Top Ten OSHA Citations of 2016: A Starting Point for Workplace Safety

1. Fall Protection
2. Hazard communication
3. Scaffolds
4. Respiratory protection
5. Lockout/tagout
6. Powered industrial trucks
7. Ladders
8. Machine guarding
9. Electrical wiring
10. Electrical, general requirements

Georgia textile, plastic recycler faces nearly $318K in fines after continuing to expose workers to serious hazards

Acting on a complaint, OSHA inspected Columbia Recycling Corp.’s plant in Dalton, Ga., and cited the company for five repeated three serious and one other- than-serious safety and health violations that exposed workers to hazards on the job. Repeated citations against the employer include failure to administer an effective hearing conservation program, properly store and handle liquefied petroleum, and outline clear procedures to shut down and secure machines and equipment during maintenance and other activities. Proposed penalties total $317,814.

Each year, hundreds of workers suffer injury and many die when trench walls collapse and bury them in soil and rock that can weigh several thousand pounds. OSHA recently took action against employers, now the U.S. including one Illinois case where employees were working in a trench. In Oak Park, Ill. Less than three weeks after citing Og Plumbing Inc. for exposing workers to unsafe trenches, OSHA saw the Chicago- based plumbing contractor once again exposing the same four-man crew to trenching hazards as they worked on sewer and water utilities. An OSHA investigator observed that, after leaving the worksite, employees re-entered the unprotected trench but scrambled out after the investigator returned; soon after, a large section of the trench wall collapsed. For the company’s wanton disregard for the safety of its workers, OSHA proposed penalties of $275,728 and placed the company in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program.

Top 10 citations of FY 2016 are a place to start for workplace safety.

OSHA recently released its preliminary list of the 10 most frequently cited safety and health violations for the fiscal year compiled from about 32,000 workplace inspections. Top hazards include lack of adequate fall protection, unsafe scaffolds, hazard communications problems, and lack of machine guarding. More than 4,500 workers are killed on the job every year, and approximately 3 million are injured, despite the fact that, by law, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces. If all employers simply corrected the top ten hazards, OSHA believes the number of deaths, amputations and hospitalizations would drastically decline.

If you or a loved one has been harmed in any type of workplace accident or work-related incident, contact a Mount Vernon workers compensation lawyer at Hassakis & Hassakis, P.C. to find out more about your options for financial recovery.