OSHA watch

New video explains inspection process

A new video explains the OSHA inspection process.

New fact sheet on taxi driver safety

A new fact sheet focuses on keeping taxi drivers safe.

Input sought on safety training

Public input on how to improve access to online classes through the Outreach Training Program can be given here.

Recent fines and awards

Florida

• Westwind Contracting Inc. was cited for exposing employees to excavation and confined spaces hazards after a worker drowned when water and mud-filled a catch basin in which the employee was working at a Pembroke Pines worksite. The contractor faces $185,239 in penalties.
• Two commercial and residential roofing companies, Cruz Enterprises & Construction LLC based in Dover and Intex Builders LLC based in Tampa, were cited for exposing employees to struck-by and fall hazards at a Greenacres worksite. Inspected under the Regional Emphasis Program on Falls in Construction, the companies face a combined $83,348 in penalties.

Georgia

• Discount retailer Dollar Tree Stores Inc. was cited for exposing employees to safety hazards, at its store on Atlanta Highway in Athens. The company faces $125,026 in proposed penalties for exposing employees to struck-by, trip and fall hazards by failing to keep passageways and walking surfaces in a clean, orderly and sanitary condition and for not maintaining access to portable fire extinguishers.

Illinois

• AB Specialty Silicones LLC was cited for 12 willful federal safety violations after four employees suffered fatal injuries in an explosion and fire at the company's Waukegan plant. The company faces $1,591,176 in penalties and was placed in the Severe Violator Enforcement Program. Citations included failure to ensure that electrical equipment and installations in the production area of the plant complied with electrical standards and were approved for hazardous locations. The company also used forklifts powered by liquid propane to transport volatile flammable liquids and operated these forklifts in areas where employees handled and processed volatile flammable liquids and gases, creating the potential for ignition.

Massachusetts

• A petition to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit asks that The Roof Kings LLC and its owner, Craig Galligan, be held in civil contempt for not fulfilling the terms of an order issued by the court in 2018. It also asks that The Roof Kings LLC provide written certification that they have abated the 32 cited violations affirmed in the settlement agreement, and pay overdue penalties of $206,090 plus interest, within 20 days.

Missouri

• A food flavoring company, Kerry Inc., was cited for failing to provide fall protection to employees working in the company's facility in Greenville after an employee fatally fell while trying to extinguish a fire at the plant. The company faces $223,525 in penalties for one willful and eight serious safety violations and was placed in the Severe Violator Enforcement Program.

Nebraska

• Smith Mountain Investments LLC of Anson, Maine was cited for two serious safety and health violations for failing to protect workers from hazards associated with heavy physical activity in extreme heat conditions after a heat-related fatality at a jobsite in Inman. The utility pole inspection company faces $18,564 in penalties.

New York

• The Dollar Tree Stores Inc. was cited for unsafe storage of material, obstructed exit routes and blocked electrical panels at the discount retailer's Elmira location. The company has been cited several times at other locations and the citations, totaling $208,368, include three repeat violations.
• Citations against Countryside Tree Service arising from a fatality where an employee was pulled into a wood chipper on his first day on the job at a Schenectady worksite were affirmed by an administrative law judge. Penalties are $66,986.

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