat to handrails ... OSHA enforcement in transition
Six back-to-back OSHA enforcement-related documents issued in recent weeks reveal a recalibration in the agency’s approach to workplace inspections. Visits from OSHA inspectors continue, but the new announcements signal greater enforcement discretion and more tightly targeted industries and hazards, with small-employer relief built into the strategy. Compounding these changes, a reduced enforcement budget request, if passed by Congress, points to fewer programmed inspections overall.
Heat
On April 10, OSHA revised its National Emphasis Program (NEP) on outdoor and indoor heat to bring the number of targeted industries down from over 80 to just 55, and to extend the program five more years.
The goal is the same: “To reduce or eliminate worker exposures to heat-related hazards that result in illnesses, injuries, and deaths, by targeting industries and worksites … where employees are exposed to heat-related hazards and have not been provided adequate protection …” However, the agency removed goals related to the number of inspections.
COVID-19
On March 31, OSHA issued an enforcement memo related to COVID-19 cases. Effective immediately and until further notice, OSHA is exercising its enforcement discretion to not cite employers for violations of 29 CFR 1904 for failure to record COVID-19 cases or to report COVID-19 fatalities and hospitalizations. This applies to all establishments covered by the recordkeeping and reporting requirements in Part 1904.
The agency explains that this new policy parallels its stance for common cold and flu cases, which are excepted from recordkeeping requirements under 1904.5(b)(2)(viii).
Injury and illness e-submissions
On March 23, OSHA issued an enforcement memo that explains that the agency will check if Form 300A data is missing from its database if it opens an inspection of a workplace. For any valid match, the compliance officer in the case must inform the employer of its e-submission obligation and follow yet another memo dated April 16, 2024.
A citation may be issued. The six-month date by which OSHA is allowed to issue a citation for non-compliance with the requirements of 1904.41 is September 2 annually. The data for calendar year 2025 was due to OSHA by March 2, 2026, but the window for citations runs through September 2, 2026.
Although OSHA collects Forms 300 and 301 data through e-submissions, at this time OSHA will not create a list of potential non-responders with respect to the Forms 300 and 301 reporting requirements.
Handrails and stair rails
The handrail and stair rail system requirements that took effect January 17, 2017, caused confusion for many employers. Back on May 20, 2021, OSHA attempted to remedy the situation by proposing changes to 1910.28(b) and 1910.29(f). However, the agency has not finalized those changes, and the latest agenda suggests the agency plans another proposal.
Now OSHA issued an enforcement memo dated February 26, 2026, that would allow employers to comply with the May 20, 2021, proposed changes until the effective date of any new final rule.
OSHA enforcement budget
On March 23, the Department of Labor posted its fiscal year (FY) 2027 budget request for OSHA. The agency is requesting a 13.5 percent decrease in federal agency enforcement funding for next fiscal year, with a drop of 104 compliance officers (or almost 9 percent). About 39 of the inspectors will migrate to federal compliance assistance.
In FY 2027, OSHA estimates that the agency will conduct 22,040 inspections, including 19,836 safety inspections and 2,204 health inspections. This is nearly a 6 percent increase from the FY 2026 estimate, but a 21 percent fall from FY 2025.
The agency anticipates 70 to 80 percent of all inspections will be “unprogrammed,” meaning they are reacting to an event, such as a fatality, an incident with three or more hospitalizations, a complaint or referral, or an imminent danger situation. The remaining 20 to 30 percent will be “programmed,” which means they are proactively targeting specific workplace hazards or high-hazard workplaces. An NEP is an example of a programmed inspection.
| Also in the budget: OSHA rulemaking activity — Apart from enforcement funding, OSHA’s latest budget request reveals the agency plans to issue 25 final and two proposed rules in FY 2026, followed by two final and three proposed rules in FY 2027. It’s worth noting that the number of final rules in FY 2026 generally mirrors the volume of proposed rules issued in 2025. The budget does not indicate the names or docket numbers of the intended rulemakings, and we are awaiting the next semi-annual agenda (the one after the Spring 2025 agenda) to shed more light on that. |
OSHA strategic plan
On April 2, the “U.S. Department of Labor Strategic Plan FY 2026-2030” was posted. It includes a strategy to “pivot toward more efficient enforcement.” Specifically, OSHA will:
- “Improve the targeting of enforcement resources on the most egregious offenders and the most dangerous workplaces and ensure that the agency is focused on the employers that show the most indifference to their OSH Act obligations.”
- “Evaluate the effectiveness of programs which use establishment-level data of previous workplace injuries and illnesses to ensure that inspections are focused on the highest-hazard industries and workplaces.”
Another strategy includes reducing the total penalties assessed for small businesses. It appears the agency implemented this strategy with changes to its Field Operations Manual last year that:
- Raised the employer size eligible for a 70 percent penalty reduction;
- Increased the penalty reduction for having a good safety history; and
- Added a quick-fix reduction for violations abated during an inspection or immediately thereafter.
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NewsIndustry NewsEnglishHR GeneralistIn-Depth ArticleUSAHR ManagementWellnessWellnessFocus AreaHuman Resources
Bring some green indoors to enhance job performance and employee well-being
Green is the color of March, as it signals the St. Patrick’s Day holiday as well as the emergence of spring. Did you know that bringing some green into your workplace can have benefits year-round?
A Harvard Business Review study found that bringing small pieces of nature into the workplace positively impacts employee performance and well-being.
The potted plant test
Researchers tested their theory by going into an office at night and placing potted plants by the desks of some employees. They placed office supplies on other employees’ desks.
The employees who were exposed to this small dose of nature displayed higher job performance, an increased desire to help, and enhanced creativity. No one was negatively impacted.
Bringing nature indoors
Live plants can’t be part of every work setting, but they’re not the only way to bring the benefits of nature indoors.
Nature-related elements can include:
- Windows with views of nature
- Indoor water features
- Murals of natural scenes
- Artificial plants or flowers
- Fish aquariums
Design features related to nature can also be more significant and included in building plans. For example, investing in landscaping designs outside office windows or having an indoor garden are ways to positively impact employees.
These options don’t have to break the bank or require a pot of gold, however. Simply allowing employees to place potted plants by their desks is an inexpensive way to enhance the workplace.
With a little luck, everyone will reap the benefits for having a little more green nearby.
Key to remember: Bringing natural touches to the workplace can have a positive impact on job performance, cooperation, and creativity.
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2026-04-16T05:00:00Z
NewsIndustry NewsCompensationPayrollCompensationHR GeneralistFamily and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)In-Depth ArticleFamily and Medical Leave Act (FMLA)Associate RelationsEnglishUSAHR ManagementFocus AreaHuman Resources
May employers transfer employees on intermittent leave?
When employees take intermittent leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), employers might want to move them into a different position that better suits the needs of the business. Employers must, however, tread carefully, because they may make such transfers or reassignments only in limited circumstances.
Foreseeable leave only
Employers may require employees on intermittent or reduced schedule leave only if the leave is foreseeable based on planned medical treatment for the employee, a family member, or a covered servicemember, including during a period of recovery from:
- The employee’s own serious health condition;
- A serious health condition of a spouse, parent, or child; or
- A serious injury or illness of a covered servicemember.
Employers may also require employees to transfer to an alternative position in cases of intermittent or reduced-schedule leave for bonding with a healthy child.
Unforeseeable intermittent leave might cause the majority of the headaches, but employers may not permanently transfer employees who take this type of leave.
Instead, in these situations, employers may require an employee to transfer temporarily, while the employee needs leave, to an available alternative position for which the employee is qualified and which better accommodates recurring periods of leave than does the employee's regular position.
Alternative positions
In situations when employers may transfer employees to an alternative position, the position must have equivalent pay and benefits, but it doesn’t have to have equivalent duties.
Employers may increase the pay and benefits of an existing alternative position to make them equivalent to the pay and benefits of the employee's regular job.
Employers may also transfer the employee to a part-time job with the same hourly rate of pay and benefits, provided they don’t make the employee take more leave than is medically necessary.
For example, employers could transfer an employee who wants to take leave in increments of 4 hours per day to a half-time job. They could also keep the employee in their original job on a part-time schedule, paying the same hourly rate as the employee's previous job and enjoying the same benefits.
Employers may not eliminate benefits that they otherwise wouldn’t give to part-time employees. They may, however, proportionately reduce benefits, such as vacation leave, where their normal practice is to base such benefits on the number of hours worked.
Employers may not transfer an employee to an alternative position to discourage them from taking FMLA leave or impose a hardship on the employee. They may not, for example:
- Transfer a white-collar employee to perform laborer's work,
- Reassign an employee working the day shift to the graveyard shift, or
- Reassign an employee working in the headquarters facility to a branch at a significant distance away from the employee's normal job location.
Job reinstatement
When employers may transfer employees to an alternative position, and those employees no longer need FMLA leave, employers must put them in the same or equivalent job as before.
Key to remember: Employers may transfer employees who take intermittent leave to an alternative position, but only if the leave is foreseeable.
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Copyright 2026 J. J. Keller & Associate, Inc. For re-use options please contact copyright@jjkeller.com or call 800-558-5011.