A leading supplier of fast food and supermarket chicken is facing more than $1.4 million in fines this year for worker safety and health violations, including several that led a teenaged worker to suffer the amputation of his lower leg.
OSHA has levied the latest penalties against Case Farms Processing, Inc., for 16 violations at the chicken processor's Canton facility. The safety failures resulted in two serious injuries to workers while they cleaned machines. Both workers were fired after the incidents.
The agency also penalized Cal-Clean's owner, Callaghan and Callaghan with $179,700 in fines on September 28, for two willful, five serious, and three other-than-serious safety violations.
"A teenager's life has been forever altered because of a devastating leg injury just weeks after starting this job. How many injuries will it take before Case Farms stops exposing workers to dangerous machinery parts?" said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health. "OSHA will continue to inspect, monitor and penalize this company until it makes necessary improvements. They need to protect their workers, and they need to do it now."
The inspections that resulted in the September citations found:
- On March 25, a 24-year-old Case Farms employee was cleaning a fat sucker machine when the operating parts of a plunger amputated the fingertips of his right middle and ring fingers. An employee for nearly a year and a half, the worker was suspended from his job for 10 days and subsequently fired.
- On April 7, a 17-year-old Callaghan and Callaghan (doing business as "Cal-Clean") employee suffered the amputation of his left leg from the knee down when he was cleaning the liver-giblet chiller machine. The teen has been unable to return to work due to his injuries, and he was fired after the incident. Case Farms does not supervise the sanitation contractor employees working at it its facilities, but the company is responsible for exposing the Cal-Clean employee to operating parts of machinery because it failed to install safety mechanisms.
"In the past 25 years, Case Farms has done little to change a corporate culture where workers are endangered despite repeated OSHA inspections and commitments from the company to fix its safety and health programs," said Howard Eberts, OSHA's area director in Cleveland. "Both Case Farms and Cal-Clean need to make safety a priority for employees who work at dangerous meat processing facilities."
Two other inspections remain open at Case Farms' Canton facility.
- Exposure to ammonia can cause serious respiratory illness, and accidental releases of ammonia from pressurized pipes and vessels may have catastrophic consequences.
However, follow-up inspections led to the issuance of citations on May 28, 2015, and most recently on August 13, 2015. Case Farms has contested all of the citations issued.
Headquartered in Troutman, North Carolina, Case Farms processes 2.8 million chickens per week at seven facilities in North Carolina and Ohio. It has more than 3,200 employees and produces more than 900 million lb of fresh, partially cooked and frozen-for-export poultry products yearly. Its Ohio facilities are located in Canton, Strasburg, Massillon, and Winesburg. In North Carolina, Case Farms operates in Dudley, Goldsboro, Mount Olive, and Morganton.
Callaghan and Callaghan is located in Greensboro, North Carolina, and is contracted to clean some of Case Farms' facilities.
How to Implement OSHA’s Globally Harmonized Hazard Communication Standard (GHS)
OSHA has issued a final rule revising its Hazard Communication Standard, aligning it with the United Nations’ globally harmonized system (GHS) for the classification and labeling of hazardous chemicals. This means that virtually every product label, safety data sheet (formerly called “material safety data sheet” or MSDS), 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 safety data sheets.
Environmental Resource Center is offering live online training for you to learn how the new rule differs from current requirements, how to implement the changes, and when the changes must be implemented.
New Exclusions for Solvent Recycling and Hazardous Secondary Materials
EPA’s new final rule on the definition of solid waste creates new opportunities for waste recycling outside the scope of the full hazardous waste regulations. This rule, which went into effect on July 13, 2015, streamlines the regulatory burden for wastes that are legitimately recycled.
The first of the two exclusions is an exclusion from the definition of solid waste for high-value solvents transferred from one manufacturer to another for the purpose of extending the useful life of the original solvent by keeping the materials in commerce to reproduce a commercial grade of the original solvent product.
The second, and more wide reaching of the two exclusions, is a revision of the existing hazardous secondary material recycling exclusion. This exclusion allows you to recycle, or send off-site for recycling, virtually any hazardous secondary material. Provided you meet the terms of the exclusion, the material will no longer be hazardous waste.
Learn how to take advantage of these exclusions at Environmental Resource Center’s live webcast where you will learn:
- Which of your materials qualify under the new exclusions
- What qualifies as a hazardous secondary material
- Which solvents can be remanufactured, and which cannot
- What is a tolling agreement
- What is legitimate recycling
- Generator storage requirements
- What documentation you must maintain
- Requirements for off-site shipments
- Training and emergency planning requirements
- If it is acceptable for the recycler to be outside the US
Los Angeles RCRA and DOT Training
Knoxville RCRA and DOT Training
Mobile RCRA and DOT Training
Prestige Industries LLC Fined $305,300 for Repeatedly Exposing Workers to Hazards
One of the region's largest commercial laundry companies continues to expose its employees to the same workplace hazards that contributed to the 2011 death of a 24-year-old worker at a Prestige Industries LLC facility in Bay Shore, New York.
After receiving a complaint, OSHA began an inspection of the company's Paterson facility on March 27, 2015. Proposed fines total $305,300.
"It is unacceptable when a company continues to neglect basic safety and health procedures, especially after experiencing a fatality. Prestige Industries' deliberate failure to uphold its responsibility to provide a safe and healthful workplace is an indication that worker safety and health is not a priority, which is intolerable," said Robert Kulick, OSHA's regional administrator in New York. "Without an effective, comprehensive injury and illness prevention program that evaluates, identifies and eliminates hazards proactively, Prestige's employees will remain at risk of injury or death."
OSHA cited Prestige Industries with a willful violation for lack of lockout/tagout procedures.
With headquarters in Lyndhurst, Prestige Industries cleans laundry for different industries at two New Jersey facilities and one in Long Island, New York. The Paterson location launders fabrics for the hotel industry.
Federal Transit Administration Issues Proposed Rule for Transit Agencies to Achieve State of Good Repair, Improve Safety
Identifying and prioritizing maintenance and repair needs of transit vehicles and infrastructure could lower costs, increase reliability and performance, reduce travel delays for passengers, promote resilience, and yield system safety improvements.
“Transit ridership is rising, public transportation equipment and infrastructure are aging, and there is a growing backlog of transit-related capital maintenance needs with limited funding available,” said US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “Better and more efficient management of transit assets is a smart way to get more from our investments while ensuring we maintain the safe, reliable and accessible transit service the American public deserves.”
The proposed rule would require public transportation agencies to develop a Transit Asset Management (TAM) Plan that determines the condition of its capital assets, including the system’s equipment, rolling stock, infrastructure, and facilities. To reduce the burden on small operators, the proposed rule offers a two-tiered approach for the TAM Plan requirement. Small transit providers operating 100 or fewer vehicles in revenue service and no rail fixed-guideway service and all subrecipients under the Rural Area Formula Program would be allowed to participate in a Group TAM Plan that would be developed by a State or other direct recipient of FTA funding.
The Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) directs FTA to create a TAM System to help transit agencies achieve a better and more informed balance between system preservation and expansion projects, with a strong focus on improving safety. The TAM System is intended to provide a transit agency with a comprehensive understanding of how the condition of its capital assets may impact the safety of its system.
“Strategic and targeted investments to replace and rehabilitate aging transit infrastructure are needed to bring the Nation’s bus and rail systems into a state of good repair,” said FTA Acting Administrator Therese McMillan. “Given the diversity of transit systems, from complex urban networks to small operators in rural communities, the proposed rule offers a flexible approach for public transportation providers to better manage and maintain their assets.”
The proposed rule would also define the term “state of good repair,” establish state of good repair performance measures, and have transit agencies set performance targets based on those measures, which they can then use to prioritize limited capital investment funding. In addition, transit agencies would be required to report new information to the National Transit Database.
Insufficient funding combined with inadequate asset management practices have contributed to an estimated $86 billion transit in state of good repair backlogs nationwide that continues to grow with reduced levels of investment.
Deadly Fall of Construction Worker Leads to Manslaughter Charges Against Owner and Foreman
Cal/OSHA’s criminal investigation into the December 2012 falling death of a 51-year-old carpenter in San Francisco resulted in manslaughter charges by the San Francisco District Attorney against the worker’s employer and foreman. Salvador William Versaggi, owner of Versaggi Construction, along with foreman John Fitt pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to the manslaughter charges and two counts of violation of the labor code.
“When our investigations uncover potentially criminal behavior by employers, we exercise our full jurisdiction not only to protect workers but to also make referrals to the District Attorney for prosecution where appropriate,” said Christine Baker, Director of the Department of Relations’ (DIR). Cal/OSHA is a division in DIR.
On December 26, 2012, Jose Plancarte was assigned to lower a window frame opening in the main stairwell of a residential construction site at 40 Edgehill Way in San Francisco. Plancarte built a nailed-bracket scaffold and used two scaffold planks to access the window located more than 18 feet above ground. Plancarte was not wearing fall protection and the scaffold did not have guardrails. He was found unresponsive at the base of the stairwell, having fallen 18.5 feet to the concrete basement floor. Plancarte was transported to San Francisco General Hospital, where he later died from his injuries.
“When preventable deaths occur, employers must be held accountable,” said Cal/OSHA Chief Juliann Sum. “The indictments today are a testament to the close working relationship between Cal/OSHA and the San Francisco District Attorney and our commitment to ensure that criminal behavior in the workplace is addressed.”
Cal/OSHA’s investigation determined that Versaggi Construction had failed to provide fall protection training to its workers at the site, and that foreman Jim Fitt was aware that Plancarte had cobbled together a prohibited type of scaffolding in direct violation to the employer’s own safety program.
“Employers in California are required to provide the necessary protections for their workers in order to prevent a tragedy such as this”, said San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón. “With the significant amount of construction going on in San Francisco right now, it is more important than ever for everyone to follow all the rules and regulations around a job site.”
Cal/OSHA’s civil investigation resulted in the issuance of four citations with penalties totaling $25,870 on March 29, 2013, including two citations for serious violations.
Chemical Safety Board Uncovers Flaws at the DuPont Insecticide Plant in La Porte, Texas
An ongoing investigation by the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) of the November 15, 2014, toxic chemical leak that killed four workers at the E. I. du Pont de Nemours insecticide plant in La Porte, Texas, has uncovered flawed safety procedures, design problems, and inadequate planning.
Nearly 24,000 lb of deadly methyl mercaptan escaped in the middle of the night through two valves in a poorly ventilated manufacturing building. In one area of the plant, operations personnel attempted to clear blocked piping. Later in a different area, two workers opened valves in response to what they believed was a routine, unrelated pressure problem. The two workers were killed when liquid methyl mercaptan drained from the open valves, filling the room with toxic vapor. One of those workers made a distress call, and two additional workers died responding to that call.
CSB Chairperson Vanessa Allen Sutherland said, “DuPont has long been regarded as a safety leader in the chemical industry, but this investigation has uncovered weaknesses or failures in DuPont’s safety planning and procedures. These interim recommendations lay out what the company at its La Porte facility should do to protect workers and the public."
Days prior to the accident, water had mixed with liquid methyl mercaptan in piping. Due to cold weather in the Houston area, this mixture formed a solid material called a hydrate, which blocked the piping. A DuPont technical team eventually developed a plan to clear the blockage by spraying hot water onto the pipes, melting the hydrate. On November 15, operations personnel worked through the night attempting to clear the blockage. Following a failed start-up, workers paused to take a break. But during that break, the plant started to experience a different problem—high pressure in other piping.
DuPont had long-standing issues with vent piping to an incinerator installed in 2011. To deal with these problems, daily instructions had been provided to operations personnel to drain liquid from these pipes, which were located in another section of the plant. DuPont’s instructions did not specify additional breathing protection for this task. On the night of the incident, not realizing the original blockage was cleared, workers went to drain the other piping. They did not know that high pressure in that other piping was related to the fact that liquid methyl mercaptan was once again flowing through the original, now unblocked pipes.
“Neither workers nor the public are protected by DuPont’s toxic gas detection system,” investigators said. The building where the workers died was not equipped with an adequate toxic gas detection system to alert workers to the presence of dangerous chemicals. Also, two rooftop ventilation fans were not working, despite an “urgent” work order written nearly a month earlier. However, investigators said even working fans probably would not have prevented a lethal atmosphere inside the building due to the large amount of toxic gas released.
The La Porte incident marks the third CSB investigation into a fatal accident at DuPont plants in the past five years. One worker was killed in 2010 when a steel hose carrying phosgene gas burst at a Belle, West Virginia, plant. Later that year, a welder perished in an explosion at a Buffalo, New York, facility.
DuPont is one of the world’s oldest and largest chemical manufacturers, tracing its history to a gunpowder mill on the banks of the Brandywine River in Delaware in 1802. DuPont made insecticides, herbicides, and other products in separate units at the facility in La Porte. Methyl mercaptan is a raw material of Lannate®, a top-selling, broad-spectrum insecticide. Production of insecticide has not yet resumed at the La Porte facility. DuPont has agreed to address the proposed CSB recommendations as part of its plan to safely restart the facility.
- Perform Inherently Safer Design Review
- Ensure the Manufacturing Building is Safe for Workers
- Provide Relief System Design that is Safe for Workers and the Public
- Complete More Robust Process Hazard Analyses
- Assure Active Workforce Participation
- And Promise Public Accountability and Transparency
A CSB team led by Investigator Dan Tillema spent seven months on-site conducting the investigation and will work to address additional significant process safety issues before the Board issues a final report.
The DuPont La Porte plant was once a leader in applying inherently safer design. It is well known for pro-active changes made to the facility after the devastating December 3, 1984, accident in Bhopal, India. Considered the worst industrial accident in history, thousands of people were killed during a release of methyl isocyanate (MIC) at a Union Carbide insecticide plant. That accident triggered changes throughout the chemical industry, including the DuPont La Porte insecticide unit that also used MIC. Investigator Tillema said, “DuPont made modifications then that incorporated inherently safer design principles for methyl isocyanate, including an open building structure with equipment to direct potential leaks of toxic chemicals to an incinerator. However, DuPont did not take the same steps with other highly toxic chemicals at La Porte such as methyl mercaptan and chlorine, also used to make Lannate?.”
The CSB’s draft findings and recommendations state that DuPont invested $20 million in 2011 to increase production and reduce environmental emissions at the insecticide unit by installing an incinerator. But the installation of the incinerator created problems: liquid accumulation and frequent high-pressure events in the vapor waste gas vent header piping. “It just became a normal response for operators to go out there and drain it,” Mr. Tillema said.
The CSB found a chain of events that led to the fatal accident, beginning with the November 10 delivery of another Lannate? raw material by tank truck. During the unloading of the tank truck, a water dilution system was inadvertently activated and the raw material’s storage tank overflowed, resulting in a shutdown of the insecticide unit. When operators attempted a restart on November 12, a salt-slurry material had blocked a reaction system, a common occurrence following a shutdown.
During actions to clear the salt-slurry blockage, two thousand lb of water was inadvertently sent to a storage tank containing methyl mercaptan, creating a solid, ice-like material called a hydrate in connecting piping called the methyl mercaptan feed line.
On November 14, a troubleshooting team of managers and engineers developed a plan and instructed operators to apply hot water under the blocked pipes’ insulation, warming and breaking up the hydrate. They realized that when heated, methyl mercaptan would expand and would need a safe place to vent, and two valves leading to vent piping were opened. But this plan had not gone under safety review as required by the company’s own standards. Moreover, the CSB learned that there were no written procedures to guide operations or to track the success of the plan or progress toward clearing the entire methyl mercaptan feed line.
At 2:45 a.m., the methyl mercaptan level in the storage tank began dropping as the hydrate liquefied and the toxic chemical flowed toward the open waste gas vent header. As methyl mercaptan began to flow in the vent piping, high pressure alarms for process equipment connected to the vent header registered on computer consoles in the control room. Operators did not realize that the two problems—the hydrate blockage and the high pressure—were related, the investigators said.
Two operations workers went to drain the waste gas vent header piping and liquid methyl mercaptan escaped into the building, where it readily vaporized, filling the room with a highly toxic gas. Although one of the workers made a distress call, both died, unable to escape the building. Four additional operators responded to the distress call and entered the manufacturing building. Two of them were brothers—they died together on the same floor as the release. The other two operators survived.
The release continued for another hour and a half until the valves were closed. DuPont estimated that approximately 24,000 lb of toxic methyl mercaptan was released during the November 15 incident.
The CSB is an independent federal agency charged with investigating serious chemical accidents. The agency's board members are appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. CSB investigations look into all aspects of chemical accidents, including physical causes such as equipment failure as well as inadequacies in regulations, industry standards, and safety management systems. The Board does not issue citations or fines but makes safety recommendations to companies, industry organizations, labor groups, and regulatory agencies such as OSHA and EPA.
Woman has 2 Fingers Amputated while Operating Mechanical Power Press
A 33-year-old woman had two fingers amputated as she used a mechanical power press for the first time without proper training or safety guards at the Homerville facility, federal inspectors have determined.
The most recent OSHA inspection found that the woman attempted to install a latch on a metal ammunition box when the amputation occurred.
OSHA also cited SMX, LLC, the staffing agency that employed the injured worker, for three serious and two other-than-serious safety violations. Proposed penalties for both companies total $217,720.
“A worker suffered a permanent, avoidable injury because two companies failed to provide a safe workplace. That is tragic,” said Robert Vazzi, OSHA’s director of the Savannah Area Office.
OSHA cited the company previously for similar violations in 2011, 2012, and 2014 at its facilities in Macon; Dayton, Ohio; New Jersey; and Bryan, Texas.
Bway Corp., a metal and plastic container manufacturer, has headquarters in Atlanta and operates 26 facilities throughout North America. The company employs more than 4,000 workers. Seaton Corp., doing business as SMX LLC, has headquarters in Chicago. It employs more than 15,000 workers worldwide, with 88 employees at the Georgia facility.
NSF International Updates NSF/ANSI 50 to Address Health Effects of Pool and Spa Chemicals
NSF International has published the first American National Standard to address the health effects of pool and spa treatment chemicals. The new edition of NSF/ANSI 50: Equipment for Pools, Spas, Hot Tubs and Other Recreational Water Facilities, evaluates the risk and toxicity of pool chemicals and also requires testing for trace contaminants in chemicals which are used in the treatment and circulation systems of swimming pools, spas, and waterparks.
EPA’s Office of Pesticides evaluates and registers pool and spa disinfectants, algaecides, and other biocides, but does not include other categories of chemicals such as sequestering chemicals, water chemistry balancing agents, and filtration aids. Until now, no formal certification program has been in place to address the health effects of these products.
The new edition of the NSF/ANSI 50 standard sets criteria for the evaluation and risk assessment of pool and spa treatment chemicals including the effects of dermal contact, inhalation and ingestion exposures.
“In the absence of a public pool chemical standard, Florida has required these products to meet NSF/ANSI 60: Drinking Water Treatment Chemicals – Health Effects,” said Bob Vincent, Environmental Administrator for the Florida Department of Public Health. “Now the new edition of NSF/ANSI 50 fills that void with a more appropriate standard for these public pool and spa treatment chemicals.”
NSF/ANSI 50 specifies the testing requirements for virtually every product used at a recreational water facility. NSF International developed NSF/ANSI 50 through a consensus process with balanced input from the regulatory, industry, academic, and consumer communities. The NSF/ANSI 50 standard continues to evolve to incorporate the latest product and material test methods and regulations, and is required by most US states.
“NSF International’s 70-year history of protecting public health is reflected in this updated edition of NSF/ANSI 50,” said Clif McLellan, Vice President of Water Systems at NSF International. “Public health officials already rely upon the NSF/ANSI 50 mark on pool filters, chemical feeding systems and other pool and spa equipment to provide assurance that they meet minimum quality standards. Now inspectors can look for the NSF mark on swimming pool treatment chemicals and rest assured that they have been reviewed for toxicity and tested for contaminants.”
Maverick Arms Inc. Fined $197,000 for Endangering Workers
The willful violation was for failing to implement controls to reduce excessive noise levels.
Proposed penalties total $197,000.
“Exposure to lead and high noise levels can cause long-term or permanent health damage,” said Alejandro Porter, OSHA’s area director in San Antonio. “Maverick Arms has a responsibility to protect its workers by identifying and eliminating these hazards.”
Dollar General Corp. Fined $169,000 for Safety Violations at Two Locations
On September 21, OSHA issued two Dollar General stores citations for two repeat violations. The two inspected stores are located at 421 Main Street in Madison, West Virginia, and 790 Main Street in West Milford, West Virginia.
OSHA initiated the inspections in response to complaints alleging hazards due to blocked aisles and exits.
Dollar General stores have been cited more than 40 times and inspected by OSHA more than 70 times since 2009, usually because of blocked exits and electrical panels, as well as improperly maintained fire extinguishers.
Proposed penalties total $169,000.
- Madison store: $103,000
- West Milford store: $66,000
“Dollar General’s negligence in protecting employees from these hazards despite the number of times they have been brought to the company’s attention is alarming,” said Prentice Cline, OSHA's area director in Charleston. “It only takes one fire emergency for workers to get hurt or killed because of the company’s faulty safety practices. These hazards need to be eliminated immediately to prevent a tragic incident from occurring.”
AmeriGas Propane LP Flouts Safety Standards, Fined $135,000
AmeriGas Propane LP, employees at the Southington terminal regularly transfer flammable, liquefied petroleum gas from railcars into 30,000- and 60,000-gallon storage tanks. Once filled, tanker trucks transport the gas elsewhere.
OSHA mandates requirements and procedures employers must follow to assess and address hazards associated with processes involving the use of more than 10,000 lb of flammable liquids, including liquefied petroleum gas.
As a result of these conditions, OSHA cited AmeriGas, the nation's leading propane supplier, on September 24, 2015, for three repeated and five serious violations of workplace safety and health standards. Proposed fines total $135,000.
"An effective PSM program inspects and tests process equipment—,it's not a paper exercise or a simple punch list. Regardless of industry, processes covered by this standard must be addressed adequately to avoid a catastrophic release of highly hazardous chemicals," said Warren Simpson, OSHA's area director in Hartford. "Some of the deficiencies found in Southington are similar to those cited at another AmeriGas location. This is disturbing. The company must step up to correct and prevent recurring hazards at all its workplaces."
OSHA found that AmeriGas did not inspect and establish mechanical integrity procedures for six storage tanks and the underground piping system at the Southington site. The company also did not inspect and test a piping system properly and failed to ensure accurate piping and instrument diagrams. OSHA had cited the company in April 2013 for similar hazards in Conroe, Texas.
The agency cited AmeriGas for the following serious violations:
- Lacking process safety information about the piping system
- Failing to document the safe design of a 30,000-gallon storage tank
- Inadequately evaluating possible safety and health effects in the event of a controls failure
- Incorrectly rigging personal fall arrest systems to prevent falls for employees who worked atop railroad cars
- Lacking rescue procedures for employees who worked alone atop railroad cars in a remote area
The nation's largest propane company, AmeriGas serves more than 2 million residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural and motor fuel locations in the US. It has headquarters in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.
Safety Hazards Persist at Indiana Shipyard
Corn Island Shipyard, Inc., in Grandview, Indiana, was inspected by OSHA on September 28, 2015.
Serious violations include:
"Workers' safety matters. By continuing to operate unsafe equipment Corn Island Shipyard is demonstrating to their employees that their safety is not a priority and that is simply unacceptable," said Vanessa Martin, OSHA's area director in Indianapolis. "This company needs to make immediate improvements to its safety procedures for equipment, elevated platforms, fall protection and other hazards to ensure workers are protected on the job."
Proposed penalties total $119,700.
Kuusakoski US LLC Exposed Workers to High Levels of Lead and Cadmium
OSHA inspectors determined that Kuusakoski US, LLC, failed to implement engineering controls and monitor employee exposure to these hazards.
Proposed penalties total $114,800.
"Lead and cadmium can cause irreversible health damage, but Kuusakoski's compliance programs lack information on controlling exposure levels and protecting workers through common-sense safety measures like wearing respirators and protective clothing," said Kathy Webb, OSHA's area director in Calumet City. "The company must protect the long-term health of employees exposed to these dangerous metals."
OSHA also cited the company for the following violations:
- No showers or separate lunch facility to prevent lead contamination and ingestion
- Lacking housekeeping procedures to remove lead and prevent employee exposure
Founded in Finland in 1914, Kuusakoski recycles metal and electronics, with operations on three continents. Plainfield is the site of its US headquarters.
L&H Gyr Excavating Inc. Fined $113,000 in for Trench Cave-In Hazards
A cubic foot of soil can weigh more than 100 lb, and workers caught beneath a few feet of soil can be seriously—or fatally—injured.
OSHA inspectors found that Fond du Lac employer L&H Gyr Excavating, Inc., failed to provide cave-in protection or a safe means of egress from the trench, which exposed the worker to thousands of pounds of soil, if trench walls collapsed.
The agency also noted that a site supervisor failed to remove the worker from the trench, even after recognizing that safety procedures had not been followed.
"An unprotected trench can bury a worker in seconds and cause severe or fatal injuries," said Robert Bonack, OSHA's area director in Appleton. "Excavation company L&H Gyr knows that every trench deeper than 5 feet must have cave-in protection."
In 2011, the agency cited the company for failing to train workers to recognize unprotected trench hazards and remove employees from hazardous situations.
Judge Upholds Citation for Long Island Construction Companies
OSHA cited Masonry Services, Inc., dba MSI and North Eastern Precast, LLC, in June 2013 for a variety of hazardous conditions at a construction worksite located at 14 Brooklyn Ave. in Valley Stream, New York.. The companies contested their citations to the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission; a hearing was held before Administrative Law Judge Keith E. Bell in October 2014. Before the hearing, all parties agreed that the two companies should be treated as a single employer and their citations and penalties consolidated due to their overlapping ownership and their working at the same site.
. The judge agreed with the Labor Department's assertion that the companies had willfully continued with hazardous work activities near the power lines in disregard of specific warnings from OSHA and the Long Island Power Authority.
"We said at the time that these hazards should not have existed in the first place. This decision upholds our findings and shows that deliberate disregard of employees' safety and health by their employers is unacceptable," said Robert Kulick, OSHA's regional administrator in New York.
"This decision should remind employers that there are consequences for their actions when they neglect their responsibility to provide safe working conditions for their employees. The Labor Department can and will vigorously seek appropriate redress," said Jeffrey Rogoff, regional solicitor of labor in New York.
The inspections were conducted by OSHA's Long Island Area Office. The case was litigated by attorneys Daniel Hennefeld and Alex Kondo of the department's Regional Office of the Solicitor in New York.
Aerial Lift Collapses, GBW Railcar Services Worker Plummets at Railcar Facility
The worker had been standing on an elevated platform to install a canopy on a railcar, but the platform could not support his weight.
Following an inspection, the OSHA found that his employer, GBW Railcar Services, LLC, did not provide a safe platform for the employee. OSHA proposed $109,000 in penalties as a result of the investigation into the March 23, 2015, injury at the Wood River facility.
"Falls from this height can be fatal, but this worker beat the odds. Lucky for him, he suffered only minor injuries when the platform gave way," said Aaron Priddy, OSHA's area director in Fairview Heights. "GBW Railcar needs to review its safety procedures for elevated platforms, fall protection and other hazards to ensure workers are unharmed."
GBW also failed to train employees on procedures to prevent contact with energized electrical parts while conducting service and maintenance, and to provide OSHA with required injury and illness reports.
OSHA cited GBW Railcar Services for 11 serious safety violations at its Cummings, Kansas, facility in December 2014 after seven workers were injured when gas vapors exploded in a railcar.
GBW Railcar Services is a joint venture of Oregon-based Greenbrier Companies, Inc., and Kansas-based Watco Companies, LLC, which operates more than 40 facilities nationwide and employs more than 2,100 people to perform repair, maintenance, and recertification services for railcars. Approximately 130 workers are employed in Wood River.
OSHA Cites Gun Range for Workplace Lead, Arsenic Exposure
OSHA initiated the inspection after receiving a medical referral indicating that an employee had elevated blood lead levels.
OSHA found the company:
- Overexposed workers to lead
- Did not monitor worker's exposure to lead and arsenic
- Allowed employees to wear work clothing home, potentially exposing others to lead
- Did not provide showers or a separate lunch facility to prevent lead contamination and ingestion
- Lacked housekeeping procedures to remove lead and prevent employee exposure
"Lead exposure can cause multiple serious health hazards that have life-long consequences—but it's easily preventable," said Kim Nelson, OSHA's area director in Toledo. "Eliminating exposure, using engineering controls and personal protective equipment such as clothing and respirators as well as properly cleaning lead dust and particles can limit worker exposure and prevent them from transporting lead contamination home."
Proposed penalties total $61,200.
K&N Contracting Fined $49,700 for Exposing Workers to Falls
K&N Contracting, Inc., 2976 Wills Creek, Elkview, West Virginia was inspected by OSHA. The inspection site was the Elkview Baptist Church, where workers were installing new roof shingles.
An OSHA compliance officer initiated the inspection after observing K&N employees working on a roof without fall protection. Violations included the company’s failure to provide fall protection, even though it was readily available.
Proposed penalties total $49,700.
“K&N’s deliberate choice not to provide its workers with fall protection when it was readily available is inexcusable,” said Prentice Cline, OSHA's area director in Charleston. “Employers in the construction industry are well aware that falls are the leading cause of injuries and deaths. Providing fall protection and other necessary safeguards, along with employee training, saves lives.”
Texas Construction Worker Killed in 30-Foot Fall
Jose Miguel Charles, doing business as Pirul Trim Service, was the subcontractor and employer; and Blazer Building, Inc., was the general contractor at an apartment construction site in New Braunfels, Texas.
Proposed Penalties: Jose Miguel Charles was fined $38,800 and Blazer Building, Inc., was fined $8,400.
"This man's death was heartbreaking and totally avoidable. Falls are preventable yet they continue to be the leading killer of workers at construction sites," said Casey Perkins, OSHA's area director in Austin. "General contractors and subcontractors must provide safe, sturdy and approved access for employees working so high above the ground."
Three Illinois Companies Failed to Train Employees on Workplace Hazards
OSHA initiated an inspection of the Bridgeview meat processing facility April 30 after receiving a complaint of unsafe working conditions.
The company was cited for this violation in 2011. A serious violation cites the company for failing to train workers on emergency action plan procedures. Such plans are required when hazardous materials are in use.
Proposed penalties total $45,500.
"Stampede Meat has a responsibility to train its workforce about the chemical hazards they work with every day," said Kathy Webb, OSHA's area director in Calumet City. "The company needs to evaluate its safety and health programs and make immediate improvements to protect workers on the job."
The staffing companies each face $14,000 in penalties for two serious violations.
Corvac Composites LLC and Priority Personnel Inc. Expose Workers to Heat, Noise, other Hazards
- Provide a suitable eye and body wash facility for emergency use
OSHA initiated the July 2015 inspection at the Corvac Composites facility in San Marcos as the result of a complaint.
Corvac Composites was fined $31,000 and Priority Personnel was fined $12,600.
“All workers, whether full-time or temporary, deserve a safe workplace,” said R. Casey Perkins, OSHA’s area director in Austin. “Heat and noise aren’t just nuisances at excessive levels they can cause serious, irreparable, or even fatal, harm to workers, and employers are required to provide protection.”
K&F Construction Inc. Exposes Workers to Falls
OSHA inspectors cited the company after finding employees were exposed to a 35-foot fall while working on a roof with no fall protection. The jobsite involved the new construction of three-story townhomes in Morgantown. K& F was performing roofing work on the residential structures. The company was also cited for its failure to provide employees with training related to fall hazards.
Proposed penalties total $44,220.
"With falls as the leading cause of deaths in the construction industry, employers put workers' lives at risk when they don't provide the proper fall protection," said Prentice Cline, OSHA's area director in Charleston. "It's an employer's responsibility to ensure its employees have a safe and healthy workplace. Anything less is unacceptable."
Enterprise Masonry Corp. Allows Employee to be Hospitalized for Heat Related Illness
OSHA determined that on July 28, 2015, an Enterprise Masonry Corp., employee working as a mason tender was hospitalized after being exposed to excessive heat. The worker became ill while manually transferring bricks in a peak heat index of 91.2 degrees Fahrenheit.
Proposed penalties total $5,900.
"Excessive heat exposure is a serious issue for outdoor workers, particularly on humid days. It is the employer’s responsibility to ensure that controls are in place to prevent illness," said Erin G. Patterson, OSHA's area director in Wilmington.
The firm's workers' compensation insurer is Barrett Business Services Inc., headquartered in Vancouver, Washington.
Additionally, a web page provides information and resources on heat illness-including how to prevent it and what to do in an emergency-for workers and employers.
Shabazz Services Enterprise LLC Cited after Heat Leads to Kidney Failure for Employee
The hospitalization of a Hartford worker for acute dehydration and kidney failure due to heat stress should not have happened.
An inspection by OSHA determined that Shabazz Services Enterprise LLC lacked a program to inform and protect its employees against heat stress hazards after the worker began sweating excessively, vomiting and cramping on June 23. The heat stress symptoms continued on June 24, resulting in the worker’s hospitalization for eight days.
The employee and fellow workers were performing asbestos abatement inside a sealed containment area in a gutted brick building at 445 Zion St. in Hartford. During this time, the outside heat index reached as high as 96.5 degrees.
“This worker’s hospitalization and serious illness were preventable. The symptoms of heat stress were clear, yet the company lacked a program to safeguard its employees,” said Warren Simpson, OSHA’s area director in Hartford.
OSHA also found that the heat hazard intensified because of inside work in a contained area with no fresh air intake; employees wearing Tyvek suits and personal protective equipment; and inadequate water and work breaks.
