Berkeley Lab Incident Statistics �Fiscal Year 2025 �Through Quarter 2�(10/1/24 to 3/31/25)�
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Contract Assurance Council Meeting
These slides are updated on a quarterly basis as soon as data is reasonably final for the preceding months.
Please share this information with your Areas/Divisions.
You can also access our LBNL Injury Dashboard (updated quarterly) and EHS Reports found in bar.lbl.gov (updated daily)
EHS Injury Review Team is available to join meetings and help you prepare customized injury data.
�Refer questions to: injury-review@lbl.gov
Executive Summary of FY25Q1-Q2
38 Total Injuries (14 First Aid & 24 OSHA Recordables)
All supervisors should focus on accommodating work restrictions to prevent days away from work
Executive Summary of FY25 Q1-Q2
Actions we can take to prevent reoccurrence of injuries:
Computer/Office:
Struck by/Against:
We should all focus on our top two OSHA Recordable Injuries: Computer/Office & Struck by/Against
Please speak up, report, and/or do a work pause for ANY unsafe conditions
Executive Summary of FY25 Q1-Q2
The most common ISM Factors:
Possible Ways to Integrate ISM:
Key ISM Themes and Ways to Integrate ISM:
Please speak up, report, and/or do a work pause for ANY unsafe conditions
Total Recordable Cases (TRC)
Days Away, Restricted, or Transferred Days Cases (DART)
FY25 Q1-Q2 Dashboard Summary N=38
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More injuries occurred in the Operations Divisions:
22= Operations Divisions
16=Science Divisions
Note: Includes all First Aid and Recordable Cases.
There were 0COVID-19 work-related cases
79% of injuries occurred indoors
Locations:
Berkeley Lab: 32
Telework: 4
Non-Berkeley Lab:2
All First Aid and Recordable injuries
Three Injuries account for 66% of all injuries:
Computer/Office
Struck by/Against
Slip/Trip/Fall
Four divisions account for 66% of all injuries:
Facilities 34% (13 injuries)
Engineering 16% (6 injuries)
EHS 8% (3 injuries)
Chemical Sciences 8% (3 injuries)
FY25 Q1-Q2 Dashboard Summary
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OSHA Recordable Injuries N=24
DART Injuries N=5
Computer/Office & Struck by/ Against injuries account for 59% of OSHA Recordables
DART injuries occurred from Struck by/Against, Slip/Trip/Fall, & Material Handling
We recommend divisions review and discuss the incident details that are relevant to their work areas
Ask ‘Could this happen to us?’
If the answer is YES, then discuss what can be done to make your work safer
FY25 Q2 Incident Details N=30
Ergonomics/Computer Office N=6
(Rec)A hybrid employee had been experiencing discomfort for three years in their right shoulder that was manageable, until employee started working for three months onsite two days a week in a shared workstation that had not been optimized for their needs. Employee has specific ergo needs for their setup and equipment, but the shared station did not have a similar setup for what was comfortable/working well at home. The division ergo advocate had proactively reached out to the employee several times. Ergo assistance was provided right away once employee asked for help.
(Rec) A hybrid employee who primarily teleworks experienced left wrist and arm discomfort that they have been experiencing from non-work related activities. They requested the evaluation when they started experiencing the discomfort more frequently while at work. Employee is working with the EHS Ergonomics Team.
(Rec) When an employee returned to work from leave, they did not have a permanent work location nor did they have their preferred chair and ergo accessories. They worked onsite 4 days a week and would commonly work directly on their laptop. Work was performed this way for four months. The employee experienced discomfort in their right arm. An ergo evaluation has been performed and follow ups have been scheduled for both work locations.
(Rec) An employee strained their right forearm due to an increased amount of typing/mousing over several months to meet a project deadline and do additional coordination and planning associated with critical equipment being broken down. An ergo eval has been completed and recommendations have been provided for both onsite work areas.
(Rec) An employee experienced right hand pain while performing repetitive mousing tasks ie. scrolling with their right hand. A delay in conducting the ergo eval may have contributed to the severity of the pain. Ergo evals were scheduled promptly, but were requested to be rescheduled for several months by the employee due to conflicts, illness, and moving into a new office. Employee is matrixed to ALS-U.
(FA) An employee experienced right wrist and thumb pain that was mostly attributed to mousing. The employee's workload had increased due to a co-worker changing roles. This resulted in the employee increasing their work hours and reducing the amount of daily breaks they would normally take.
Ergonomic Exposure-Lab/Work Process N=2
(Rec) An employee experienced right shoulder and wrist pain. The employee developed a repetitive motion injury from years of doing tasks such as vacuuming, mopping, and dusting. There was no failure in adherence to procedures or work planning; rather, the incident highlights an ergonomic hazard inherent to custodial work.
(Rec) An employee experienced right hand pain while mopping and vacuuming. There were no immediate hazards, unsafe conditions, or equipment failures. The employee's workload remained within standard expectations, but existing controls, such as breaks and switching arms, were insufficient to prevent injury.
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*= ORPS incident / Rec= Recordable Injury / FA= First Aid Injury
FY25 Q2 Incident Details N=30
Safety Exposure-Struck by/Against N=6
(Rec) An employee sustained a finger injury while unlocking a gate. The employee raised the gate latch and proceeded to push the gate open. While pushing the gate, the misaligned gate latch and pole slid down while the gate was in motion, pinching the left index finger between the gate latch and pole sleeve. Actions were taken to fix the pinch point on the gate.
(Rec) An employee sustained a finger laceration. The employee was disconnecting rubber tube from a 90 degree bent lab glassware elbow. Extra force was applied to remove the tube from the glassware and the glassware broke on their hand.
(FA) An employee sustained splinters/slivers on their hand while touching a chair cushion to shift in the chair. The source of the splinters/slivers is unknown. Actions taken included: taking the chair out of service and sending it to Excess/Salvage.
(FA) An employee was doing a clean up at a shared lab bench. They were going to dispose kimwipes from the lab bench and did not notice the surgical blade concealed in kimwipes. Upon grasping the kimwipes, the blade penetrated the worker's glove and cut a finger. The investigation indicated that the worker was wearing appropriate PPE (lab coat and gloves). The injury was due to an unsecured surgical blade left in this shared workspace by an unknown individual.
(FA) An employee hit their head on an elevator door and sustained a laceration. The specific elevator conditions that may have contributed to this incident were not able to be identified. Various possible conditions may have been present. The elevator is still out of service. During the data gathering process it was identified there may have been ISM deficiencies extend beyond the scope of this investigation.
(Report Only) An employee was working in a glovebox removing a needle containing acetonitrile from used syringe and sustained a puncture to left thumb. The worker capped the needle inside the glove box with both hands. The actual needle stick happened outside the glovebox when the worker was removing the needle from the syringe inside the adjacent fume hood. They did not have any device to cap hands-free in the glove box or adjacent fume hood. Various ISM deficiencies and recommended corrective actions were identified. This is a matrixed employee.
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*= ORPS incident / Rec= Recordable Injury / FA= First Aid Injury
FY25 Q2 Incident Details N=30
Safety Exposure- Slip, Trip, Fall N= 6
(Rec) While an employee was using a backpack blower to clear leaves and other debris in an area with multiple pipes, they had to step over the pipes. While stepping over one of the pipes, the employee tripped and fell, landing on their right knee.
(Rec) An employee experiences neck and arm pain. The employee was climbing up an 8ft A-frame ladder to complete an installation inspections in the ceiling in a room that was in the process of construction. The employee began to climb the ladder and as they were ascending the ladder, they had left hand and arm on the beam and their right hand on another beam for support. As they took one additional step up with the right foot, moving towards either the second or third rung (6ft from the ground) from the top rung of the ladder, the ladder began to fall over. Employee was able to brace themselves on a metal support beam that was approximately 10ft high when the contractor that was present was able to catch the ladder as it was halfway down and put it back. There were no issues with the condition of the shoes and reported no issues with the condition of the ladder prior to use. All ladders are inspected at the beginning of day prior to use and no issues were identified. Employee has also taken the ladder safety training. This incident emphasis the importance of maintaining three points of contact on the ladder.
(FA) An employee stepped on debris in walkway near construction site under low lighting conditions, causing the employee to roll their ankle and fall to the ground. Recommended corrective actions included: contacting construction manager to ensure that walkways are cleared of debris and controls are implemented to reduce debris in walkways and facilities/ pedestrian traffic safety committee to install temporary lighting for the area of the walkway where this incident occurred.
(FA) An employee was working in a clean room and was wearing cleanroom PPE, including booties. The booties have a smooth surface on the bottom that can be slippery, especially when encountering spilled liquids. Employee was crouching down. A coworker inadvertently spilling liquid on the floor which resulted in employee's left knee slipped due to droplets of ethanol on the floor. The work will be performed in the future in a tray to contain any spilled liquid.
(Report Only) An employee was walking towards a building to begin their workday. They had not yet entered the building or began work so this would be considered their 'commute'. The employee stepped onto uneven surface. Worker did not notice they placed their foot half-on and half-off of a curb, and lost their balance.
(Report Only) An employee was walking in a crosswalk while carrying their lunch and tripped on even ground. There was a lifted section where the sidewalk meets the stairs, which created a trip hazard. The employee was wearing heeled boots that had been worn multiple times, which may have contributed to instability. A work order was submitted and already completed to repair the uneven walkway.
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*= ORPS incident / Rec= Recordable Injury / FA= First Aid Injury
FY25 Q2 Incident Details N=30
Safety Exposure-Material Handling N=2
(Rec) An employee experienced left wrist discomfort. Employee was being trained on a new machine that they do not typically work with as part of a cross training. The employee worked on the machine for a total of 3 weeks. By the third week, employee made adjustments in the positioning while working on the machine which made it more comfortable and improve discomfort. Employee then went rock climbing a couple of weeks later and discomfort returned. This prompted employee to report to Health Services thinking it was due to rock climbing, but identified that they first experienced the discomfort from working on the new machine. The employee is working with the EHS Ergonomics Team.
(FA) An employee was working with a co-worker to prepare a piece of equipment to be shipped out. They were lifting the equipment onto a dolly from the ground with the handles, then the employees lifted the equipment off of the dolly into a case. After placing the equipment into the case and lifting the case with the co-worker, the employee began to experience back pain. The weight of the equipment is around 90 lbs and the case is about 50 lbs. This activity is very rare, and not often performed. This incident involves an employee who is matrixed.
Safety Exposure- Chemicals N=4
(Report Only) An employee was purging headspace in vial with 100mg 4-aminothiophenol using nitrogen gas on the bench. The employee inhaled chemical as it was being purged out of the vial and felt short of breath. ISM deficiencies were noted including a change in the scope work that was not reviewed and after hours work authorization. Recommended corrective actions were identified.
(Report Only) An employee started cleaning a spilled liquid as part of a Work Order requested by a researcher. While emptying their bucket containing the dirty mop water with the spilled liquid into the custodial closet sink, the employee stated they began to feel nauseated, vomited in the restroom, and felt dizzy and weak. The employee called their supervisor. The supervisor arrived immediately to offer assistance. The supervisor escorted the employee to the LBNL Security Operations Center (SOC) at B48. Alameda County Fire Department (ACFD) conducted a medical evaluation of the employee and suggested the employee be transported to the hospital for further evaluation. The employee declined transport by ambulance, so the supervisor transported the employee to Alta Bates Hospital ER. Employee was monitored and later was discharged without providing any treatment.
(2 Report Only) An employee was walking with a tube containing 10 mL of 14.3 molar MCE in a plastic 15 mL centrifuge tube with a screw cap was accidentally dropped from a rack. The researcher then placed the vial in a lab fridge (4 °C). An odor permeated the area, the area was evacuated. The employee performing the work smelled an odor as well as another employee. A risk assessment and mitigation plan was done by the EHS Team in collaboration with the DSC. Various recommended corrective actions were taken.
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*= ORPS incident / Rec= Recordable Injury / FA= First Aid Injury
FY25 Q2 Incident Details N=30
Hearing Loss N=1
(Rec) An employee experienced a hearing loss/Standard Threshold Shift (STS). The interview process revealed no evidence to suggest that the employee engaged in any specific task or worked in any particular area that could have caused the STS. The employee confirmed that they consistently wear hearing protection in all required areas and as a best practice in noisy situations. It is possible that external activities may have contributed to the hearing loss, but this is uncertain since employee reported they also wear hearing protection during high noise non-work activities. Overall, the investigation was inconclusive in identifying a specific cause. Employee had not noticed the hearing loss. Employee started working at the lab in 2005 and has been in hearing protection program since 2006.
Electrical Shock N=1
(Report Only) An employee was attempting to perform a logic reset on a UPS per manufacturer instructions and this did not resolve the issue. After the UPS had been re-energized, they then attempted to unplug and replug the external battery pack into the UPS; however in doing so, they removed security screws which held internal components and were not intended to be unscrewed. The battery pack connector has one retaining screw that is required to be removed to release the plug, but the staff member unscrewed three screws, two of which were attaching the DC receptacle to the chassis. They unscrewed all of the screws on the DC extended battery connector on the back of a UPS while the UPS was plugged into 208 VAC power. This caused the metal guide plate housing the DC connector to fall inside the chassis and short against a control board directly below it. The conductors arced against the chassis when the staff member unplugged the receptacle. The DC connector plug was energized with 192 VDC, but has a finger-safe design and adequate room to hold without risk of inadvertently coming into contact with the conductors. The staff member did experience an arcing event directly in front of them, but inside the chassis.
Random-No Lab Control N=10
(Rec) An employee experienced a knee strain associated with work-related tasks involving prolonged stair climbing and kneeling work. Corrective actions included using kneeling pads, tool carts, exploring staffing needs and doing task rotation with various employees.
(Rec) An employee experienced shoulder pain associated with obtaining vaccines at Health Services.
(FA) An employee had allergic dermatitis on their face while collecting samples at multiple creeks. It is likely employee may have come in contact with poison oak.
(5 Report Only) Five employees experienced various respiratory symptoms that were attributed to leaks in a building. The concerns in the building are being actively addressed by Facilities and EHS. Communication with building occupants will be maintained to ensure awareness of ongoing efforts and to facilitate reporting of health concerns.
(Report Only) An employee experienced pain and swelling after a long international work-related flight.
(Report Only) An employee was on foreign business travel and developed illness. Since it was foreign travel it does not meet OSHA Recordable criteria.
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*= ORPS incident / Rec= Recordable Injury / FA= First Aid Injury
Definitions/Terminology
Definitions/Terminology
Berkeley Lab strives to reasonably accommodate injured workers
and reduce the amount of days away
Various studies illustrate benefits to employees and employers in returning employees to work asap after injuries