OSHA's Top 10: Present and past

Penalty Box

The list of OSHA’s proposed monetary penalties in fiscal year 2013 comprises penalties stemming from a single incident or related incidents in which one or more companies allegedly failed to adhere to safe work practices. This failure puts workers at risk – in some cases fatally. The following information was provided by OSHA.

Note: These fines represent proposed penalties issued by OSHA between Oct. 1, 2012, and Sept. 30, 2013; dollar amounts may be reduced as part of a settlement agreement or litigation.

$1.14 million

Company: Republic Steel
Location: Canton, OH (OSHA Region 5)
Business type: Steel mill
Inspection trigger: Complaint
Event: The United Steelworkers Union filed a formal complaint alleging the company offered inadequate fall protection and exposed workers to various hazards. During an OSHA inspection, compliance officers learned two workers had been injured in falls at the site. The company previously had been issued willful citations related to fall hazards and had, at that time, agreed to abate such hazards.
Major citations: Citations for 15 willful violations, including failure to provide fall protection. One repeat violation was issued for failure to post danger signs denoting permit-required confined spaces. Additionally, eight serious violations were issued related to tripping hazards, lack of personal protective equipment and confined space training. The company was placed into OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
“Republic Steel has a long history of OSHA violations and disregard for employee safety and health. It is unacceptable that Republic Steel has not taken more effective steps to improve safety.” – OSHA ADMINISTRATOR DAVID MICHAELS

$589,000

Company: Ball Aerosol and Specialty Container
Location: Hubbard, OH (OSHA Region 5)
Business type: Metal container manufacturer
Inspection trigger: Complaint
Event: In response to a complaint alleging the company exposed workers to unguarded machinery, OSHA inspected the facility. Despite the company previously being cited by OSHA for lack of machine guarding on the same equipment, the inspection found the company knowingly allowed workers to operate machines without guarding.
Major citations: The company was issued citations for six willful, egregious violations related to inadequate guarding over blades of slitter machines. Another willful violation was issued for lack of machine guarding over nip points and rotating parts. Three repeat violations were issued for failure to provide fire extinguisher training to employees, as well as machine guarding violations. A citation for a serious violation was issued for exposing workers to falls. The company was subsequently placed into OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
“Ball Aerosol’s management made a decision to continue to expose machine operators to serious amputation hazards. Workers should not be asked to take such risks.” – NICK WALTERS, OSHA REGIONAL ADMINISTRATOR IN CHICAGO

$545,000

Company: Dover Chemical
Location: Dover, OH (OSHA Region 5)
Business type: Paraffin and additive manufacturer
Inspection trigger: Unexpected release of hazardous materials
Event: A breach in the company’s polyvinyl chloride piping system led to a material release that temporarily shut down the plant and an adjacent highway.
Major citations: Citations for four willful and 30 serious violations were issued for violating the Process Safety Management Standard. An additional 11 serious violations were issued for unguarded openings, electrical hazards and allowing untrained individuals to operate lifts, among others. The company was subsequently placed into OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
“While I’m grateful that nobody was injured from the incident, I’m alarmed by the egregious nature of the violations we uncovered during our inspection.” – OSHA ADMINISTRATOR DAVID MICHAELS

$465,410

Companies: Vordonia Contracting and Supplies Corp./Alma Realty Corp., Masonry Services Inc. and North Eastern Precast LLC
Location: Valley Stream, NY (OSHA Region 2)
Business type: Contractors
Inspection trigger: Not supplied
Event: OSHA inspectors found employees for the three contractors were conducting concrete work and crane operations near overhead power lines.
Major citations: All three contractors were issued two willful violation citations for allowing employees and crane operators to work in close proximity to power lines, and one serious violation for failure to mark power lines with warning signs. Additionally, MSI and North Eastern Precast were issued nine serious violation citations for not assuming the power lines were energized, failure to have cranes inspected by a qualified person and lack of protective helmets, among others. MSI also was issued a repeat violation for unguarded rebar.
“OSHA standards prohibit working in close proximity to live power lines. These employers allowed workers to be exposed to electrocution hazards despite repeated cease- and-desist notices from the Long Island Power Authority.” – ANTHONY CIUFFO OSHA AREA DIRECTOR IN LONG ISLAND, NY

$459,844

Company: Panthera Painting Inc.
Location: Slatington, Harrisburg and Slatedale, PA (OSHA Region 3)
Business type: Painting
Inspection trigger: Not supplied
Event: A number of alleged safety and health hazards were found while workers performed abrasive blasting and re-painting projects at bridge worksites in the three Pennsylvania towns.
Major citations: OSHA issued citations for 14 willful violations that included failure to protect workers from lead exposure and failure to provide fall protection. Eleven repeat violations issued relate to employee exposure to lead beyond the permissible exposure level, lack of warning signs in lead work areas, not ensuring workers shower after each work shift, and failure to provide medical evaluations and fit tests for respirator use, among other violations. Additionally, 11 serious violations were issued related to allowing workers to consume food in a lead exposure area, not notifying employees in writing of blood-lead level test results and failure to provide personal protective equipment. The company was subsequently placed into OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
“The employer’s refusal to correct the hazards, along with its history of failing to correct hazards, demonstrates a clear resistance to worker safety and health and leaves workers vulnerable to potential illnesses and injuries from overexposure to lead and other hazards.” – MARYANN GARRAHAN, OSHA REGIONAL ADMINISTRATOR IN PHILADELPHIA

$448,000

Company: Highway Technologies Inc.
Location: Menomonie, WI (OSHA Region 5)
Business type: Traffic barrier company
Inspection trigger: Worker death
Event: The company was installing guard rails and signs on a western Wisconsin highway. A worker sustained fatal injuries when work equipment came into contact with overhead power lines.
Major citations: Citations for six willful violations were issued for failure to ensure parts of operated equipment were not within 10 feet of a power line. Additionally, four serious violations were issued for failure to identify electrical work zones, determine if equipment would be closer than 20 feet to a power line, train workers on safe clearance distance from power lines, and evaluate that each employee understood the training and risks of working near overhead power lines. The company was subsequently placed into OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
“Highway Technologies failed to protect its workers from serious electrocution hazards. Employers must take steps to eliminate hazards and provide a safe working environment.” – OSHA ADMINISTRATOR DAVID MICHAELS

$369,000

Company: Mahle Engine Components USA
Location: McConnelsville, OH (OSHA Region 5)
Business type: Engine manufacturer
Inspection trigger: Not supplied
Event: Not supplied
Major citations: Six safety repeat violations were issued for failure to mount and identify fire extinguishers, train workers on recognizing electrical hazards and ground pins from electrical equipment. Two health repeat violations were issued related to lead exposure. Additionally, 18 serious violations were issued for lack of machine guarding, improper storage of acetylene and oxygen cylinders, electrical hazards, and struck-by hazards, among others. The company was subsequently placed into OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
“When an employer, such as Mahle, is cited for repeat violations, it shows a lack of commitment to protecting the safety and health of workers. OSHA will not tolerate such negligence.” – NICK WALTERS, OSHA REGIONAL ADMINISTRATOR IN CHICAGO

$336,200

Company: Twin Pines Construction Inc.
Location: Plymouth and Reading, MA (OSHA Region 1)
Business type: Wood framing contractor
Inspection trigger: Worker injury and complaint
Event: At a Plymouth construction site, an unbraced wooden roof truss system collapsed around a worker; the worker suffered broken ribs and leg injuries. The same day, OSHA opened an inspection of the Reading site after receiving a complaint about possible safety hazards.
Major citations: Citations for two willful, two repeat and four serious violations were issued for alleged hazards found at the Plymouth worksite, including trusses not adequately braced during installation, fall hazards, impalement and struck-bys. At the Reading worksite, two willful violations were issued for lack of fall protection. The company was subsequently placed into OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
“Falls remain the No. 1 killer in construction work. Employers who deliberately and repeatedly fail to supply and ensure the use of effective fall protection safeguards are repeatedly gambling with their workers’ lives.” – MARTHE KENT, OSHA REGIONAL ADMINISTRATOR IN NEW ENGLAND

$325,710

Company: Environmental Enterprises Inc.
Location: Cincinnati (OSHA Region 5)
Business type: Waste treatment
Inspection trigger: Fire and explosion, employee injury and death
Event: One worker was killed and another injured when they were severely burned by a fire at the waste treatment facility. The fire and explosion broke out when an organic industrial filter cartridge filled with sodium chlorate ignited, likely due to an electrically powered reciprocating saw that employees had permission to use for removing metal end caps and mesh from the filter.
Major citations: Citations for four willful violations were issued for failure to develop and implement hazardous waste handling procedures, provide new training to employees, select and use of proper personal protective equipment, and train workers on PPE. Nine serious safety violations were issued related to electrical equipment within a flammable storage room, lack of developed material handling procedures, inadequate hazardous waste processing, failure to conduct energy control procedures inspections, and lack of training and PPE. An additional seven serious health violations were issued regarding lack of a hearing conservation program, improper storage of flammable liquids and lack of a hazard communication program, among others. The company was subsequently placed into OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
“Environmental Enterprises demonstrated a complete disregard for employees’ safety and health by failing to recognize and train employees on potentially dangerous interactions between materials being handled and tools used.” – BILL WILKERSON, OSHA AREA DIRECTOR IN CINCINNATI

$317,000

Company: Hagel Metal Fabrication Inc.
Location: East Peoria, IL (OSHA Region 5)
Business type: Metal fabrication
Inspection trigger: Employee death, worker complaints
Event: A 23-year-old worker was fatally crushed by an automated laser-cutting machine. OSHA launched an initial investigation, and worker complaints prompted two additional inspections.
Major citations: Citations for four willful violations were issued for an improperly set guard, bypassed machine safeguards and lockout failures. Eight serious violations were issued for unguarded flooring and platforms, failure to inspect powered industrial trucks, and lack of hazardous energy control training and an effective lockout/tagout program, among others. The company was subsequently placed into OSHA’s Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
“This tragedy could have been prevented if the company ensured adequate machine guarding, effective lockout procedures and worker training on hazards.” – TOM BIELEMA, OSHA AREA DIRECTOR IN PEORIA, IL