CalOSHA involvement in laser safety

Does the California Occupational Health and Safety Administration (CalOSHA) do laser inspections? The answer for many years is ‘Yes’. If lasers, or laser uses, present an employee hazard in a workplace, employees may, and do, call their nearest CalOSHA office with a complaint. Complaints may allege exposure in the NHZ, lack of usable protective eyewear, guarding issues, inadequate training. We do complaint, as well as, accident inspections involving serious injuries with laser use. Some industrial settings for CalOSHA involvement with laser use have included, but not limited to; laser and laser diode manufacturers; hospitals; universities; food industry; manufacturing of surgical instruments, stents, engraved plaques; die-making in the printing industry; etc. While CalOSHA does not have a policy and procedure for how to do, what to do, citation recommendations, or, fortunately any measuring instruments, for laser inspections, there are some helps available. In addition, there are very few CalOSHA-specific (vertical) standards concerning laser safety. Therefore, without any direction, training, or standards on laser use; this paper will present one inspector’s approach to laser safety in a workplace, some common findings, and applicable standards.