Category Archives: OSHA Violations
News on OSHA Violations and Safety
CT Waste-to-Energy Plant Faces OSHA Fines for Hazardous Workplace Practices
BRISTOL, CT – Covanta Energy Bristol Inc faces more than $90,000 in proposed fines for fostering a hazardous workplace. Violations of workplace health standards included allowing combustible dust to accumulate on exposed surfaces and failing to determine the level of employees' exposure to ash containing toxic metals. Additionally, the employer didn't provide adequate training and "protective and protective clothing for an employee performing testing on live electrical parts;" had "inadequate safeguards for employees working in confined spaces;" and did not provide enough eyewash for "employees working with batteries." The plant also had "fall, fork truck, air pressure and mechanical hazards," according to the OSHA inspection.
The plant located in Bristol, CT burns garbage to produce energy and can process 650 tons of solid waste a day. The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration began an inspection in October in response to a complaint about workplace safety and health violations.
"Covanta Energy Bristol Inc. needlessly exposed its employees to the hazards of electrocution, fire, falls, slips and trips, crushing, being trapped or overcome in a confined space, eye injuries and cancer, lung or kidney damage," Terence McEvily, OSHA's acting area director in Hartford, said in a statement. "It must take effective steps to eliminate these hazards and prevent them from happening again." OSHA cited the plant for 16 "serious violations of workplace safety and health standards."
A Covanta spokesman said the company had not yet received the citations from OSHA but looks forward to resolving the issues, stating: "The health and safety of employees is our first priority at Covanta so we take the assertions in the OSHA press release very seriously…We look forward to working cooperatively with OSHA to gain a thorough understanding of the concerns."
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Electrical Safety & Arc Flash OSHA Violations Training	Comments are closed admin
Lockout/Tagout Accident at Kansas Farm Coop Results in Amputation
Blue Rapids, KS – The Beattie Farmers Union Cooperative of northeast Kansas has been fined $65,900 after a lockout tagout accident in which a worker lost the toes on his left foot after becoming entangled in an auger. The employee was injured in August 2014 while he was cleaning out a grain bin near Waterville. The accident appears to be the result of lockout/tagout neglect on the part of the employer – locking devices were not placed on the augers to prevent them from turning on while workers were in the bin.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced Tuesday that OSHA said in a news release that it found one willful, one repeated and three serious safety and health violations at the farm cooperative. The injured employee has not been able to return to work.
Lockout Tagout & Hazardous Energy Machine Safety OSHA Violations	Comments are closed admin
Gas Explosion Kills Madden Bolt Employee
Houston, TX – A cutting-table explosion resulted in the death of a 31-year-old employee at Madden Bolt Corp in August 2014. The explosion hurled the employee and a steel plate into the air. The plate then landed on the fallen worker. This is the second person killed in a year at the Houston-based employer – In September 2013, a forklift driver died after the machine turned over and pinned him underneath. As a result, OSHA has cited the Houston-based employer for 10 alleged serious violations. Madden Bolt manufactures bolts, custom steel plate products and assemblies, employing about 130 workers.
"When an employee is killed by a preventable workplace hazard, this is no accident. It means the employer failed to protect workers from dangers that can cause injury, illness or, in this case, another needless death," said Josh Flesher, acting area director for OSHA's Houston North Area Office. OSHA has proposed fines totaling $44,800.
An inspection that followed the August explosion found alleged serious violations that include failing to ensure that the air and gas concentration in the cutting table did not accumulate to create an explosion; protect fuel cylinders from damage; place safety guards on band saws and a pipe press that exposed workers to being caught in the machinery; cover live electrical parts on equipment; and outline proper procedures to shut down equipment while performing maintenance.
Industrial Accident Machine Safety OSHA Violations	Comments are closed admin
Formed Fiber Faces OSHA Fines for Lockout/Tagout Negligence
Auburn, ME – Formed Fiber Technologies is being fined by OSHA for failure to implement lockout/tagout procedures that would ensure worker safety against such hazards as lacerations, crushed fingers, amputation (or worse) if struck by or caught in unguarded or unexpectedly activated machinery.
Employees at their Maine manufacturing plant use a variety of machines, including robots, to make polyester carpets and thermoformed trunk liners for the automotive industry. An OSHA inspection found workers at risk of injuries because their employer did not ensure proper safeguards on the machines they operate. No injuries have been reported at this time.
Formed Fiber was fined $816,500 by OSHA in 2014 for falsified safety records.
Four Workers Injured in Explosion at Saia Motor Freight Line
St. Louis, MO – A flash fire caused by a propane forklift accident sent four Saia Freight employees to the hospital in August 2014 and has resulted in numerous OSHA fines for the company.
Two forklift operators were changing a propane tank on a liquefied petroleum gas-powered forklift inside a freight trailer when a loose coupling connection allowed liquid propane to leak, vaporize, and ignite.
The resulting flash fire caused burns – A lead forklift operator and a newly hired worker suffered critical burns, another worker sustained burns to his legs while he helped extinguish his coworkers' clothing, and a fourth worker using a forklift nearby also received burns.
As a result, OSHA has cited Saia Motor with one willful and 11 serious safety and health violations and proposed penalties of $119,000. OSHA issued a willful violation for Saia's use of several powered industrial trucks with defective or bypassed safety switches.
"Workers must be trained to avoid deadly combinations of flammable fuels, ignition sources and confined spaces, which allow vapors to ignite quickly," said Bill McDonald, OSHA's area director in St. Louis. "This incident should remind all employers that using forklifts is one of the hazards workers may face daily."
OSHA issued serious violations for: not evacuating the work area after flammable gas was released (fire evacuation plans were not carried out); not requiring forklift propane containers be switched in an adequately ventilated area; mounting gas containers on the cylinder indexing pin correctly; training workers on extremely flammable gas hazards; requiring hand and eye protection when changing cylinders; labeling hazardous chemicals in the maintenance; and training powered industrial truck operators. Several electrical safety hazards also were found.
Trucking Company Fined for Inadequate Training
London, Ohio – A worker complaint has resulted in an OSHA investigation and fines at Reynolds Nationwide. The trucking company is headquartered in Texas, but the complaint stems from working conditions and a lack of training at Reynolds' London, Ohio facility. OSHA is citing the company for two willful violations and six serious violations of safety rules.
$179,000 in fines are being proposed for allegedly failing to properly ventilate transport tankers as they were being cleaned. "Fumes can reach dangerous levels in confined spaces, and that puts workers in real and immediate danger," Deborah Zubaty, OSHA's area director in Columbus, said in a statement. "Reynolds Nationwide failed to implement training and procedures to protect workers entering these tanks, and that is unacceptable."
OSHA Violations	Comments are closed admin
Georgia Automotive Manufacturer Faces OSHA Fines
Suwanee, GA – PAI Industries, Inc. faces close to $56,000 in federal OSHA fines following an inspection by investigators for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The auto parts manufacturer was issued 14 citations for serious violations following an OSHA inspection in the fall of 2014. The inspection was part of a regional canvassing of automotive industries, according to a press release from the U.S. Labor Department.
OSHA cited PAI for not ensuring machinery could not accidentally start up during maintenance and servicing, an industry practice known as Lockout/Tagout. Additional violations included not requiring eye protection; exposing workers to trip and fall hazards; not providing a workplace free from recognized hazards; failure to implement a noise monitoring program; and not ensuring fire extinguishers were properly mounted and labeled.
"The results from this on-site enforcement inspection illustrate the need for OSHA's focus on the automotive parts industry," said William Fulcher director of OSHA's Atlanta-East Area Office. "Employers can't only rely on OSHA to identify hazards; they must be proactive in protecting the health and safety of their workers."
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Lockout Tagout & Hazardous Energy OSHA Violations	Comments are closed admin
OSHA Fines WI Furniture Maker $1.76 Million
Arcadia, WI – The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration levied a historic $1.766 million dollar fine this week against Ashley Furniture Industries, based in Wisconsin. Investigators documented numerous and repeated serious violations at the facility, landing Ashley Furniture on OSHA's Severe Violator Enforcement Program list for "employers who have demonstrated indifference to their OSH Act obligations by willful, repeated, or failure-to-abate violations."
The plant employs 4,500 and in the past 3 years has seen over 1,000 worker injuries. Workers were not adequately protected against moving machinery, most of it woodworking machinery. Lack of training and accidents with tools, blades, and saws have resulted in multiple amputations. The OSHA report and $1.76 million dollar penalty allege that Ashley Furniture "failed to safeguard against woodworking machines unintentionally starting when workers were making tool and blade changes," which is also known as lockout tagout or control of hazardous energy.
Additional citations were issued for "not training workers on safety procedures and hazards present when servicing machinery; lacking adequate drenching facilities for workers exposed to corrosive materials; electrical safety violations; and not equipping all machines with easily-accessible emergency stop buttons." OSHA categorizes these violations as serious since physical harm resulted from a hazard they estimate that the "employer knew or should have known [to] exist."
"We rarely issue a fine that is more than $1 million," commented U.S. Labor Department Assistant Secretary David Michaels. "Having 1,000 work injuries in three years is proof positive that safety in this plant needs tremendous ­improvement." U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez stated: "Safety and profits are not an 'either, or' proposition. Successful companies across this nation have both." For its part, Ashley Furniture denies the findings, stressing that they are allegations only.
Industrial Accident Lockout Tagout & Hazardous Energy Machine Safety OSHA Violations	Comments are closed admin
Worker Suffers Electric Shock and Burns in WI
PLEASANT PRAIRIE, WI –A 24-year-old temporary maintenance employee suffered severe burns from electrical shock while on assignment for Parallel Employment Group of Wisconsin Inc. Working at the Arvato Digital Services LLC distribution center in Pleasant Prairie, the employee came in contact with an energized electrical source and suffered electrical shock. This caused severe burns and left the employee unable to work for more than four months after the May 19th incident.
An investigation OSHA cited both companies for failure to train employees in electrical safety-related work practices, including wearing electric arc flash and shock protection equipment.
OSHA cited Arvato Digital Services for one willful and 10 serious safety violations, carrying proposed penalties of $124,000. Parallel Employment Group, was cited for four serious violations and faces penalties of $26,000. Temporary staffing agencies and host employers share control and responsibility for temporary employee safety and health.
"Workers should not conduct maintenance and trouble-shooting without shutting down electrical sources and wearing personal protective equipment. Those actions can prevent severe injuries like those suffered by this worker," said Chris Zortman, OSHA's area director in Milwaukee. "Both temporary staffing agencies and host employers must train and equip their employees properly."
OSHA's investigation found the worker, who had been employed for about eight months, had inadvertent contact with electrical equipment while trouble-shooting an electrical failure on a heat-sealing machine.
Arvato Digital Services failed to implement electrical safety practices for employees, which resulted in one willful violation. A willful violation is one committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law's requirement, or with plain indifference to employee safety and health.
Arvato Digital Services and Parallel Employment Group were cited for failure to train temporary employees in electrical safety and exposing workers to operating machinery parts on conveyers and press equipment. These serious violations exposed workers to electrical shock and amputation.
Additionally, Arvato Digital Services failed to require personal protective equipment for employees working near exposed, energized electrical parts. The company also did not develop procedures to de-energize circuits and equipment safely or ensure stored energy capacitors were grounded. 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.
The citations from OSHA included electrical safety, arc flash, lockout, and machine guarding citations, as follows:
PPE -OSHA 29 CFR 1910.132(d)(l): The employer did not assess the workplace to determine if hazards are present,or are likely to be present, which necessitate the use of personal protective equipment (PPE):
Lockout / Hazardous Energy Control Program – OSHA 29 CFR 1910.147(c)(4)(i): Procedures are not developed, documented and utilized for the control of potentially hazardous energy when employees were engaged in activities covered by this section:
29 CPR 1910.147(c)(6)(i): The employer did not conduct a periodic inspection of the energy control procedure at least annually to ensure that the procedure and the requirement of this standard were being followed:
Machine Guarding 29 CFR 1910.212(a)(l): Machine guarding was not provided to protect operator(s) and other employees from hazard(s) created by in going nip points, and unguarded conveyor belts:
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Electrical Safety & Arc Flash Lockout Tagout & Hazardous Energy Machine Safety OSHA Violations	Comments are closed admin
Worker Killed by Auger Leads to Citation for Landscaping Company
Washington's Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) has cited a landscaping company for multiple safety violations related to the death of a worker last July. A nineteen-year-old worker was killed by a rotating auger while working inside the hopper of a bark-blower truck at a residential jobsite. The blower and auger were energized at the time the worker was clearing a jam.
The employer has been cited for two willful and 14 serious violations, with penalties totaling $199,000. The employer has also been identified as a severe violator and will be subject to follow-up inspections to determine if the conditions still exist in the future.
"The loss of this young man's life is a tragedy that could have been prevented if the employer had followed basic safety and health rules that protect workers from moving machinery," said L&I Assistant Director Anne Soiza. "We hope this citation and the penalties serve as a deterrent so that nothing like this ever happens again."
The L&I investigation found that the employer's workers were regularly assigned to clear jams in the bark-blower truck hoppers while the hoppers were operating. This exposed them to three very hazardous elements: a floor conveyor belt, two rotating-screw conveyors (angled augers) and a rotating stir rod. Exposure to any of these parts of the equipment could potentially result in entanglement, causing severe crushing injuries or death.
Working in and around this type of extremely hazardous equipment requires lockout/tagout safety procedures to prevent machinery from starting up or moving during service or maintenance by workers.
The employer was cited for two willful violations. The first was issued for not ensuring lockout/tagout procedures were regularly used; it carries a penalty of $56,000. The second willful violation was issued for not training the employees in the proper use of those critical procedures; it carries a $52,000 penalty.
Additionally, working in the hopper of bark-blower trucks exposed workers to confined space hazards. Confined spaces, like hoppers, are areas large enough to accommodate a worker, but aren't designed for continuous employee occupancy and have limited ways to enter or exit.
Twelve of the serious violations cited were for failure to implement safe work practices when entering a permit-required confined space. Two other serious violations were cited for not having an effective accident prevention program and for failure to document lockout/tagout procedures. Each of these violations carries a $6,500 penalty.
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