OSHA Takes a Stand on Distracted Drivers

To pick up on a theme from last week's "When Texting Is a Bad Thing" post from SCTC consultant Art Yonemoto, too many of us get lured into communicating while we’re driving or otherwise distracted when we know better.  Desensitized as we are to the "don’t be a distracted driver message," the fact is that the number one cause of workplace fatalities is distracted driving and/or operation of complex machinery or processes,  It’s all about messaging, talking and game playing, and it’s crazy dangerous... particularly since we can’t tell who is doing what in the car next to us on the highway. Yup… the one that’s whizzing by at 65 mph or faster.

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Robocall Regulations Revised

Adjustments take into account increased calling to mobile numbers.

Not that this is exactly news, but most of us don't like to be the recipients of robocalls. Lawmakers have heard us loud and clear, enacting and, over time, modifying the Telecommunications Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) with the purpose of preventing consumers from receiving unwanted, unsolicited calls. Sadly, despite repeated good faith efforts to restrict and/or clamp down on those that abuse unwitting and witting consumers alike, the calls persist.

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TDM Legally Strolling Toward Sunset

Is it possible that regulation is catching up with—or at least acknowledging--the changes that advanced technology has brought to the communications marketplace?  The answer is a clear “yes” based on the issuance of the Declaratory Ruling, Second Report and Order, and Order on Reconsideration that was adopted last week by the FCC.

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Hot News from the 911 Front (not kidding…)

The last five weeks have been very important in the world of 911 policy.  So big, in fact, that 911 policy issues actually crossed the line into the mainstream (and away from the rarified space of policy nerds, first responders, and those who support them).

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Proposed Law Targets Forced March to Telecom Arbitration

Raises possibility that consumers, including enterprises as consumers, could take telecom providers to court for failure to meet service promises.

For a number of years, I did a lot of work for a company that owned off-site airport parking lots. The company prided itself on doing a great job in multiple markets by picking up and dropping off customers at their vehicles on their way in and out of town. I overheard the principal of the company explaining the business to an outsider. He said, "We're not in the parking business. We're not even in the real estate business. We're in the service business, and if we don't provide better services than our competitors, we shouldn't be here." In fact, he's more than right. His statement applies to every business, regardless of the nature of the work.

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