OSHA is proposing to revise 29 CFR 1904.39, which currently requires an employer to report to OSHA, within eight hours, all work-related fatalities and in-patient hospitalizations of three or more employees.
OSHA is also proposing to revise the list of low hazard industries that are partially exempt from injury and illness recordkeeping requirements. Lower hazard industries are those industries with an average Days Away, Restricted, or Transferred (DART) rate at or below 75% of the national average DART rate. The DART rate represents the total non-fatal injuries and illnesses resulting in days away from work, restricted work activity, and/or job transfer per 100 full-time employees for a given period of time (usually 1 year).
OSHA is proposing to revise the list of partially exempt industries in Appendix A using the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). The revised list in proposed Appendix A is based on DART rates compiled by BLS for 2007, 2008 and 2009. Industries listed in proposed Appendix A would still be required to keep records if requested to do so by BLS in connection with its Annual Survey), or by OSHA in connection with its Data Initiative ).
Safety Consultant/Trainer
Environmental Resource Center has a new opening for a safety consultant and auditor. We are looking for a former OSHA CSHO, OSHA trainer, or state inspector for this position in our Cary, North Carolina, office. Applicants should have excellent writing and speaking skills and be willing to travel 7–14 days per month. We are looking for an expert in all of the General Industry and Construction standards who is capable of performing audits of industrial facilities as well as conducting on-site training.
Strong consideration will be given to applicants who also have experience providing HAZWOPER, Hazcom, lockout/tagout, confined spaces, and machine guarding training.
The position includes maintenance of training materials (books and presentations), working on consulting projects, development of classes and computer-based training programs, and ensuring customer satisfaction.
How to Prepare for OSHA Adoption of the GHS for Classification and Labeling of Chemicals
This means that virtually every product label, material safety data sheet (soon to be called “safety data sheet”), and written hazard communication plan must be revised to meet the new standard. Worker training must be updated so that workers can recognize and understand the symbols and pictograms on the new labels as well as the new hazard statements and precautions on MSDSs.
Environmental Resource Center is offering webcast training courses where you will learn how the new rule differs from current requirements, how to implement the changes, and when the changes must be implemented. Dates for the upcoming webcasts include:
- October 14
- November 2
- November 10
Cary, NC 40-Hr and 24-Hr HAZWOPER Training
EnPro Safety Summit
EnPro Industries, one of America’s safest companies, is opening the doors to its annual safety conference to the readers of Environmental Resource Center’s Safety Tip of the Week. Until now, this conference has only been open to EHS managers from this leading manufacturer of sealing products, engineered products, and engine products. Enpro has about 3,600 employees in the US, Europe, Canada, and Mexico. At this meeting, you’ll learn how EnPro achieved an accident and employee lost time rates that are amongst the safest among similar industries. You’ll also learn how your employees can empower your safety machine, how to get the best in class workers compensation rate, key policies and procedures, and you’ll get to feel and touch a true safety culture.
The conference will be held October 24–25 in Houston. For more information, contact Rick Rudy at 303-433-3282 and mention that you were invited to attend as a reader of Environmental Resource Center’s Safety Tip of the Week.
A Simple Test for Human Exposure to Potentially Toxic Substances
The search for a rapid, non-invasive way to determine whether people have been exposed to potentially toxic substances in their workplaces, homes, and elsewhere in the environment has led scientists to a technology that literally takes a person’s breath away.
Andrea M. Dietrich, Masoud Agah, and their students Heather Vereb and Bassam Alfeeli explain that scientists have known since the late 1970s that exhaled breath contains traces of any potentially toxic substances that people may have inhaled. Research has shown that those amounts are an accurate reflection of the levels that exist in a person’s blood. Those advances have positioned exhaled breath as the ideal substance to use in rapid, non-invasive, simple testing for human exposure to potentially harmful substances in the air. Sampling breath is less invasive than drawing blood, more convenient than taking urine samples, and “shows promise as an inexpensive method with a fast turnaround time,” they state.
The article describes how advances in microelectronics have helped position breath analysis for more extensive use in the 21st Century. Equipment for analyzing substances in human breath that once had to be housed in laboratories, for instance, have shrunk to hand-held size. The technology can detect minute amounts of substances in the breath and do so quickly—offering the promise of helping limit human exposure and improve health.
OSHA Seeks Nominations for National Advisory Committee on Occupational Safety and Health
NACOSH was established under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 to advise the Secretaries of Labor and Health and Human Services on matters relating to the administration of the Act.
Nominations will be accepted for representatives in the following categories: public, management, labor, occupational safety and occupational health. Members will serve a two-year term.
. If submitting nominations by mail, hand delivery or messenger service, send three copies to the OSHA Docket Office, Room N-2625, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Washington, D.C. 20210; telephone 202-693-2350. Nominations must be submitted no later than November 28, 2011.
Questions concerning the NACOSH nominations process can be addressed to Deborah Crawford, OSHA Directorate of Evaluation and Analysis, at 202-693-1932.
Trailer Manufacturers in Texas Fined Nearly $950,000
OSHA cited PJ Trailers Manufacturing Co. Inc., and Delco Trailers Co. Inc., a similar company owned by PJ Trailers, for seven willful, 26 serious, nine repeat, and four other-than-serious violations. OSHA inspectors found workers exposed to unguarded machinery, fall hazards, and accumulations of potentially hazardous dust, among other violations. Proposed penalties total $949,800.
“Employers have a responsibility to keep their workers safe and healthy. Willful and repeat citations, as well as significant penalties, reflect the fact that management knew workers were exposed to dangerous conditions yet failed to provide them with basic safety protections. That choice is unacceptable and needlessly placed these workers’ health and safety at risk,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Dr. David Michaels.
PJ Trailers Manufacturing and Delco Trailers are commonly owned, with the same president and management. They share a work site, a human resources division, and a safety and health manager, and they have interrelated and integrated operations. PJ Trailers and Delco Trailers previously had been cited by OSHA for many of the same hazards that the agency found during its most recent inspection. Although the company had certified abatement of the prior hazardous conditions, many of the fixes were later abandoned to accommodate production. Since 2008, at least 15 workers have suffered eye injuries requiring medical treatment and or days away from work.
OSHA’s Dallas Area Office initiated a safety and health inspection at the company’s facility in Sumner, Texas, following receipt of a complaint that employees were not adequately protected from being injured by rotating machinery parts, employees were being exposed to toxic welding fumes while fabricating trailers, and noise levels were above approved health standards.
The willful violations involve failing to provide fall protection for employees working on stacked trailers, provide adequate machine guarding to prevent “caught-in” or “caught-between injuries,” provide employees with proper eye protection during cutting and welding operations, and establish and maintain an audiometric testing program. Audiometric testing is required when employees are exposed to high noise levels to determine if their hearing is being adversely affected. A willful violation is one committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirements, or with plain indifference to employee safety and health.
Repeat violations include failing to ensure that all spray booth areas were kept free from accumulated powder coating, guard several pieces of hazardous machinery, have all necessary lockout/tagout procedures, provide training on existing lockout/tagout procedures to protect employees from hazardous machinery starting up unexpectedly, and ensure that medical evaluations were completed to determine employees’ ability to use respirators. 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 other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years. OSHA cited the company in September and October of 2006 and March 2010 for similar violations.
Serious violations include failing to provide required fall protection, provide training on electrical hazards, and prevent exposure to welding fumes in excess of the average allowed during an 8-hour shift. 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.
Other-than-serious violations include failing to enter recordable injuries and illnesses on the OSHA 300 log within seven calendar days and properly certify the OSHA 300A form or its equivalent. 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.
The workers’ compensation carrier insuring PJ Trailers and Delco Trailers is Farmington Casualty Co.
OSHA Cites Wheels America for Multiple Safety Hazards
OSHA cited Wheels America San Antonio I Ltd., doing business as Wheels America in Schertz, Texas, for 10 serious and one repeat violation for exposing workers to potential eye injuries and combustible dust hazards, among others. Proposed penalties total $45,000.
OSHA inspectors found that workers at the company’s site on Bell North Drive in Schertz were repairing vehicle wheels using welding equipment that was not properly guarded and without the use of required personal protective equipment, such as goggles. Both hazards were cited as serious violations.
Additional serious violations involved failing to control fire hazards associated with powder-coating operations by maintaining ventilation in the spray booth, ensure that electrical cords were safely used, and keep the work site clean and sanitary.
The repeat violation involved failing to provide covers for boxes containing live electrical conductors. Wheels America was cited for similar violations at its Sherwood Lane facility in Houston in 2007.
“This company exposed its employees to workplace hazards that could cause severe injuries or even death,” said Casey Perkins, OSHA’s area director in Austin. “Failing to protect workers is unacceptable and OSHA will not tolerate it.”
OSHA Cites Texas Barge and Boat in Freeport, Texas, Following Deaths of 2 Workers
“It is critical that air monitoring is conducted when employees perform cutting operations in confined and enclosed spaces,” said Mark Briggs, director of OSHA’s Houston South Area Office. “This accident possibly could have been avoided if the company had followed OSHA’s standards.”
OSHA initiated a safety and health inspection on April 2 following a report from the local sheriff’s department that an explosion had occurred and two workers were missing at the company’s facility on East Floodgate Road. Nine employees were performing cutting and fire watch operations inside the hopper space, an area between the cargo hold and the bottom plate of the vessel, with limited means of entry and exit when the flash fire occurred.
The willful violation was cited for failing to conduct air monitoring tests prior to employees entering the confined and enclosed spaces to perform oxygen and fuel gas cutting operations.
The serious violations involve failing to provide fall protection around the perimeter of the barge and around manholes, ensure compressed gas cylinders were secured, ensure proper electrical wiring was installed, ensure circuit breakers were labeled, provide respirator fit-testing, inspect oxygen and acetylene hoses, and develop a fire safety plan. Proposed penalties total $221,200.
Koppers Inc. Cited for Safety Hazards, Proposed Fines Total $78,100
OSHA cited Koppers Inc., headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for seven serious and two repeat violations for exposing workers to a variety of safety hazards at the company’s plant on County Road 423 in Somerville, Texas. Proposed penalties total $78,100.
The serious violations include failing to maintain wire rope without damage, provide adequate lighting while operating equipment at night, maintain areas of the facility free of boards with protruding nails, ensure that welding equipment was properly maintained, and provide safety markings on winching equipment.
The repeat violations include failing to ensure that the work site was free of dust accumulation, repair hydraulic leaks, and remove defective powered industrial trucks from service. OSHA cited the company for similar violations at its plants in Denver, Colorado, and Little Rock, Arkansas, in 2010.
“This is not the first time this company has exposed its employees to possible injuries or illnesses,” said Casey Perkins, OSHA’s area director in Austin. “In this case it is fortunate that no one was injured.”
Construction Company Cited for Electrical, Fall and Other Hazards
OSHA has cited Houston, Texas–based Atlas Texas Construction and Trading Inc., for 11 serious safety violations carrying proposed penalties of $51,000. OSHA’s inspection, initiated under a national emphasis program on construction, found that about 20 workers were exposed to electrical and fall hazards while constructing the Lisa Academy School on Corporate Hill Drive in Little Rock, Arkansas.
“This company disregarded the safety of its workers by exposing them to multiple hazards,” said Carlos Reynolds, director of OSHA’s Little Rock Area Office, which conducted the inspection. “OSHA’s standards must be followed to prevent injuries and fatalities.”
The violations involve failing to train workers on the hazards of electrical equipment, ensure employees were protected from protruding rebar, fully plank scaffolds, provide a guardrail system or fall protection to prevent falls, and ensure that working levels of scaffolding had safe means of access and egress.
Sears Store in Huntsville Fined $128,000 for Blocked Exits, Other Hazards
Three repeat violations with $110,000 in penalties involve blocking exit access with retail material and equipment, failing to post signs along exit routes, and failing to repair damaged racks that caused stored merchandise to be unstable. Company locations in New Hampshire, New York, and Pennsylvania were cited for the same or similar violations in 2007, 2009 and 2010, respectively.
Three serious violations with $18,000 in proposed penalties have been cited for failing to provide an adequate number of exits in a stockroom, properly mark a door with a “not an exit” sign, and dispose promptly of flammable waste.
The company also has been cited for one other-than-serious violation with no monetary penalty for failing to provide a list of hazardous materials for its hazard communication program.
“The managers of Sears, Roebuck and Co. repeatedly have demonstrated a disregard for their employees’ safety by failing to correct workplace hazards that previously were brought to their attention,” said Roberto Sanchez, OSHA’s area director in Birmingham. “Employers are responsible for ensuring that their employees have a safety and healthful work environment.”
Kraft Foods Cited for Process Safety, Other Violations at Oscar Meyer Facility
OSHA cited Kraft Foods Inc. for 12 serious and one other-than-serious safety violation at a facility of its subsidiary, Oscar Meyer, in Madison, Wisconsin.
OSHA’s inspection identified deficiencies in the company’s process safety management program, a detailed set of requirements and procedures employers must follow to proactively address hazards associated with processes and equipment that involve large amounts of hazardous chemicals. Nine of the serious violations involve failing to comply with the requirements of the process safety management standard.
“Failing to follow process safety management standards when workers are exposed to hazardous substances puts them at an unacceptable risk for injury and illness,” said Kim Stille, OSHA’s area director in Madison. “Employers have a responsibility to ensure that work environments are healthful and safe.”
The three remaining serious violations involve failing to provide guardrails to protect workers from fall hazards, comply with the “lockout/tagout” standards for the control of hazardous energy and provide proper machine guarding.
The other-than serious violation was cited for failing to comply with process safety management standards.
Northfield, Illinois-based Kraft Foods Inc., has been inspected by OSHA more than 100 times nationwide in the past five years, including eight times at the Madison facility. Additionally, Kraft was cited in 2002 for process safety management violations and failing to control hazardous energy after a worker died following exposure to anhydrous ammonia in 2002.
Fire Suppression System Installer Cited for Cave-in, Other Hazards
OSHA cited Brendle Sprinkler Co. Inc., of Montgomery, Alabama, with three safety violations that occurred while the company was installing a fire suppression system at the McDonald’s on Opelika Road in Auburn, Alabama. Penalties total $68,530.
OSHA inspectors have cited one willful violation, with a penalty of $61,600, for failing to provide a cave-in protection system while employees were working in a trench greater than 5 feet deep.
The company also has been cited for two serious violations, with $6,930 in penalties, for failing to ensure that employees were wearing hard hats when overhead hazards existed as well as failing to provide employees with a safe means to enter and exit the excavation.
“This employer knows the OSHA rules for excavations and trenching but chose to cut corners to save time, exposing workers to potential injury or death,” said Kurt Petermeyer, OSHA’s area director in Mobile.
Ecopax Fined $57,000 for 19 Violations
OSHA cited Ecopax LLC, for 19 safety and health violations following an inspection at the company’s Easton, Pennsylvania, warehouse. Proposed penalties total $57,400.
“Ecopax is legally responsible for ensuring a safe and healthful work environment for its employees,” said Jean Kulp, director of OSHA’s Allentown Area Office. “It is vital that management address the workplace hazards OSHA has cited in order to prevent needless injuries, or worse, from occurring.”
Eighteen serious violations with penalties of $55,300 include failing to maintain emergency lighting in the warehouse, provide employees with training on operating procedures, provide employees exposed to noise hazards with proper training and monitoring, provide written operating procedures for the foam extrusion system, provide a complete mechanical integrity program for process equipment, implement a change management procedure for the process safety program, develop and implement a site-specific emergency action plan, provide employees working on elevated surfaces with standard railing protection, ensure that exit routes were not impeded, ensure that the employee alarm system was functional, ensure that fire extinguishers were readily available and employees were trained in their use, ensure that live electrical parts were guarded against contact, ensure that flexible cords were used appropriately, provide strain relief on flexible cords, properly store material in a stable and secure manner, effectively close unused openings in electrical boxes, and properly cover each electrical outlet box.
Additionally, one other-than-serious violation with a $2,100 penalty was cited for failing to properly record injuries and illnesses in the OSHA record-keeping log.
Ecopax LLC manufactures single-use take out containers made of polystyrene foam and employs 49 workers at its Easton facility.
Duna USA Fined $136,000 for 32 Violations
Proposed penalties total $136,800 following a safety and health inspection initiated by OSHA’s Houston South Area Office at the company’s Baytown, Texas, facility on Farm to Market 1405.
“This employer failed to implement an effective safety and health program to address hazardous and flammable chemicals in its high density foam manufacturing process,” said Mark Briggs, director of OSHA’s Houston South Area Office. “It is fortunate that in this case no serious injuries or illnesses resulted.”
The serious violations involve failing to ensure the use of protection to prevent hearing loss while cutting foam products, develop an emergency action plan, develop adequate energy control procedures and utilize them during maintenance activities, perform initial monitoring for exposure to methylene chloride, and implement process safety management elements with a system to address recommendations made by a process hazard analysis team.
The other-than-serious violations include failing to adequately mark exit doors and to properly locate fire extinguishers.
Duna USA, which manufactures rigid polyisocyanurate/polyurethane foam—also known as PIR and polyiso—bun stock, has 15 business days from receipt of the citations to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s Houston South area director, or contest the citations and penalties before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
Swimming Pool Manufacturer Fined $106,000 after Worker’s Fingers Crushed
OSHA cited Wilbar International for 20 alleged violations of workplace safety standards after an employee’s fingers were crushed while he was feeding material into a power press at the company’s plant. The Hauppauge swimming pool manufacturer faces a total of $106,200 in proposed fines.
OSHA’s inspection identified numerous machine guarding and energy control hazards associated with power presses. These include guards on presses that created pinch points and did not prevent entry into the presses’ points of operation, a lack of training in safe work methods and safety procedures for press operators and maintenance/setup workers, no periodic or regular inspections of presses, inadequate energy control procedures to prevent the unintended start-up of presses during maintenance, and a lack of energy control training and hardware.
“This case illustrates what can and does happen when machinery is not adequately guarded and energy control procedures are deficient,” said Anthony Ciuffo, OSHA’s Long Island area director. “I want employers on Long Island to take note: This is exactly the type of injury OSHA’s machine guarding and energy control requirements are designed to prevent.”
Inspectors also found electrical hazards, the absence of a hearing conservation program, improper storage of compressed gas cylinders, and a blocked exit. The hazardous conditions resulted in citations for 19 serious violations carrying fines of $105,300.
One other–than–serious violation, with a $900 fine, was cited for incomplete recording of injuries and illnesses.
“A first step toward preventing hazards such as these is for an employer to develop and implement an illness and injury prevention program in which management and workers proactively identify and eliminate hazardous conditions,” said Robert Kulick, OSHA’s regional director in New York.
ABC Coke Cited for 27 Violations Following Fatality
OSHA cited ABC Coke in Birmingham, Alabama, a division of Drummond Co., for 27 safety and health violations following the death of a worker in March.
At the foundry coke production facility, coke ovens are filled from above by means of transport vehicles, which drop coal down through chutes into the ovens. In this case, a coal chute became jammed and the operator left his controls to attempt to un-jam it. Through miscommunication, another employee took the controls and moved the transport vehicle, which hit the worker, crushing him between a guardrail and the jammed coal bin chute.
OSHA cited the company for one serious safety violation related to the fatality: failing to develop and utilize lockout/tagout procedures for the energy source of the coal transport vehicle, which would have prevented it from moving while the worker was un-jamming the coal chute.
Additionally, 22 serious safety violations involve not wearing seatbelts while operating a forklift, open-sided floors and platforms that were not guarded, missing mid-rails and top-rails on platforms, open-sided stairs without handrails on both sides, storing unsecured propane and oxygen cylinders, unguarded fixed ladder cages, unapproved storage cabinets for flammable liquids, lack of an eyewash station, permitting unauthorized personnel to ride on powered industrial trucks, unguarded machine equipment, numerous instances of exit routes that were not marked, and various electrical deficiencies.
One other-than-serious safety violation was cited for failing to mark the approved load rating for a storage room in a building or other structure.
A separate health inspection revealed two serious violations, including allowing employees to have beards while wearing respirators and failing to label hazardous chemical containers. One other-than-serious health violation was cited for not labeling containers used for contaminated clothing.
“This fatality could have been prevented had the employer ensured that proper procedures were developed and implemented,” said Roberto Sanchez, OSHA’s area director in Birmingham. “It is the employer’s responsibility to assess workplace hazards and ensure corrective measures are taken to protect employees.”
The citations can be viewed at:
Proposed penalties total $124,000.
Marietta Industrial Enterprises Fined $186,300 after Worker Fatality at Recycling Facility
OSHA opened an inspection after a worker was found dead inside the rotating drum assembly of a machine used to screen recyclables from other refuse on March 30.
“Marietta Industrial Enterprises showed an intentional disregard for employee safety by failing to provide lockout/tagout training to workers performing maintenance inside rotating drums, which could easily be restarted if their energy sources were not properly cut off,” said Deborah Zubaty, OSHA’s area director in Columbus. “No one should ever lose his or her life because safety procedures were not followed. It is the employer’s responsibility to train workers and ensure that the workplace is free from unnecessary hazards.”
Two willful violations involve failing to implement lockout/tagout procedures to prevent equipment from becoming unexpectedly energized and to train workers in lockout/tagout procedures.
Additionally, 14 serious violations involve failing to provide machine guarding, provide adequate guardrails, mark and illuminate emergency and exit signs, evaluate the workplace to determine if there were any confined spaces that would require permits, examine powered industrial trucks prior to each shift, ensure that employees used electrical protective equipment, provide electrically insulated tools, develop an exposure control plan for bloodborne pathogens, offer hepatitis B vaccines, and label biohazard containers.
Finally, five other-than-serious violations involve using work areas for storage, as well as failing to record work-related injuries, maintain clean conditions, provide a written respiratory protection program, and provide employees with information for voluntary respirator use.
Initiated in June 2010, SVEP is intended to focus on recalcitrant employers that endanger workers by committing willful, repeat, or failure-to-abate violations in one or more of the following circumstances: a fatality or catastrophe, industry operations or processes that expose workers to severe occupational hazards, employee exposure to hazards related to the potential releases of highly hazardous chemicals, and all per-instance citation (egregious) enforcement actions.
OSHA Proposes $64,000 Fine for 23 Violations at Dixon Ticonderoga
OSHA cited Dixon Ticonderoga Co., for 23 safety and health violations at its factory in Macon, Georgia. OSHA began an inspection after receiving a complaint about possible violations. Proposed fines total $64,085.
Eleven serious safety violations relate to exit routes that were inadequately lit, exit signs that were not illuminated at all, propane containers that were stored improperly, materials that were not stored in a safe manner to prevent sliding or collapse, not marking the aisles where powered industrial trucks travel, and not keeping those aisles free from obstruction. Additionally, the company did not develop lockout/tagout procedures to prevent machinery from unexpectedly starting up during servicing or maintenance, grinding wheels were not adequately guarded to prevent workers from coming in contact with moving parts, and sprockets and chains were not adequately guarded to prevent workers from being struck by or caught up in the equipment. Furthermore, electrical hazards included boxes that lacked covers or had improperly installed covers, conductors entering boxes that were not protected from damage, splices in wiring that were made improperly, flexible cords used instead of required fixed wiring, and flexible cords that were not provided with adequate strain relief to prevent pull from being directly transmitted to device joints or terminal screws.
Five serious health violations involve conduits and pallets coated in wood dust that could cause respiratory problems for workers; using electrical equipment near explosives where the equipment was not rated for the hazardous location; failing to develop a hazard communication program where employees were exposed to acetone; failing to create a hearing testing program for workers exposed to loud sounds; and not providing employees with testing, training, or a choice of hearing protectors to guard against hearing loss. Fines for the 16 serious violations total $59,085.
One other-than-serious safety violation with no fine was cited for failing to evaluate powered industrial truck operators as part of the company’s training program and to provide operators with training or evaluation conducted by a qualified person.
One other-than-serious health violation with a $4,000 fine was cited for allowing mandatory OSHA logs to be signed by an employee below the level of a company official in 2006, 2007, 2009, and 2010. A second other-than-serious health violation with a $1,000 fine was cited because a mandatory OSHA log was not maintained in 2008, although recordable injuries and illnesses had occurred at this location.
Four more other-than-serious health violations with no fines involve not developing a written respiratory protection plan for employees required to wear a dust mask, not providing required information to workers who voluntarily used respiratory protection, not creating a program to ensure proper care of respirator equipment, and not providing employees with a respirator approved by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health.
“Developing a comprehensive employee safety and health program can lessen the possibility of injury, death and long-term health problems for workers, as well as reduce a company’s medical costs. Employers must safeguard their workers’ safety and health,” said William Fulcher, director of OSHA’s Atlanta-East Area Office.
The Macon plant prints custom designs onto pens, pencils, and other writing instruments, and prior to this investigation was last inspected by OSHA in 2002. Dixon Ticonderoga Co. is best known as a manufacturer of writing instruments. A subsidiary of the Fila Group, Dixon Ticonderoga’s American headquarters is in Heathrow, Florida.
Patterson-UTI Drilling Cited for Serious and Repeat Violations
OSHA has cited Patterson-UTI Drilling Co. LLC, for four serious and two repeat safety violations. OSHA’s El Paso Area Office opened an inspection at the company’s Aunt Bee Well No. 15, Rig No. 80 work site in Odessa, Texas, as part of its Oil and Gas Regional Emphasis Program. Inspectors found that employees were exposed to various hazards while drilling for oil without the required safeguards. Proposed penalties total $72,600.
“This company repeatedly has exposed its workers to a variety of safety violations that could easily cause serious injuries,” said Diego Alvarado, OSHA’s acting area director in El Paso. “It is the employer’s responsibility to keep the workplace safe.”
The serious violations involve failing to protect employees from “caught–between” and “struck–by” hazards, periodically inspect fire extinguishers, and properly guard industrial machines.
The repeat violations include failing to keep electrical equipment free from recognized hazards and to utilize proper grounding procedures. OSHA cited the company for similar violations in April 2007 and May 2011.
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