An increase in overtime hours can mean an increase in accidents and production errors. Consider these overtime policies and practices that can help reduce the likelihood of safety and production problems.

If a worker who was hurt at work can find a doctor to testify that subsequent debilitating headaches were caused by the work injury, you can expect to continue making disability payments for a long time.

Let’s face it: Some employees are a bit strange. Sometimes, their behavior may even be an indication of serious mental health problems. But before you rush to demand the employee get counseling or see a doctor, remember that the ADA prohibits such requests unless there is a clear business necessity for the exam.

OSHA has released two new compliance assistance tools to help employers meet requirements of the agency’s revised Hazard Communication Standard.

A bill requiring hospitals and other health care facilities to meet target nurse-to-patient ratios has made it out of a Minnesota House of Repre­­sentatives committee. The Standards of Care Act requires hospitals to meet staffing levels recommended by professional nursing specialty organizations.

Federal appeals courts are becoming more sympathetic to employees who report workplace dangers. The 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals has backed a plaintiff who says he suffered retaliation for claiming he was traumatized by a workplace accident.

Starting Feb. 1 each year, many U.S. employers are required to post a summary of the number of job-related injuries and illnesses that occurred in the workplace the previous year. The posting must typically stay up until April 30.

Hurricane Sandy ... the derecho last June ... employers must be prepared for a variety of disaster scenarios. Two very practical matters employers must deal with in the aftermath of a disaster: workplace cleanup and paying workers. Federal law affects both.

A federal court in North Carolina has refused to add another legal avenue disgruntled employees can use to sue. The court said even after recent amendments that expanded the scope of the law, the Sarbanes-Oxley (SOX) Act doesn’t protect whistle-blowers who report what they believe are serious safety violations at work.

Q. We have learned that one of our employees has been subjected to domestic violence and has a restraining order against her boyfriend. We are concerned that the man might become violent in our workplace. We are considering terminating the employee to make sure that our other employees are safe. Does such a termination raise any legal issues?

Ashtabula-based Iten Industries has received a Safety Intervention Grant from the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation to purchase lifting equipment designed to reduce workplace injuries.

OSHA has slapped Symmetry Turf Install­­ations with two citations for serious safety violations after one of its employees died of heat stroke.

The number of workplace fatalities fell by 81 last year, according to U.S. Department of Labor statistics. In 2011, 4,609 U.S. employees died on the job, compared to 4,690 in 2010.

Hurricane Sandy is a powerful reminder: Natural (and man-made) disasters can threaten at any time. Smart employers make contingency plans so they can stay up and running even when normal work operations are disrupted. Here are eight key pieces to a crisis-management plan, which you can coordinate with the appropriate departments.