Accident
Undesired event that results in physical harm to a person or damage to property.
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome AIDS
Caused by the human immunodeficiency virus, which kills or damages cells of the body's immune system by progressively destroying the body's ability to fight infections and certain cancers.
Biometric verification
Use of an individual's physical characteristics such as fingerprints and voice patterns to allow access to computers and databases.
Bloodborne pathogens
Microorganisms in human blood that can cause disease in humans.
Bloodborne Pathogens standard
OSHA standard that requires employers to protect employees from potentially infectious materials.
Building-related illness BRI
Situation in which building occupants experience acute health and comfort effects that can be attributed directly to airborne building contaminants.
Business continuity planning
Management process that identifies potential threats and impacts to an organization and provides a framework for ensuring that it is able to withstand disruption, interruption, or loss of normal business functions/operation.
Computer vision syndrome CVS
Vision problems such as headaches and blurred vision that are associated with video display terminals.
Confined Space Entry standard
OSHA standard designed to protect workers in confined spaces from hazardous atmospheres, entrapment, or engulfment by liquids or small particles.
Constructive confrontation
Intervention strategy that focuses on job performance.
Control of Hazardous Energy standard
OSHA standard that requires action so equipment cannot be activated "lockout" and signs or labels "tagout" are attached to dangerous equipment that should not be activated.
Corporate espionage
Act of spying or using spies to obtain secret or confidential information about a business competitor for commercial purposes.
Corporate sabotage
Act of deliberately hampering, subverting, or otherwise hurting the efforts of another organization.
Counseling
Form of intervention in which the emphasis is on the cause of a problem rather than on job performance.
De minimis violation
Violation of an OSHA standard that does not have a direct impact on employees' safety and health on the job.
Disaster recovery plan
Guidelines and procedures to be used by an organization for the recovery of business operations when lost due to disasters such as earthquakes, fires, tornadoes, floods, hurricanes, terrorism, or epidemics.
Drug-Free Workplace Act
Requires federal contractors with contracts of $100,000 or more as well as recipients of grants from federal government to certify they are maintaining a drug-free workplace.
Emergency Exit Procedures "Means of Egress" standard
OSHA standard that provides guidelines for preparing an emergency action plan and includes specifications regarding exits and maintenance of emergency systems.
Employee assistance programs EAPs
Employer-sponsored programs that deliver a variety of health-related and personal services, which are provided by licensed professionals or organizations and offer employees a high degree of confidentiality.
Epidemiology
Branch of medicine that investigates the causes and control of diseases in a population.
Ergonomics
Design of the work environment to address the physical demands experienced by employees.
Fetal protection policies
Attempts to protect the fetus from workplace hazards.
General Duty Clause
Statement in Occupational Safety and Health Act that requires employers subject to OSHA to provide employees with a safe and healthy work environment.
Hazard
Potential for harm, often associated with a condition or activity that, if left uncontrolled, can result in injury or illness.
Hazard Communication standard "Employee Right-to-Know Law
OSHA standard that requires labeling, Material Safety Data Sheets, training, orientation for new and transferred employees, and hazard communication programs to inform employees of hazardous chemicals in the workplace.
Health
State of well-being, free of illness or disease.
Homeland Security Act
Act designed to secure the United States against terrorist attacks and other threats and hazards and ensure safe and secure borders.
Human immunodeficiency virus HIV
Virus that may lead to the development of the acquired immune deficiency syndrome AIDS.
Independent medical exam
Legal term referring to an examination and assessment of an injured employee performed by an appropriately qualified, impartial doctor for the purpose of determining fitness for duty.
Job burnout
Depletion of physical/mental resources caused by excessive striving to reach an unrealistic work-related goal.
Machine Guarding standard
OSHA standard that provides general requirements for all machinery to protect operator and other employees.
Material Safety Data Sheets MSDS
Must be provided by manufacturers for every hazardous substance; employers must evaluate chemicals and inform employees of hazardous properties.
Mine Safety and Health Act
Established mandatory safety and health standards for underground and surface mines.
Multidrug-resistant TB MDR-TB
Form of tuberculosis that is resistant to current drug therapy.
Musculoskeletal disorder MSD
Disease caused by repetitive motion that affects muscles, nerves, tendons, ligaments, joints, cartilage, blood vessels, and spinal disks; also called cumulative trauma syndrome CTS, cumulative trauma disorder CTD, or repetitive stress injury RSI.
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health NIOSH
Agency that provides health and safety information.
Needlestick Safety and Prevention Act
Revision to Bloodborne Pathogens standard that requires employers to minimize employees' exposure to blood through sharps injuries.
Occupational illness
Medical condition or disorder, other than one resulting from an occupational injury, caused by exposure to environmental factors associated with employment.
Occupational injury
Injury that results from a work-related accident or exposure involving a single incident in the work environment.
Occupational Noise Exposure "Hearing Conservation" standard
OSHA standard that requires employers to provide controls to reduce unsafe noise levels in the workplace.
Occupational Safety and Health OSH Act
Act that established the first national policy for safety and health and continues to deliver standards that employers must meet to guarantee the health and safety of their employees.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration OSHA
Agency that administers and enforces the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970.
Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission OSHRC
Group that rules on contested OSHA citations.
OSHA's Form 300
Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses; used to classify work-related injuries and illnesses and to note the extent and severity of each case.
OSHA's Form 300A
Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses; shows the totals of work-related injuries and illnesses for the year in each category.
OSHA's Form 301
Injury and Illness Incident Report; supplemental record that covers the details of each occupational injury and illness.
Other-than-serious violation
Violation of an OSHA standard that would probably not cause serious physical harm or death.
Pandemic
Emergence of a disease new to the population; the agent infects humans, causing serious illness, and spreads easily and sustainably.
Personal Protective Equipment standard
OSHA standard that protects employees from environmental, process, chemical, mechanical, or radiological hazards capable of causing injury or impairment and sets criteria for acceptable equipment designs.
Process Safety Management standard
OSHA standard aimed at preventing or minimizing the consequences of catastrophic releases of toxic, reactive, flammable, or explosive chemicals.
Professional liability insurance
Insurance that protects directors, officers, employees, and organizations against claims of negligence in the performance of professional services.
Proprietary information
Sensitive information owned by an organization that gives the organization certain competitive advantages.
Repeat violation
Violation of an OSHA standard that is a repeat of a violation found under a previous inspection.
Return-to-work programs
Programs that offer employees less-strenuous jobs until they are fit to return to their regular jobs; also known as modified-duty programs.
Risk management
Identification, evaluation, and control of risk that may affect an organization, typically incorporating the use of insurance and other strategies.
Risk management scorecard
Tool used to make calculated judgments based on the probability that a circumstance will occur and the potential consequences.
Safety
Freedom from hazard, risk, or injury.
Safety committees
Composed of workers from different levels and departments who are involved in safety planning and programs.
Security
Physical/procedural measures used to protect people, property, and information in the workplace.
Serious violation
Violation of an OSHA standard that is likely to cause death or serious injury on the job.
Sick building syndrome SBS
Situation in which building occupants experience acute health and comfort effects that appear to be linked to time spent in a building but no specific illness or cause can be identified.
Social engineering
Collection of manipulative techniques used to gain access to private or confidential information, often without face-to-face interaction.
State plans
Safety and health policies and procedures that states have adopted and that have been approved by OSHA.
Stress
Mental and physical condition that results from a real or perceived threat and the inability to remove it or cope with it.
Tagout
Signs or labels attached to equipment to warn others not to activate it.
Teratogens
Products that affect a fetus but not the pregnant mother.
Terrorism
Use of force or violence against persons or property in violation of the criminal laws of the United States for purposes of intimidation, coercion, or ransom.
Tuberculosis TB
Airborne contagious disease caused by a bacterial infection.
Unsafe acts
Incidents that result from unsafe behavior on the part of the employee, such as operating equipment at high speeds.
Unsafe conditions
Mechanical or physical hazards that may lead to injury, such as defective equipment or improper lighting.
USA PATRIOT Act
Act that gives federal officials greater authority to take measures to combat terrorism.
Vulnerabilities
Security risk factors.
Wellness programs
Preventive health programs offered by employers designed to improve the health and physical well-being of employees both on and off the job.
Willful violation
Violation of an OSHA standard that is considered intentional.