OSHA Region 4 cited an Alabama location of a nation retail chain with over $300,000 in penalties for a “long history of serious and repeated violations.” OSHA takes repeat violations extremely seriously. Read the full new release here. ... Continue Reading
DEF presents at the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Business Expo
On November 22nd, Drew Eckl & Farnham had several attorneys attend the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Business Expo. Attorneys Rob Welch, Karen Karabinos, and Dave Rusnak gave two very informative and successful presentations focused around important legal issues for businesses. Additionally, attorneys Chris Bennett, Meredith Riggs Guerrero, and Javier Gonzalez were in attendance to answer questions. ... Continue Reading
The Daily Report Recognizes DEF’s newly Elected Partners
The Daily Report recognized DEF’s four newly elected partners, who all happen to be women. Already partner, Jennifer Parrott, has been promoted to equity partner, while Vivian Fisher, Whitney Lay Greene and Melody Kiella have been announced as partners. The Daily Report article highlights our firm’s first ever partnership class composed of all women. “Drew Eckl’s partnership did not overtly aim to elect an all-female class, said the Atlanta firm’s managing partner, Joe Chancey, but it does point to an increased focus, as at many firms, on supporting women lawyers. ‘We do a good job hiring really talented lawyers, but, like most in the industry, we’ve seen more attrition than we’d ... Continue Reading
Drew Eckl & Farnham Recognized as one of Vault’s 150 under 150
Drew Eckl & Farnham was announced as one of Vault's 150 under 150, recognizing DEF as one of the most outstanding small and midsize law firms that delivers big results. In addition to being comprised of fewer than 150 attorneys, DEF was selected for obtaining a particular prestige, quality of life and professional growth opportunities associated with the firm. Additionally, DEF was considered based on other variables including survey data, news stories, trade journals, published rankings and other legal publications. ... Continue Reading
OSHA TOP TEN VIOLATIONS: NUMBER SIX
Back to the top ten violations. At number 6 is the Ladder regulation in construction. Ladders (construction) (29 CFR 1926.1053) accounted for 2,345 violations. Here are some, but not all ladder basics and here is a link to the full standard. Check your ladders for defects. Ladders should be checked by a competent person periodically for defects. If you see a defect, take the ladder out of service. Also, make sure you mark the ladder to let others know it should not be used. Always use your ladder properly. Always face the ladder when ascending and descending. Do not use the top of the ladder of the top step of a step ladder as a step. Make sure the ladder is on a stable and ... Continue Reading
DEF presents Women and Wealth at NCR
Yesterday, attorneys Sonya Truman Jacobs, Karen Karabinos, Taylor Poncz, E. Kayla Chen and Juliana Neelbauer(from left to right) presented at NCR to their women’s group, WIN. They discussed financial initiatives and strategy to help the women at NCR establish security and maintain wealth. The team of DEF women had another successful presentation and great turnout! ... Continue Reading
Construction Safety in Relation to Holes in Roofs or Floors
Do you know how to properly cover a hole? Do you know when to cover a hole? Did you know OSHA defines a hole as a gap or void 2 or more inches in its dimension in a floor, roof or other walking/working surface? I have run into this issue more often than I thought I ever would and usually on a multi-employer worksite. One trade creates a hole in the roof or floor and then doesn’t cover the hole properly and doesn’t alert other trades on site of the hole. Or even worse, the hole is covered by something that is insufficient to support 2 times the weight of whatever may end up on top of the cover even accidentally. Covers must also be secured to prevent wind or ... Continue Reading
OSHA News Release for November 2019
I realize we still have not made it through the top ten citation list, but if I am able to get across one point of safety it would be that “falls are the leading cause of fatalities in construction.” Don’t take my word for it, take the word of OSHA’s Mobile, Alabama area Director. That’s his quote when a residential contractor was cited for exposing workers to fall hazards without proper fall protection or training. OSHA’s news release from last week is here. ... Continue Reading
DEF at ARMA InfoCon 2019
Our Director of Records Services, Cate Stuart-Hodges, and our Records Coordinator, Taylor Reed, attended ARMA InfoCon 2019 to learn about current best practices in information governance. Our Director of Records Services, Cate Stuart-Hodges, and our Records Coordinator, Taylor Reed, attended ARMA InfoCon 2019 to learn about current best practices in information governance. The conference offered networking opportunities and education sessions to educate, empower, and embolden attendees to make a more significant impact on their organization and community. During the conference, Cate participated in a discussion on various strategies that can be used to pull support for information ... Continue Reading
OSHA Top Ten Violations: Number Five
OSHA’s Fifth Most Cited Standard for the past reporting year is: Respiratory protection (29 CFR 1910.134) accounting for 2,450 violations. Do you know the differences between an air-purifying respirator, a demand respirator, and escape-only respirator, a negative pressure respirator, a positive pressure respirator a supplied air respirator and a filtering facemask? Do you know when to use each of these? Do you have procedures for using the proper respirator. Do you train and make available respirators? Are you required to do so or is it voluntary? If it is voluntary, have you provided Appendix D to the employees who choose to use them? Do you fit ... Continue Reading