OSHA Enforcement Roundup: Week of 7/27

The OSHA Enforcement Roundup gives you insight into how and why OSHA assesses penalties for workplace safety & health noncompliance.

All violations or claims discussed below are alleged only unless we say otherwise, and we withhold the names of organizations and individuals to protect their privacy.

Your OSHA Enforcement Roundup for this week:

Semi-truck parts distributor cited after OSHA’s investigation into an employee fatality.

OSHA initiated an inspection into the company after an employee asphyxiated while inspecting a tanker trailer. The company faces 16 serious safety violations, three other-than-serious safety violations, and $264,380 in proposed penalties.

The Administration says the company:

• Failed to implement a confined space program.
• Lacked elements for its respiratory protection program.
• Exposed workers to electrical hazards.

An auto service company agreed to pay monetary penalties to resolved alleged safety violations at its facility in Norwich, NY.

Inspectors identified alleged safety hazards including slip, trip, and fall hazards from engine oil and transmission fluid spilled on a storage room floor and the accumulation of commercial trash in an exterior storage area. Investigators also found oily rags not stored in a covered metal container, employees performing battery maintenance without a suitable nearby eyewash station, and damaged outlets and electrical conduits.

OSHA also cited the company one repeat violation for exposing employees to a crushing hazard after finding a lift with a broken safety latch cable that had been held in place with a pair of vice grips. The company is required to pay $174,000 in penalties.

A supermarket franchisee was cited by OSHA after an employee suffered amputation.

According to OSHA, the worker was tasked with cleaning a commercial grinder. A coworker stepped on the machine’s foot pedal which caused the machine to turn on. The machine then pulled in the employee’s hand and caused the amputation of four fingers.

OSHA assessed $196,251 in proposed penalties and cited the employer with a willful violation, a serious violation, and an other-than-serious violation. The alleged violations are:

• Bypassing the machine's safety guards and exposing workers to hazards like moving parts and flying debris.
• Failing to establish a program for the control of hazardous energy.
• Failing to report the amputation to OSHA within 24 hours of the incident.

Online Training: Get to Know OSHA's Rules

Lion’s 10 Hour OSHA General Industry training introduces new safety managers to a wide range of the most common workplace health & safety standards for general industry: hazard communication, providing PPE, fire extinguishers, forklifts, fall prevention, and much more.

Tags: osha, OSHA Enforcement Roundup