ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, December 11, 1996 TAG: 9612110042
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: WASHINGTON
SOURCE: Associated Press
Freed from congressional restraints, the government is moving ahead with new regulations to prevent repetitive motion injuries in the workplace, Labor Secretary Robert Reich said Tuesday.
The government also will begin an effort to stop repetitive stress impairments - the fastest-growing workplace injuries - through research, education and by having inspectors check for infractions during their regular inspections, Reich told reporters.
``Here we have a great deal of evidence, mounting evidence, that a problem exists,'' Reich said. ``It is not fair to the American worker, to the hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people exposed to repetitive stress injuries every day at the workplace, to deny them the opportunity for the full airing of the issues, the data and the possible range of solutions.''
Provisions that Congress included in the 1995 and 1996 budget bills prevented the Labor Department from developing the new standards.
But pressure from the Clinton administration kept the measures out of the current budget, Reich said.
The National Coalition of Ergonomics, an organization of business groups, said any new regulations would be based on ``unsound'' assumptions.
``While repetitive stress injuries are a worthy concern in American workplaces, any regulation today or in the future must be based on sound medical knowledge. At this time no consensus exists as to the causes of and, more important, any cures for repetitive stress injuries,'' group spokesman Al Lundeen said.
Repetitive motion injuries comprise more than 100 different types of job-related injuries and illnesses that result from wear and tear on the body, with some so crippling they require surgery, the department says.
Reich said the most common causes of injury are assembly-line speedups, repetitive and heavy lifting, and long hours spent typing at keyboards.
The government has brought about 400 cases to court since 1985 and all but two have been settled out of court, said Joseph A. Dear, assistant labor secretary.
In a verdict made public Monday, a federal jury in New York City ordered Digital Equipment Co. to pay nearly $6 million to three women who blamed keyboards for disabling arm and wrist injuries. It was the first time a computer maker has been found liable in such a case.
LENGTH: Short : 50 linesby CNB