[atlas:bill]

AN ACT Relating to occupation safety and health actions; adding new sections to chapter 49.17 RCW; creating a new section; and making an appropriation.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION. Sec. 1. The legislature finds that:

(1) The construction industry accounts for approximately six percent of the state's work force, but accounts for over fifteen percent of all workers' compensation claims;

(2) Musculoskeletal injuries among construction workers are by far the most significant source of workers' compensation claims, accounting for more than fifty percent of workers' compensation claims in some trades;

(3) Injuries from using wallboard, also known as sheetrock, accounts for the majority of workers' compensation claims in some trades, such as carpentry;

(4) There is substantial evidence that chronic injuries arising from manual handling of wallboard are greatly underreported to the department of labor and industries;

(5) The most significant risk factors for musculoskeletal injuries arising from work with wallboard are their size and weight;

(6) Wallboard size and weight have been increasing steadily, to where it is beyond human capacity to manually handle these boards on construction jobs; and

(7) The forces of the free market do not incorporate the human costs to workers and their families from injuries arising due to the material handling of wallboard in construction work. Therefore, it is necessary to address the inequities caused by the market through legislation and subsequent regulatory action.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 2. A new section is added to chapter 49.17 RCW to read as follows:

(1) The department shall adopt occupational safety and health standards that are necessary to address the costs to workers and their families from injuries arising from the material handling of wallboard in construction work. The department shall also, within thirty days of the effective date of this act, establish a working group on wallboard improvement.

(2) The director shall appoint as members of the working group on wallboard improvement:

(a) A chair who has substantial technical experience in the construction industry as an employee in a wallboard trade;

(b) Four representatives of construction employers and four representatives of construction employees in trades involving substantial wallboard handling;

(d) Any ex officio members as are determined to be of use to the working group on wallboard improvement.

(3) Within sixty days of appointment to the working group on wallboard improvement, the members shall issue recommendations to the department for size and weight limits on wallboard, and work procedures and technologies for the manual handling of wallboards on construction sites. The maximum size and weight requirements governing manual handling of wallboard may not exceed the following:

(a) A single employee may not be required to manually handle wallboard in excess of three feet in width and nine feet in length, or any wallboard weighing more than fifty pounds;

(b) Any wallboard exceeding four feet in width, nine feet in length, or seventy-five pounds in weight shall be transported and installed using mechanical devices;

(c) Any installation of wallboard at heights above five feet, or any installations on ceilings or elevated horizontal surfaces shall be put in place using mechanical lifting devices.

(4) The working group on wallboard improvement shall hold a minimum of one public hearing each in western Washington, central Washington, and eastern Washington, where industry representatives will have the opportunity to present opinions.

(5) Members of the working group on wallboard improvement shall be reimbursed for travel expenses and mileage in accordance with RCW 43.03.050 and 43.03.060.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 49.17 RCW to read as follows:

(1) Within one hundred eighty days of the effective date of this act, a temporary emergency safety and health standard governing the manual handling of wallboard shall be issued by the department. This standard shall remain in effect until a permanent standard is issued under normal administrative procedures.

(2) An information and training program for employers and employees in construction addressing the hazards of manual handling of wallboard and work procedures and technologies to prevent such hazards shall be developed and made available to the industry within one hundred eighty days of the effective date of this act.

(3) A permanent safety and health standard governing the manual material handling of wallboard shall be issued as soon as it is technically and administratively feasible, but may not be issued any later than seven hundred thirty days after the effective date of this act.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. The sum of twenty thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2000, from the general fund to the department of labor and industries for the purposes of obtaining the expert services of one or more highly experienced safety and health consultants with extensive knowledge of the construction industry to assist the working group on wallboard improvement in its activities.