Working Hard to Work Hard Safely

Details

• Personal Author:
  Conway, George A. ; Mode N
• Description:
  The shortage of qualified rig workers, and the desire of workers to earn high wages, is pushing drilling companies to increase the number of overtime hours. The trend in this growing industry of increased demand with limited numbers of workers is likely to continue. Unfortunately, another trend in this industry is an increasing number of work-related fatalities - with the Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting 98 fatalities in the oil and gas extraction industry in 2005. Historically, increases in the number of fatalities has followed the number of actively drilling rigs, even more so than the number of current employees. Working typical 12-hour shifts for 7 to 14 days in a row can lead to fatigue, resulting in mistakes in judgment and handling of equipment. Mistakes on a drill rig can be costly, both financially and in worker injuries. Fatigue is not unique to the drilling industry, and lessons learned from other areas can help identify and alleviate some of the potential hazards. Companies can schedule shifts and breaks to minimize fatigue, put in place policies and practices for identifying and managing fatigued employees, and help employees learn how to plan their off-time to minimize work-time tiredness. A summary of findings from research and practices in the oil and gas drilling industry as well as other industries will be presented with practical recommendations for safety management. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Education Fatigue Mortality Occupational Health Oil And Gas Industry Safety Shift Work Schedule
• Keywords:
  Mortality-data Mortality-rates Oil-industry Shift-work Traumatic-injuries
• Publisher:
  Society of Petroleum Engineers
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Proceedings
• Place as Subject:
  Alaska ; OSHA Region 10 ; OSHA Region 6 ; Texas
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  APRO - Alaska Pacific Regional Office
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-4
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20032777
• Citation:
  SPE E&P Environmental and Safety Conference, March 5-7, 2007, Galveston, Texas, SPE 106822. Richardson, TX: Society of Petroleum Engineers, 2007 Mar; :1-4
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2007
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Source Full Name:
  SPE Exploration and Production Environmental and Safety Conference, March 5-7, 2007, Galveston, Texas, SPE 106822
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:797e1490121ea5957af284779d45a24fd40b545ef5a48a8ead4619a658dad7ad05d9e3d1656b6b97846805813360318e65a7ada27bb5e673f72968c2f91a4b1c
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/186622/cdc_186622_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 726.18 KB ]