r/WorkplaceSafety

Everything I’ve read into this my employer is openly breaking osha law in Alberta Canada. I work for a major aggregate company and I am also unionized.

I work in a control tower at the gravel crushing facility so major major silica contamination. Everything I’ve read says that they need to have a hvac system in place that is able to use hepa filters and also needs to maintain positive air pressure. The hvac unit they are using is for residential purposes and is not legal or safe to use in this field. I have brought the issue to my immediate supervisors attention multiple times over a 2 and a half month period but I keep getting brushed off or they blatantly ignore the fact they are seemingly breaking the law. I don’t know what to do now. Any advice would surely be appreciated please

I work in sterile services in the UK. And I need a sanity check because there are so many issues but everyone at my site acts like everything is normal, but my gut says it is dangerous.

Just some of issues:

The flooring in the inspection and assembly area is severely damaged sections, some sections are quite large. There’s spots where it’s completely worn through and lifting upward you can see the subfloor underneath. There are some parts with wet floor sign over it to stop people from walking over it sometimes. Some bits are lamely held together with hazard tape and even autoclave tape. I have seen other staff lightly trip over the lifted parts and it’s been like this for months. Oh and trolleys that are sometimes carrying heavy instrument sets have to roll over it.

Metal brushes are being used for manual cleaning despite being banned. Management and supervisors know but turn a blind eye.

I have been verbally told to bypass proper decontamination procedures by on certain equipment to save time due to the workload.

Flies have been seen in the gowning area and inspection and assembly areas.

There’s a lot of faulty equipment. trolleys, broken scanners, scales and computer stuff sporadically stops working, Some sinks in decon are clogged, some have plugs that don't fit properly. Etc etc And it’s been this way for mooonths.

I’m sure theres other stuff that’s happening too that’s just not springing to mind right now.

I want to file reports with CQC and HSE tbh. I’m worried someone could get seriously hurt one day either at work or in an operating room.

This may sound crazy but Am I overreacting? Prior to this job I did not work in healthcare. Is this just "how it is" in healthcare? Or is this as bad as I think it is?

I cannot shake the feeling that someone is going to get seriously hurt at some point…

I can't wrap my head around why HR gave me a gift card and an award right after I started questioning the company about building a pesticide fogger machine.

Even more concerning, how was I even allowed to handle pesticide in that form without any training or a proper license? Isn't this a serious safety violation?

I work for a utility contractor as a crew foreman for an underground electrical crew that works for the local power company. I have been with the company over 10 years and I’ve been a foreman for about 5 years. 2 weeks I got caught by our safety guy breaking what I feel like was a minor safety rule. First time I’ve been caught doing this. Long story short the safety man has been coming to my job atleast twice a week since then to check and make sure I’m doing everything right and safe. I understand I messed up and broke a safety rule but at what point do yall think is too much? I mean come on nobody likes the safety man riding there ass and watching them work for hours. Prior to the getting caught breaking the safety rule I would see the safety man about once a month.

I am unsure if this is the right subreddit to post in, so please forgive me if it's not. For context, I work at a place that does high level disinfect with Rapicide part A. There's been several times where the machine that processes it, leaked. My job almost always refuses to shut down, and so myself and others typically end up finishing the day wearing n95s and such.

I tried google, but it's really hard to find a serious answer. The second to last time we had a spill I tried contacting the company and got no answers. A week ago we had a very bad leak, and we did finish the work day. I have felt rather unwell since, and I'm not sure if it's from that or not. I know there are same day symptoms and all. But I am now more curious about long term exposure. My company kept saying it's not harmful, it just has an awful smell. But I don't buy that. Any advice would be great and if this isn't the correct place, and if you know where to ask this, please let me know. Thanks!

So we’ve been on this tenant build out job for about 3 months. The foreman used to supply water bottles. Now that the job is wrapping up, he stopped buying bottles. I asked him if he could put some in our next materials delivery order but he said no because the site now has water from the bathroom sinks and the water fountain. The water fountains are filthy and the bathroom sink is a bathroom sink. The GC even said he wouldn’t drink from the water fountain. So what do I do? I know OSHA requires potable drinking water. It would be easier to just bring my own water, but it’s not right what he’s doing. My company does small jobs so no union stewards on sight. Any advice would be great. I mostly want some insight on if it’s even worth it to escalate this further or just bring my own water. I can get a reusable bottle

TLDR: foreman stopped buying water. He said drink from the fountain but the water fountains are filthy.

replacing two workbenches in our maintenance shop and trying to get the spec right this time. the ones we have now have been fine for years but the surface on one has warped enough that parts don't sit flat anymore and the frame on the other has developed enough flex that it moves when someone leans into it. neither is catastrophic but both are heading toward being a problem.

the work that happens at these benches is a mix of electrical maintenance, hydraulic component repair, and general mechanical work. so the surface needs to handle tools, fluids, and occasionally some impact without becoming a hazard.

trying to work out whether the surface material makes a meaningful safety difference, whether the frame gauge actually predicts flex under load the way the specs suggest, and whether there are configurations that hold up better in a mixed maintenance environment versus a dedicated fabrication or assembly setup.

would be useful to hear from safety or maintenance professionals who've specced workbenches for a similar environment and what they found mattered most from both a durability and a safety standpoint once they were in daily use.

While clocked in and on my assigned unit, I was finishing up some documentation, decided to get my meal warmed up in the meantime in the unit microwave. As I was pulling the meal out of the microwave I accidentally contacted a percolator that had been positioned next to the microwave. No I was not aware it was brewing nor I did I even see it and no it was not mine. Technically equipment needs to be evaluated and okayed by the engineering department and the percolator should have never been on the floor. The percolator was containing extremely hot coffee, with the contents spilling onto my R. Foot. I was preparing to clock out but was just finishing last touches of documentation so at this point I never actually clocked out for lunch because I was still technically working and multitasking. I was evaluated by the emergency department and subsequently treated by the burn team and require ongoing follow up wound care. Sitting in the bed as a patient, I continued to finish documentation from my shift and also filed an injury report at this time.

The hospital called me and said workers comp was denied because I technically wasn’t preforming a nursing duty task and “I didn’t have to take my lunch break” I will now have to pay for the medical bills, follow up care, and I was told I need to take a leave of absence to protect my job and would not be compensated for lost wages.
I submitted a 30C PDF and will sending one to the hosp as well through a local mail department so that I can certify the mail and request a return receipt.
Not sure what to do, it was obviously an accident, the percolator should have never have been there, I was still working on the clock, but now I have to suffer the repercussions from other people’s negligence? Any guidance or discussions would be greatly appreciated.

35yo/ male here. I have a question. For a little over a month now I've been working as a production/assembly line welder for a very big company. For 10 hours a day I work on the main weld out line welding docking doors together. Most of them are clean steel but I've gotten a lot of galvanized units as well. The facility does have many ventilation systems but there's still a slight fog in the air and they do not provide any kind of ppe. Am I putting myself at risk working here?

I’m not really sure how to ask this but I’m going to try my best to explain my thinking. So my employer keeps the loading dock doors open but doesn’t put up a barrier of any sorts while they are open. The drop off is 3 foot 8 inches. I know osha requires a barrier for drop offs are 4 foot and above. Technically they don’t need to put up a barrier, but it’s only a 4 inch difference and I believe is still a safety hazard. I’m wondering is there a way to calculate the impact force for both measurements?? Just want to be able to push the employer to put up a barrier whether it’s required or not

We've been thinking about the gap between how Health & Safety is understood by H&S professionals and how it’s sometimes viewed by managers.

Things like safety being treated as the responsibility of the H&S person, only getting attention after an incident, or being seen as something that gets in the way of getting the job done.

For those working in Health & Safety, what’s the one thing you wish more managers understood?

Could be something you’ve struggled to get across, a common misconception, or something you’ve seen good managers do differently.

I just got home from work and I can’t stop thinking about what happened today. I work at a chain restaurant and have been with the company for a few years, and honestly, this situation really bothered me.
We brew tea in those large canisters/urns that hold a couple of gallons. The tea filter basket is supposed to be cleaned regularly, but at my location it is rarely even rinsed unless I do it. I’ve personally had to scrub the tiny filter inside and use a toothpick to unclog the holes because they get so blocked.
Today we had multiple large parties back-to-back for the same company, so we were really pressed for time. Someone brewed a full urn of tea, but apparently the filter was so clogged that it stopped draining. When I went to remove the tea filter basket, it was still COMPLETELY full of extremely hot tea.
The tea came pouring out and burned the hell out of my hand and arm.
My GM happened to walk up, saw what happened, said, “That sucks,” and went back to the host stand.
I immediately went to the office and asked another manager if we had burn spray, burn gel, burn cream—literally anything. He looked in the first-aid kit on the wall, which was basically empty, said, “We’re all out. I don’t think we have any anywhere,” and then went back to finish his orientation.
I ran my hand under cold water and then went back out and continued getting drinks out for a 20-top because we were slammed.
I went back to the office afterward and the third manager was clearly annoyed that I was bothering him. He didn’t even respond to me.
And then…nothing.
Nobody checked on me. Nobody asked how my hand was. Nobody documented what happened. Nobody seemed concerned that I had just been burned at work. My aunt eventually had to come bring me burn gel because apparently we didn’t have anything available at the restaurant.
Maybe I’m overthinking this, but the whole thing really bothered me. I understand restaurants get busy and people are under pressure, but I feel like there should at least be some basic concern when an employee gets burned by equipment that wasn’t properly maintained and the first-aid kit is empty.
And honestly, this is bigger than just today’s incident for me. This restaurant has gotten so far away from what I remember this company being that I don’t even know if I’m overreacting anymore because I’ve become so accustomed to things that probably shouldn’t be considered normal.
So, Reddit: am I being too sensitive, or is this genuinely not okay?

Federal safety officials are coming down hard on Revoli Construction after a deadly trench collapse on a Yarmouth sewer project, proposing nearly $4.7 million in penalties for what they say were willful and repeated safety failures tied to the November death of 61-year-old worker Miguel Reis. The collapse happened on Nov. 18, 2025, along South Shore Drive during sewer-line work, when a section of trench gave way near Parker’s River Beach. One worker was killed and at least one more was seriously injured. Revoli now faces dozens of citations and will have a chance to push back on the findings in the coming weeks, as per the U.S. Department of Labor.

Investigators with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration say the collapse stemmed from inadequate cave-in protection and a string of other preventable safety failures. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the agency issued seven willful, 33 repeat and 17 serious citations, adding up to $4,699,362 in proposed penalties.

Among the violations cited by federal officials were spoil piles placed too close to the trench, unsupported underground utilities, use of damaged protective systems and failure to install shoring in line with the design. Revoli has 15 business days to either comply, request an informal conference or formally contest the citations before the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

The collapse and the victim

Investigators determined that workers were removing sandy backfill and setting steel plates outside the excavation when the trench walls suddenly caved in, burying two men. One of them, identified by The Boston Globe as 61-year-old Miguel Reis of Fall River, later died from his injuries.

Reis was an immigrant from the Azores who left behind a wife and two adult children. The Globe and other local reports noted that the collapse took place near Parker’s River Beach at 125 South Shore Drive, on a stretch of the sewer project that had already drawn attention before the fatal incident.

Town response and project status

In the aftermath of Reis’s death, Yarmouth officials moved to tighten oversight on the work. In January, the town’s select board voted to require a full-time qualified safety professional on site for any remaining trench operations, with explicit authority to shut down work that appears unsafe.

In a public statement, the Town of Yarmouth said the new measure was driven by safety concerns on the sewer project, which town records show was awarded at roughly $18 million and still has about 150 feet of deep trenching left to complete. Town officials added that the incident remains under investigation by the Cape & Islands District Attorney’s Office, working alongside OSHA and state police.

Penalties, next steps and legal outlook

OSHA officials did not mince words about what they say went wrong in Yarmouth. The collapse is “a solemn reminder of the dangers construction workers face when basic safety procedures and safe engineering solutions are ignored,” Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer said in a statement.

The U.S. Department of Labor said the steep penalties are intended to push for corrective action and more robust training at Revoli. The company, however, is entitled to contest the citations. If it does, the case could land before the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission for an independent review of OSHA’s findings and proposed fines.

Context: trench safety and enforcement

Trench cave-ins rank among the deadliest hazards in construction, with seconds often making the difference between a close call and a fatality. Federal regulators have ramped up trenching and excavation enforcement in recent years, and industry outlets have framed the Revoli penalties as part of that broader crackdown, stressing the need for proper shoring, shielding and spoil-pile placement at every dig.

Local labor and safety advocates have argued that what happened in Yarmouth shows how fast excavation mistakes can turn catastrophic on public works sites. They have urged stronger oversight, more training and a tougher stance on repeat offenders in high-risk work such as deep sewer trenching.

Revoli did not immediately respond to requests for comment, as reported by The Boston Globe. Town and federal agencies say their investigations will continue as the company weighs whether to fight the citations or start cutting checks and changing practices.