Contractor who lied to OSHA sentenced to community service, probation

Birmingham, AL – An Alabama roofing contractor was sentenced to three years of supervised probation and 30 hours of community service for lying to OSHA about providing workers with fall protection equipment.

In early 2013, Marcus Borden was supervising a roofing project in Cordova, AL, when a severe thunderstorm moved into the area and injured three of his workers, according to an Aug. 24 OSHA press release.

Following the incident, Borden told an OSHA inspector he had provided personal fall arrest equipment and the employees were tied off prior to the storm. However, investigators later learned none of the workers was tied off, and that Borden acquired the fall protection equipment only after the injuries occurred, the press release states.

This past April, the Department of Justice charged Borden with lying to OSHA about the incident. Borden, a steel and roofing contractor based in Russellville, pleaded guilty on May 13 to one count of making false statements and was sentenced on Aug. 6.

In addition to the DOJ charge, OSHA previously cited Borden with a willful violation for failure to provide workers with fall protection, four serious violations for exposing workers to severe weather conditions and not securing metal decking, and an other-than-serious violation for failure to notify OSHA about workers being hospitalized. A settlement was approved last year in which Borden agreed to the violations and to pay a $55,000 penalty.