Workers' Compensation: Fireworks, pyrotechnics industry employers strongly urged to make worker safety a priority on July 4

Thursday, June 29, 2023

Fireworks, pyrotechnics industry employers strongly urged to make worker safety a priority on July 4

Since the founding fathers declared the colonies independent in 1776, cannons, fireworks, and today, extensive pyrotechnic displays have become a July 4th fixture. Unfortunately, so have severe injuries and worse for people in the fireworks and pyrotechnics industry when necessary workplace safety standards are ignored.

With the approach of Independence Day, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration strongly urges employers in the fireworks and pyrotechnics industry to keep employees safe from the many hazards in manufacturing, storing, transporting, displaying, and sales.

Earlier this month, OSHA cited a Florida-based entertainment company after four workers died and a fifth suffered critical injuries in Orlando, Florida, after a fire and explosion at a fireworks warehouse. The agency determined that an ignition source sparked a fire and explosions as a team of workers readied fireworks for a local show.

As companies prepare fireworks displays, employers must train workers in a language they understand and ensure that employees take appropriate measures to safeguard explosive devices from causing severe and potentially fatal injuries.

OSHA provides the pyrotechnics industry with safety information about common hazards and controls for workers in retail fireworks sales and outdoor fireworks displays.

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Jon L. Gelman of Wayne, NJ, is the author of NJ Workers’ Compensation Law (Thomson-Reuters) and co-author of the national treatise Modern Workers’ Compensation Law (Thomson-Reuters). For over five decades, the Law Offices of Jon L Gelman 1.973.696.7900 jon@gelmans.com have represented injured workers and their families who have suffered occupational accidents and illnesses.