Department of Labor Encouraged by Decline in Worker Death Investigations

Fewer workers are dying from hazards where OSHA has focused its enforcement resources. Preliminary agency data show a decrease in fatalities the agency is mandated to investigate, including significant reductions in fatal injuries from trench collapses and falls, two of the leading causes of death among construction industry workers.

 

“These numbers are promising evidence that stronger enforcement and collaboration with labor and management, driven by the Biden-Harris administration’s worker-centered approach, is saving lives,” said Assistant Secretary for Occupational Safety and Health Douglas Parker. “Most striking is the improvement in areas we have focused on with employers and unions. Our state program partners have also seen improvements.”

 

In fiscal year 2024, federal OSHA investigated 826 worker deaths, an 11 percent reduction from 928 in the previous year. Excluding Covid-related deaths, this is the lowest number of worker fatalities OSHA has been mandated to investigate since FY 2017.

 

OSHA’s National Emphasis Program on Falls, the leading cause of serious work-related injuries and fatalities in the construction industry, saw fatal falls investigated by federal OSHA drop from 234 to 189, a decrease of almost 20 percent. Preliminary data from state OSHA programs, pending validation by federal OSHA, indicates more than 15 percent fewer fatalities in state jurisdictions. Currently, federal OSHA covers about 60 percent of private-sector employees and approved state programs cover the remaining workers.

 

National reporting by federal and state OSHA programs show worker deaths in trench collapses declined nearly 70 percent since calendar year 2022. Fatalities decreased from 39 in 2022 to 15 in 2023 and, to date, 12 in calendar year 2024. These decreases follow intensive outreach and education by OSHA and industry partners, work by state plans and aggressive enforcement under a “zero tolerance” policy for unprotected trenches, including immediate inspections and referrals for criminal prosecution where warranted.

 

“While fewer workers have died from the hazards OSHA investigates, we still lose more than 5,000 workers each year in largely preventable incidents. While we’re proud of this progress, our work is far from over. Reducing worker deaths means embracing an approach that makes worker health and safety a core value in every workplace. Only then can we fully address all the causes and factors that lead to workers dying needlessly on the job,” added Parker.

 

 

The EPA settled cases of alleged Clean Air Act violations at three facilities in Southern Louisiana as part of the agency’s focus on achieving results in communities with environmental justice concerns. The cases involve alleged unauthorized emissions of chemicals; violations of startup/shutdown/ malfunction requirements; and other requirements of the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants.  

 

“Many communities in Southern Louisiana live with a daily burden of pollution that would be unimaginable in other areas. EPA worked directly with these residents and used a variety of tools to assess potential violations from permitted facilities,” said Regional Administrator Dr. Earthea Nance. “These legal settlements hold the facilities accountable and will prevent future excess emissions from affecting nearby residents.”

 

The violations were found at DuPont Pontchartrain Works petrochemical facility in LaPlace; Vopak, Inc., in Hahnville; and Westlake Chemical (formerly Axiall) in Lake Charles. Inspections at these facilities were part of the Pollution Accountability Team, a special enforcement project developed as a follow-up to Administrator Michael S. Regan’s Journey to Justice tour in Louisiana. Inspection reports for these cases are available here. 

 

The DuPont settlement assesses a civil penalty of $480,000 and addresses violations including unauthorized emissions above the allowed limit at a benzene storage tank, and failure to comply with regulatory requirements for an open-ended line. Conditions of the settlement include: installing advanced equipment on the benzene storage tank, enhanced monitoring using EPA Method 21 and Optical Gas Imaging, a third-party audit of all conservation or emergency vents storing benzene or Group 1 liquids, recordkeeping and reporting requirements, and updating permits as needed. 

 

The Vopak settlement assesses a civil penalty of $168,000 and addresses violations at the company’s for-hire bulk storage terminal, which stores raw materials, product, and benzene-containing wastewater from an adjacent facility. Violations include unauthorized emissions from external floating roof tanks identified using EPA’s geospatial measurement of air pollution (“GMAP”) technology. The settlement requires the facility to conduct quarterly inspections of each floating roof tank, including rim seals; a permit and operations review conducted by an independent third-party auditor; and complete site-specific corrective actions. 

 

The Westlake settlement includes a civil penalty of $825,000 and addresses violations of startup, shutdown, and malfunction requirements and unauthorized emissions, among others. The settlement requires the company to submit a performance testing plan and conduct an additional performance test of its two thermal oxidizers, submit to EPA a list of all pressure relief devices used for hazardous air pollutants; conduct audio, visual and olfactory monitoring of these devices for ten months; and ensure its startup/shut down/malfunction plan complies with all regulatory and permit requirements. 

 

 

Updated guidance from EPA presents ventilation strategies for preventing the spread of respiratory viruses in homes, schools, offices, and commercial buildings. A news release from the agency says that the guidance incorporates the latest science on indoor air quality and recent recommendations from CDC.

 

The guidance recommends that schools, offices, and commercial buildings hire professionals knowledgeable about heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems to ensure their systems are running optimally. If increasing the amount of outdoor air in a building is not possible, EPA’s guidance suggests upgrading HVAC filters to the highest MERV rating the system can accommodate and using portable air cleaners. It suggests targeting five air changes per hour (ACH) as a goal to reduce the number of viral particles in indoor spaces. It also recommends promoting remote work and reducing occupancy.

 

In addition to increasing outside-air ventilation where possible, EPA suggests adjusting or reconfiguring airflows in indoor spaces to prevent air from blowing directly from person to person and exhausting restrooms to the outdoors. Upper room ultraviolet germicidal irradiation, or UVGI, is recommended as a possible supplement to, but not a replacement for, ventilation and filtration. The guidance includes a warning to avoid the use of air cleaners that generate ozone, which is a lung irritant.

 

Readers can access EPA’s updated guidance on the agency’s website. For more information, the guidance points to ASHRAE standard 241, Control of Infectious Aerosols, ASHRAE’s building readiness guide (PDF), and CDC’s webpage on ventilation and respiratory viruses.

 

CDC expects a similar or lower number of hospitalizations for flu, COVID-19, and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) during the 2024–2025 virus season as for last season. The agency’s preliminary estimates indicate that between Oct. 1, 2023, and April 30, 2024, there were between 380,000 and 900,000 hospitalizations for flu and between 17,000 and 100,000 flu deaths.

 

 

The EPA recently announced that it has issued an administrative order on consent to Sims ARG Inc., a scrap metal shedding and recycling facility located at 3000 Vera Street, in  Baltimore, Maryland. The order alleged that the facility did not obtain the necessary permit required by the federal Clean Air Act and the Maryland State Air Permitting Program.

 

The permit is required in order to limit emissions of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) which can contribute to ground-level ozone that can be harmful to human health. The young, the elderly and those with respiratory conditions such as asthma are especially vulnerable to the effects of ground-level ozone pollution. Test data has shown that metal shredding operations emit VOCs at rates up to 200 pounds per hour.

 

“For far too long, metal shredding and recycling facilities have polluted the air, especially in underserved communities in urban areas,” said EPA Mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator Adam Ortiz. “This action demonstrates that EPA will hold facilities accountable when they fail to take the actions necessary to meet health-based air quality standards.”

 

The order requires the company to submit a complete permit application to the State of Maryland within 60 days of the effective date of the order.

 

Get more information about reducing pollution from metal recycling facilities.

 

 

A Florida man pleaded guilty recently for his role in a scheme that generated over $7 million in fraudulent EPA renewable fuels credits and sought over $6 million in fraudulent tax credits connected to the purported production of biodiesel.

 

According to court documents, Royce Gillham was the general manager of a biofuel company based in Fort Pierce, Florida, that produced and sold renewable fuel and fuel credits and claimed to turn various feedstocks into biodiesel. When reporting the number of gallons produced to the IRS and EPA, Gillham and his employer vastly overstated their production volume in an effort to generate more credits. When auditors sought more information from the company, Gillham and his co-conspirators provided false information about their fuel production and customers.

 

Gillham pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud and to filing false claims. A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the conspiracy count. A federal district court judge will determine whether to accept the plea agreement after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

 

Assistant Attorney General Todd Kim of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Hipkins of IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI)’s Miami field office and Acting Special Agent in Charge Leslie Carroll of the EPA’s Criminal Investigation Division (EPA-CID) made the announcement.

 

EPA-CID and IRS-CI investigated the case.

 

 

The U.S. Department of Labor has filed suit against a York manufacturing company alleging the company wrongly terminated an employee who raised safety concerns when directed to use a ladder to move stock items when they believed a forklift would be safer.

 

Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, the action follows an investigation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration that determined Red Lion Controls Inc. violated the whistleblower provisions of the Occupational Safety and Health Act by firing the employee for refusing to use a ladder to complete the task.

 

Specifically, the employee reported that they could not maintain the required three points of contact to ensure ladder safety and needed to use a forklift. Investigators also learned the company negated the employee's concerns and responded that the task could "easily" be done while on a ladder and suggested other employees were able to use a ladder to complete the task. After the employee held firm, the company terminated them.

 

"Every worker deserves a safe workplace and the freedom to report unsafe conditions without the threat of retaliation," said OSHA Regional Administrator Michael Rivera in Philadelphia. "Employers must understand that retaliation or termination for speaking up about hazards is not only unlawful but undermines the protections meant to keep workers safe."

 

The department's suit asks the court to hold Red Lion Controls liable for illegal retaliation, and to reinstate them and pay back wages and damages.

 

"When employees exercise their right to report unsafe workplace conditions and face any form of retaliation, we will pursue all legal remedies to ensure employees are made whole and employers do not engage in similar conduct in the future," said Regional Solicitor of Labor Samantha Thomas in Philadelphia.

 

A subsidiary of HMS Networks AB, a provider of industrial information and communication technology, Red Lion Controls Inc. serves customers in factory automation, alternative energy, oil and gas, power and utilities, transportation, water and wastewater industries.

 

OSHA's Whistleblower Protection Program enforces the whistleblower provisions of 25 whistleblower statutes protecting employees from retaliation for reporting violations of various workplace safety and health, airline, commercial motor carrier, consumer product, environmental, financial reform, food safety, health insurance reform, motor vehicle safety, nuclear, pipeline, public transportation agency, railroad, maritime, securities, tax, criminal antitrust, and anti-money laundering laws.

 

 

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