OSHA has concluded its 2012 "Construction Incident Prevention Initiative," during which it issued 243 citations and assessed a total of $658,862 in proposed fines to companies on construction sites throughout the agency's Philadelphia Region.
The four-month campaign included 545 no-notice inspections focused on falls, trenches, and silica exposure. Fifty-nine percent of the inspections revealed violations, some of the most common of which are failing to use fall protection when working on roofs, ensure that scaffolds are constructed safely and protect trenches from collapse.
"This alarmingly high number of violations underscores the need for employers in the construction industry to make a stronger commitment to workplace safety and health," said MaryAnn Garrahan, OSHA's regional administrator in Philadelphia. "Employers are responsible for ensuring safe and healthful workplaces, and will be held legally accountable when they fail to do so."
OSHA's Philadelphia Region, which encompasses Delaware, the District of Columbia, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, had a total of 43 construction-related fatalities in fiscal years 2011 and 2012, with 18 attributed to falls.
In April, Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis announced a national campaign to provide employers and workers with lifesaving information and educational materials about working safely from ladders, scaffolds, and roofs in an effort to prevent deadly falls in the construction industry. In 2010, more than 10,000 construction workers across the US were injured as a result of falling while working from heights, and more than 250 workers were killed. OSHA's fall prevention campaign was developed in partnership with the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health and NIOSH's National Occupational Research Agenda program.
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FAA Proposes Policy to Improve Flight Attendant Workplace Safety
The US Department of Transportation's Federal Aviation Administration, working with OSHA, proposed a new policy for addressing flight attendant workplace safety.
While the FAA's aviation safety regulations take precedence, the agency is proposing that OSHA be able to enforce certain occupational safety and health standards currently not covered by FAA oversight.
"Safety is our highest priority and that certainly extends to those who work in the transportation industry," said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. "Under this proposal, flight attendants would, for the first time, be able to report workplace injury and illness complaints to OSHA for response and investigation."
"The policy announced today with the FAA will not only enhance the health and safety of flight attendants by connecting them directly with OSHA but will, by extension, improve the flying experience of millions of airline passengers," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis.
Flight attendant workplace issues could include things such as exposure to noise and bloodborne pathogens, and access to information on hazardous chemicals. The FAA and OSHA will continue to work to identify any additional conditions where OSHA requirements could apply. They will also develop procedures to ensure that OSHA does not apply any requirements that could affect aviation safety.
"Flight attendants contribute to the safe operation of every flight each day," said acting FAA Administrator Michael Huerta. "This proposed policy is an important step toward establishing procedures for resolving flight attendant workplace health and safety concerns."
"We look forward to working with the FAA and the airlines to assure the protection of flight attendants," said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health.
Through the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, Congress required the FAA to develop a policy statement to outline the circumstances in which OSHA requirements could apply to crewmembers while they are working on aircraft.
OSHA cites Mississippi Phosphates for 40 Safety and Health Violations Following Two Worker Fatalities
OSHA has cited Mississippi Phosphates, Corp., with 40 safety and health violations following the deaths of two workers in separate incidents at the company's Pascagoula, Mississippi facilities. The fatalities led to comprehensive inspections by OSHA.
On May 22, an operator attempting to start up a steam turbine in sulfuric acid plant No. 2 was struck by flying metal debris when the turbine housing ruptured due to apparent overpressurization. In a similar incident on June 1, an operator restarting a tripped steam turbine in sulfuric acid plant No. 3 also was killed by flying metal debris when the turbine housing ruptured due to overpressurization.
OSHA has cited the company for three serious safety violations related to the fatalities, including exposing workers to "struck-by" hazards by not protecting them against overpressurization, and failing to maintain and service equipment in accordance with the company's maintenance program to prevent overpressurization.
An additional 23 serious safety violations involve failing to test and inspect pressure relief devices throughout the facility, provide handrails on fixed stairways, guard floor holes that could cause workers to trip and fall, provide fixed stairs to access tank gauging, address engineering controls during a process hazard analysis, and guard belt roller nip points, horizontal shafts, rotating shafts, and horizontal V-belts. The violations also include various electrical hazards such as exposing workers to shocks, missing panel knockouts, broken face plates, unguarded light bulbs, and an open ground in an outlet circuit.
Ten serious health violations involve failing to conduct an initial process hazard analysis, update the process hazard analysis every five years, conduct compliance audits for process safety management and determine the presence of asbestos prior to working on equipment, as well as to label hazardous substances such as caustic soda, acid and petroleum products that are used throughout the facility. A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.
One repeat health violation has been cited for a lack of housekeeping. A repeat violation exists when an employer previously has been cited for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years. A similar violation was cited in May 2009.
Three other-than-serious safety violations are failing to mount a fire extinguisher so it is readily available, not labeling circuit breakers, and using flexible cords and equipment cables that do not have strain relief. An other-than-serious violation is one that has a direct relationship to job safety and health, but probably would not cause death or serious physical harm.
"Employers need to be proactive to ensure that all operating equipment is properly maintained and functional," said Clyde Payne, director of OSHA's Jackson Area Office. "Had this employer done so, these tragic events could have been prevented."
Mississippi Phosphates is a producer and marketer of diammonium phosphate, which is used as a fertilizer. The company's manufacturing facilities consist of two sulfuric acid plants, a phosphoric acid plant and diammonium phosphate granulation plant.
The citations for the serious and repeat violations carry total proposed penalties of $165,900. The citations for the other-than-serious violations do not carry monetary penalties.
Georgia Chemical Manufacturer Cited by OSHA for 20 Safety Violations Following Explosion
MFG Chemical, Inc., in Dalton, Georgia, has been cited by OSHA for 20 safety violations following a plant explosion that resulted in the hospitalization of approximately 40 employees of other companies, working in the surrounding area, for decontamination. Proposed penalties total $77,000.
The May explosion was caused by a runaway reaction from an overheated reactor. During the production of coagulant 129, a compound used in water treatment, an increase in temperature caused the reactor to overpressurize, rupturing the dome cover and blowing a hole in the roof of the facility. In response to the incident, OSHA conducted an inspection under the agency's national emphasis program on process safety management for covered chemical facilities.
Nineteen serious violations involve exposing workers to fire and explosion hazards while they performed manufacturing duties, as well as failing to ensure that initial process hazard analyses were conducted; develop operational procedures that are safe, accurate and concise, and which include operating parameters such as emergency shutdown; provide training and implement safe work practices for contracted workers performing maintenance in a PSM-covered area; develop and implement a written mechanical integrity program for workers required to perform maintenance on and repair process equipment; develop emergency response procedures that include handling small chemical releases; identify permit-required confined spaces such as reactors, receivers, and mixers, among others; ensure confined space permits were issued and documented prior to allowing workers to enter the spaces; ensure that eyewash/shower facilities were available and accessible for workers exposed to chemical burns; mount and identify the placement of portable fire extinguishers; and establish a preferred way of communicating an emergency evacuation. The citations carry $76,300 in penalties.
One other-than-serious violation is failing to ensure that a material safety data worksheet contained the required information. The citation carries a $700 penalty.
"This inspection has identified a wide range of safety hazards that need to be addressed in order to protect workers," said Andre Richards, director of OSHA's Atlanta-West Area Office. "It is the employer's responsibility to provide a safe and healthful workplace."
MFG Chemical manufactures a range of specialty chemicals for the water treatment, agriculture, pulp, and paper industries.
Scrap Metal Recycler Cited by OSHA for Exposing Workers to Hazards, Including Amputations
OSHA has cited A&S Metals with 12 safety violations for exposing workers to multiple hazards at the company's facility in Butte, Montana. OSHA conducted its inspection in July and has proposed $59,000 in penalties.
"It is very fortunate that no employee suffered an amputation or other serious injury as a result of the safety violations identified at this facility," said Jeff Funke, director of OSHA's Billings Area Office. "OSHA is addressing machine guarding hazards through a national emphasis program that is focused on preventing amputations and fatalities in selected industries."
Inspectors found 10 serious violations, some of which involve exposing workers to unguarded equipment such as a drill press, a metal compactor, alligator shears, and a vertical portable grinder. The violations also include improper housekeeping, overhead crane and rigging hazards, incomplete handrails, the unsecured storage of compressed gas cylinders, and electrical issues. Citations for the serious violations carry $58,000 in penalties.
Two other-than-serious violations are failing to provide injury and illness logs in a timely manner, which carries a $1,000 penalty, and improperly certifying injury and illness summary forms.
A&S Metals, based in Castroville, California, is a scrap metal recycling, demolition, and concrete aggregate crushing contractor with more than 200 employees in Montana and California.
OSHA cites New Jersey Warehouse Company for Fall and Other Safety Hazards
OSHA has cited Continental Terminals, Inc., for nine serious and two willful safety violations at the company's Jersey City facility. Inspectors were notified of alleged hazards at the facility while they were inspecting another Continental facility in Kearny, New Jersey. Proposed penalties total $130,900.
The willful violations involve not protecting workers by allowing them to ride on the forks of forklifts, where they were exposed to falls of 10 feet, and permitting them to work on elevated platforms devoid of guardrails. A willful violation is one committed with intentional knowing or voluntary disregard for the law's requirements, or with plain indifference to worker safety and health. The citations carry $98,000 in penalties. The serious violations include having exit doors that were sealed shut, allowing damaged powered industrial trucks to be operated, stacking materials insecurely, not having a hazard communication program, using damaged electrical cords, and not labeling electrical panels. The citations carry $32,900 in penalties.
"Because fall hazards are among the leading cause of death among workers, it is vital that employers provide workers with proper fall protection," said Kris Hoffman, director of OSHA's Parsippany Area Office. "Employers are responsible for ensuring safe and healthful workplaces, and will be held legally accountable when they fail to do so."
OSHA cites Dover Chemical Co. for 47 Violations Following Chemical Release
OSHA has cited Dover Chemical, Co., for 47 health and safety—including four willful—violations after an unexpected release of hazardous materials led to the temporary shutdown of the company's Dover, Ohio, plant and an adjacent highway in May. Although no injuries were reported as a result of the incident, OSHA opened an investigation focused on the agency's standards for process safety management, known as PSM, at facilities that use highly hazardous chemicals. Proposed fines total $545,000.
The release of materials resulted from a breach of a polyvinyl chloride piping system. Due to the nature of the hazards and the willful violations cited, Dover Chemical has been placed in OSHA's Severe Violator Enforcement Program, which mandates targeted follow-up inspections to ensure compliance with the law.
"By disregarding OSHA's common-sense regulations, this employer endangered the health and safety of the facility's workers," said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health. "While I'm grateful that nobody was injured from the incident, I'm alarmed by the egregious nature of the violations we uncovered during our inspection."
The willful violations all relate to PSM, and include failing to correct deficiencies found in compliance audits, not resolving recommendations identified during a process hazard analysis, having operating procedures that do not include the consequences for deviation or the steps required to correct or avoid deviation from operating limits, and process safety information that does not detail the construction materials used for piping and piping system components.
Thirty serious violations also relate to PSM, such as inaccurate operating procedures; inadequate information about the hazardous effects of inadvertently mixing different chemicals, safe upper and lower limits for operating parameters, and the lack of chemical reactivity data; and failing to include system design codes and standards. The company also did not train employees about PSM, document that equipment complies with recognized and generally accepted good engineering practices, perform inspections and tests on process equipment, and correct deficiencies noted during equipment inspections.
An additional 11 serious violations involve unguarded wall and floor openings, failing to test aerial lift controls prior to use, allowing untrained individuals to operate lifts, not developing energy control procedures for the maintenance and servicing of equipment, and electrical hazards.
Two other-than-serious violations are not certifying personal protective equipment hazard assessments and not certifying whether powered industrial vehicle training was conducted.
The Dover facility employs about 175 workers and produces chlorinated paraffins; additives for flame-resistant products; and other additives for the plastic, rubber coating, adhesive, and textile product industries. The facility has been inspected by OSHA four other times since 2007, resulting in earlier citations for four violations. A subsidiary of New York-based ICC Industries Inc., Dover Chemical, Co., also operates a facility in Hammond, Indiana, that uses similar procedures and employs 86 workers.
New England Wood Pellet Agrees to Correct Explosion and Fire Hazards
After enforcement actions taken in relation to a series of explosions and fires at its Jaffrey, New Hampshire, manufacturing plant, New England Wood Pellet, LLC, will take systemic and substantive steps to prevent any further recurrences as part of a settlement agreement with OSHA. The company also will pay a fine of $100,000.
OSHA cited the company in April for violations of workplace safety standards in connection with the first incident of explosions and fires, which occurred on October 20, 2011, and took 15 hours and more than 100 firefighters from 12 towns to put down. An inspection by OSHA's Concord Area Office conducted in response to that incident identified numerous fire and explosion hazards stemming from the absence of protective devices, which were exacerbated by a buildup of sawdust on surfaces throughout the plant.
New England Wood Pellet contested the citations and fines to the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission but now has agreed to implement measures to prevent, detect, and suppress any potential fires and explosions. The company also has agreed to hire an independent third-party expert to evaluate the effectiveness of the corrective measures.
"Key to this agreement is the company's hiring of an independent third-party consultant who will analyze the corrective actions and inform OSHA of the company's progress," said Marthe Kent, OSHA's New England regional administrator. "It's well known that sawdust can present explosion hazards in addition to fire hazards. New England Wood Pellet cannot afford to gamble with the possibility of additional fires and explosions. The lives of its workers depend on effective safeguards being in place and in use at all times."
Under the agreement, which was negotiated by the department's Regional Office of the Solicitor in Boston, the expert also will evaluate the sufficiency of the plant's process safety management systems. A report will then will be submitted to OSHA's Concord office.
"With this settlement, ongoing, corrective action by the company replaces potentially lengthy litigation. New England Wood Pellet is responsible for its employees' safety, and its enforceable commitment to take all necessary steps to prevent future conflagrations and catastrophic incidents, as promised in this agreement, is critical," said Michael Felsen, the department's regional solicitor for New England. "We encourage other employers to take similar steps to eliminate hazards and safeguard their workers in a broad, systemic and effective manner."
OSHA cites BCW Food Products with Serious Violations for Exposing Workers to Amputations
OSHA has cited BCW Food Products, Inc., in Dallas, Texas, for 12 serious safety violations and one serious health violation for exposing workers to possible amputations and other hazards. Proposed penalties total $53,900.
OSHA's Dallas Area Office began its investigation June 4 at the company's facility on Denton Drive following a report that an employee had become trapped in a blending mixer while performing maintenance work. BCW Food Products is a manufacturing company that specializes in custom mixes, bases, and concentrates. It has three facilities in Texas and seven warehouses in Arkansas, Louisiana, Colorado, Kansas, Utah, Illinois, and Texas.
"This company failed to adequately protect its employees from possible amputations and other safety hazards," said Stephen Boyd, OSHA's area director in Dallas. "If OSHA's standards had been followed, it is possible that this life-threatening accident could have been avoided."
The safety violations involve failing to ensure the maintenance of floor openings, ensure adherence to lockout/tagout procedures for the energy sources of equipment, ensure the use of proper machine guarding on shaft ends and dough mixers, and establish a written exposure control plan for cleaning blood spills. The health violation is failing to develop and implement a hearing conservation program.
Norfolk Southern Railway Co. to Pay More Than $288,000 for Violating Federal Railroad Safety Act
OSHA has found that Norfolk Southern Railway, Co., violated the whistleblower protection provisions of the Federal Railroad Safety Act and ordered the company to pay more than $288,000, including for back pay, interest, mental anguish, punitive damages, and reasonable attorney's fees. This action follows several other orders issued by OSHA against Norfolk Southern Railway, Co., in the past two years. Investigations have found that the company continues to retaliate against workers for reporting work-related injuries, effectively created a chilling effect within the railroad industry.
Additionally, the company has been ordered to expunge the disciplinary record of the employee as well as post a notice regarding employees' whistleblower protection rights under the FRSA and provide training to its employees about these rights.
On September 19, 2009, the employee had to use additional force to move a switch so that a train could go from one set of tracks to another. On September 21, 2009, while off-duty, he felt a sharp pain in his lower back while getting up from his chair and immediately reported the injury to his supervisor. A few days later, the railroad removed the employee from service, scheduled an investigative hearing, and charged him with falsifying an injury, providing conflicting information relative to the injury and late reporting of the injury. He was terminated on November 5, 2009. An OSHA investigation revealed that the employee was retaliated against for reporting a workplace injury and following the company's reporting policy.
On March 30, 2010, under duress by the railroad, the employee signed a leniency waiver. He was returned to service nearly six months later, on September 20, 2010.
OSHA found that the company's investigative hearing was severely flawed and intentionally designed to support its decision to terminate the worker. Moreover, OSHA's investigation revealed callousness in the steps the railroad took to retaliate against this employee, including the coercion into admitting wrongdoing when the record shows that the employee was simply following company policy.
"Railroad workers continue to be harassed, intimidated and even terminated for reporting workplace injuries," said Cindy A. Coe, OSHA's regional administrator in Atlanta. "The Department of Labor will continue to protect all railroad employees from these retaliatory acts and will hold employers accountable for their illegal actions."
In this case, OSHA is ordering the railroad to pay the worker $150,000 in punitive damages; $125,000 for mental anguish, pain and suffering; $10,550 in back pay and costs associated with purchasing back lost retirement benefits; and $3,150 in attorney's fees. Either party to the case can file an appeal to the Labor Department's Office of Administrative Law Judges.
Norfolk Southern Railway, Co., is a major transporter/hauler of coal and other commodities serving every major container port in the eastern United States with connections to western carriers. Its headquarters are in Norfolk, Virginia, with more than 30,000 union employees.
OSHA Issues New Fact Sheet on Using Proper Personal Protective Equipment During Sandy Cleanup
As part of its ongoing efforts to educate workers and employers about hazards associated with cleanup work in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, OSHA has issued a new fact sheet highlighting the need for employers to provide their workers with appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) and the training to properly use that equipment.
"Workers engaged in hurricane response and cleanup activities can be exposed to a variety of hazards. No worker should be sickened or injured while performing this vital work," said Robert Kulick, OSHA's regional administrator in New York. "This fact sheet summarizes the various types of personal protective equipment and the work situations in which it is necessary and required to safeguard workers against injury and illness."
To eliminate or minimize hazards, employers must assess each site and operation individually to determine actual or potential hazards based on site-specific conditions, implement appropriate controls to protect workers from those hazards, and train workers to recognize hazards and take necessary precautions. While engineering controls are the preferred method for addressing hazards, there are many cases in which PPE may be the only practical control method.
All personal protective equipment has limitations and is the control method of last resort. Workers using PPE must be trained to recognize these limitations as well as how to put on and remove PPE, properly store it, take care of it, and know when it is time to replace it.
A basic safety ensemble for cleanup activities includes a hard hat, safety glasses, a reflective vest, gloves, and steel-toed work boots. Add impervious gloves and boots for work in wet environments; appropriate respiratory protection where needed; fall protection when working over 6 feet; and hearing protection for noisy environments. Proper hygiene and sanitation are essential for minimizing the spread of contaminants and disease. Hand-washing is a critical component of good hygiene. In the absence of suitable facilities, workers should be provided with hand sanitizer.
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