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Atlanta: The U.S Department of Labor’s OSHA cited Crespac Inc. in Tucker, Ga. with 34 safety and health violations. The proposed penalties are total of $266,400. "OSHA began its comprehensive safety and health inspection after learning of two separate incidents resulting in amputations within a 30-day period," said director of OSHA’s Atlanta-East Area Office, Gei-Thae Breezley. "In both instances, management knew of deficiencies but acted with plain indifference by failing to correct the problems in a timely manner that could have prevented these amputations." The willful citations result from the failure of the company to ensure that all machines had required safety guards, usable safety interlock switches installed in the machinery and functional emergency stop cords. A willful violation is that committed intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirements or with the indifference to safety and health of the employee. Citation to the company is ...

OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) is a federal agency of USA in the Department of Labor. OSHA aims at safety and healthy working conditions for the employees to reduce death and accident that occurs at working site. The two principal functions of OSHA assigned by OSHA Act are: The main function of OSHA is to setting standards and conducting workplace inspection for ensuring whether employers are with the standards and providing a safe and healthful work place. The standard of OSHA requires reasonable and protective practices, methods, and process of job for the well being of the employees. OSHA ensures if these requirements for employees are provided by the employers or not. According to OSHA, employers should become familiar with the standard applicable to their establishment. If the work site is not hygienic and dangerous for the employees to work, then they should eliminate such hazardous conditions. Secondly, OSHA does inspection whether the equipments used by th...

New York: OSHA and Wage and Hour Division signed an alliance with Mexico’s Consulate General in New York as a part of an effort to promote the labor and human rights of Mexican and the other Hispanic workers. CMO (Catholic Migration Office) of the Roman Catholic Diocese in Brooklyn and The New York State Department of Labor are also the part of the alliance. The participants of the alliance will work together to support a call center which will provide Mexican and Hispanic workers in New York, Connecticut and New Jersey guidance, education and assistance about their rights in the workplace. "It's very simple. The law says every worker has both the right to proper compensation for hours worked and to a safe workplace," said Hilda L. Solis, Secretary of Labor. “The purpose of this alliance is to provide Mexican and other Latino workers in the tri-state area with the information and resources that will help them recognize and challenge unsafe and improper working conditions,...

Workers in general industries and construction companies are facing many kinds of problem from the very beginning. Many times they are not justified. They have to work at unhygienic sites and many times they get injured and die also. OSHA (Occupational safety and health administration) was established in the year 1971 as the main federal agency of U.S. Department of Labor to prevent such work related injuries, illness, and deaths. OSHA has begun to provide training for the workers. After the introduction of OSHA, the occupational death has been cut by 62% and injuries have decreased to 42%. These trainings help the workers in understanding if the employers are providing safe and healthy working conditions or not. OSHA aims at ensuring the worker friendly condition for the workers so that no worker dies or injures on the job. OSHA conducts inspection of workplace to ensure that the employers and employees are following the safety and health regulations. OSHA provides education and ...

BP, which has been ordered by a court in Texas to pay $100 million damages to ten workers after refinery incident in the state, it said that it would appeal against the ruling. BP insisted that it did not believe that anyone had been harmed when the chemicals were released during the incident in the year 2007 and had offered only $500 in compensation to each worker who claimed to have been affected. However, a federal jury in Texas ruled on Friday that all the ten workers should receive $100 million. A further 133 workers are also seeking damages. A spokesman for BP, Ronnie Chappell, said the company was “shocked and outraged” by the verdict made and would further appeal. “We believe the evidence showed that BP did not cause harm to anyone on April 19, 2007,” said Mr. Chappell. “The verdict and the punitive damages award in particular, are utterly unjustified, improper and unsupportable.” According to the workers they were exposed to the chemicals while repairing the units damaged in 2...

Huntington, W.Va. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cites Chapman Printing Co. for workplace safety and health violations. The penalties proposed are total of $158,400. OSHA started its inspection on June 18 in response to formal complaint. And as the result of investigation, the company has been issued citations for six willful violations, with a penalty of $27,900; and five other than serious violations, with a penalty of $4,500. "Each of these violations leaves the company's workers vulnerable to potential injuries and illness," said area director of OSHA’s Charleston, W.Va., office said Jeff Funke. "It is important that Chapman Printing Co. eliminate these hazards to ensure a safe and healthy work environment." The willful violations address the failure of the company to provide adequate energy control procedures and a hearing conservation program. A willful violation is defined be OSHA as one committed with plain indifference to, or i...

Workers at a Texas refinery were trying to restart a giant industrial boiler while a catastrophic failure resulted death of one worker and two got injured, as said by a company spokesman. Valero Energy Corp spokesman Bill Day also said, 245,000 barrel (bpd) refinery in Texas City, 50 miles southeast of Houston, was presently operating at planned production levels. The boiler that failed was one of several providing steam and power at the refinery. When the boiler failed, Tommy Manis, 40, of Alvin died instantly said Day. Manis was part of crew working on the boiler. According to the Local media reports the boiler exploded on Friday night, but Day said investigators were investigating to determine exactly what occurred. "There was definitely a loud noise" when boiler failed, he said. "Our sympathies are with Mr. Manis' family," said Day. "It's a very sad event. For a company with 22,000 employees it is surprisingly tight-knit. These things reverberate th...

Washington: OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) will hold a two-day Maritime Advisory Committee for Occupational Safety and Health (MACOSH) meeting in January, 2010, in Washington, D.C for addressing scaffolding, welding and other safety and health issues in maritime industries. In addition to addressing scaffolding and welding hazards, the agenda will include discussions on commercial fishing industry guidance; arch flash guidance; safety zones in marine terminals and speed limits in marine terminals. The committee advises Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA on the matters relevant to the workers safety and health in the maritime industries, marine terminals and longshoring, primarily shipyards and commercial fishing. Committee and workgroup meetings will be held at the U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210. The Longshore Workgroup will meet on Tuesday, 19th January 2010, in Room C-5515-1A and the Shipyard Workgroup will meet i...

Omaha, Neb. - OSHA other name for Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Farmers Union Coop Supply Co. of Stanton, Neb., with one alleged willful and nine serious violations after a worker was suffocated from lack of oxygen in the boot pit of a concrete grain elevator on June 19. "Farmers Union Coop Supply Co. willfully allowed its employees to work in a dangerous environment," said OSHA’s regional administrator in Kansas City, Mo., Charles E. Adkins. “This tragedy could have been prevented by evaluating permit-required confined space conditions prior to entry." The willful citations are proposed for the hazards that are associated with permit-required confined spaces. Specifically, the employer failed to evaluate permit-required confined space conditions by testing atmospheric conditions in the boot pit for carbon dioxide and oxygen levels prior to the entry. A willful violation is issued by OSHA when an employer shows plain indifference to or intention...

OSHA cited Cambria Contracting Inc. for 11 alleged willful violations of the standards of OSHA for failing to protect and train its workers at a Buffalo jobsite. The Lockport, N.Y., demolition contractor is charged a total of 484,000 as proposed in penalties. “These significant penalties reflect the fact that this employer, an asbestos contractor with extensive knowledge of the OSHA standards that govern asbestos removal and handling, chose not to follow these standards and put its workers, including young, inexperienced college students, in harm’s way,” said Jordan Barab, the Deputy Assistant Secretary for OSHA. OSHA found in inspection that many Cambria Contracting workers, who were cleaning up debris at former AM$A department store on Washington Avenue were not trained to in asbestos hazards and how to protect themselves. The workers also lacked protective clothing and proper respirators, and had not been informed of the presence of asbestos at the site. To its addition, the employe...

A measure, which was just signed onto law by President Obama, would prohibit the chemical companies from classifying safety information as “sensitive” in an effort to keep it from becoming public. This new law is in response to explosion at workplace that caused two fatalities. Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) drafted The American Communities Right to Public Information Act as a separate part of legislation. It was passed into law as a part of an appropriations bill for the department of Homeland Security. The amendment makes it clear that the Sensitive Security Information designation that created by recent homeland security laws can’t be used to withhold the information that government should share with the public. The legislation was drafted in response to Bayer CorpScience explosion in August, 2008 that killed two workers in Institute, WV. Bayer was accused by the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee of using a “campaign of secrecy” regarding the explosion. The committee said tha...

Newark, N.J OSHA has cited Solid Waste Transfer & Recycling Inc. for the alleged safety and health violations. The proposed penalties to the company are total of $212,400. OSHA began its inspection on June 3 as a part of its proactive program that targets the companies in the industries with high injury and illness rates. And as a result, the company was issued the citations for four willful violations with a penalty of $198,000 and six violations with the penalty of $14,400. The company’s failure to have an adequate lockout and procedure and a lack of machine guards was addressed as a willful violation. OSHA defines a willful violation as one committed with the plain indifference to, or intentional disregard for the safety and health of employee. The serious violation includes inadequate energy control procedures, blocked exits, compressed gas cylinders were not properly marked, lack of training and effectively close electrical box openings. A serious citation is issued when there...

Kansas City, Mo.—The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has appointed Sherwin-Williams Co. in Coffeyville, Kan., as a Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) merit site for meeting or increasing workplace safety and health standards. Sherwin-Williams that employ 25 workers in Coffeyville, manufacture, packages and distributes rust and smoke inhibitors, oil de-foamers and flame retardants. The company earned Voluntary Protection Programs recognition following a comprehensive onsite evaluation by a team of OSHA safety and health experts. "Sherwin-Williams in Coffeyville has shown it is deeply committed to providing a safe and healthful workplace," said OSHA’s regional administrator In Kansas City, Mo., Charles E. Adkins. "The company's proactive approach toward safety is a model for others to follow." OSHA’s recognition programs include the Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) for the employers and employees who have implemented exemplary workplace sa...

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration cites the Milwaukee leather tanning and finishing firm D.R. Diedrich and Co. for alleged willful and serious violations of the federal workplace safety standards, said the agency on Tuesday. The fine proposed by OSHA is a total of $125,400. OSHA started the inspection of the company at 2615W, Greves St. after it received a notice that a worker who was on the job for about three weeks was got killed when his harness was caught and he was pulled under and between the mixing drum. According to the Milwaukee police, Billie J. Bell Jr. of Milwaukee was killed in the June 9 accident. The inspection by OSHA revealed one willful and 21 serious violation of OSHA workplace standards, according to the statement given by the agency. "The willful violation alleges the employer failed to guard machinery to protect workers who are routinely required to work in areas of unguarded rotating tanning drum mixers. A willful violation is one committed w...

Andover, Mass OSHA cites Tri-Sprinkler Corp. for the alleged willful and serious violations of the safety standards following the fall of a worker from ten feet at a Medford, Mass., worksite. The Derry, N.H based contractor faces $61, 200 in the proposed fines. The inspection by OSHA began on Sept. 29, 2009 after knowing the accident in August in which employee fell and was seriously injured when installing a sprinkler system above the ceiling of a building that was located at 215 Harvard St. In the inspection OSHA found that no form of fall protection had been provided that is needed for the employees who work six feet or higher. "The need for fall protection was clear and recognized, yet this employer did not provide this basic, commonsense and legally required safeguard," said the area director of OSHA for Middlesex and Essex, Paul Mangiafico. "This hazard was exacerbated by a lack of fall protection training, through which the worker could have recognized and prevent...

Marcus Hook, Pa The Occupational Safety and Health Administration( OHSA) has fined $32,000 to Sunoco Inc. in Marcus Hook for workplace safety and health violations. OSHA started the investigation following an ethylene complex explosion in May 2009 at the Marcus Hook refinery. As a result of investigation, the company was issued one repeat violation with a penalty of $25,000 and two other serious violations with a penalty of $7,000. "It is imperative that Sunoco correct all the identified hazards to ensure a safe and healthy workplace for its workers," said OSHA’s area director in Philadelphia, Al D’Imperio. The repeat violation includes the failure of the company to establish and implement the written procedures to maintain the on-going mechanical integrity of process equipment. A repeat violation is issued by OSHA when it finds a substantially similar violation of standard, regulation, rule or order issued to the same employer within the previous three years. The serious vio...

Employer is always obliged to make sure that the workplace is safe for the employees and also to ensure that the risk of accidents is kept to minimum. He must also have the overall safety program. OSHA 10 Hour training a part of Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s plan to provide a safe work environment and also maintain thereafter. There are some states require that all the employees should have a minimum of 10 hours of safety training to work in a public construction site. What are the states that require OSHA 10 hour course training? OSHA training is required by the law in the States of Connecticut, Missouri, New Hampshire, Navada, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New York. It is considered to be considered to be illegal to work on any public construction site without being OSHA 10 hour construction course certified. Who can get certified for OSHA 10 hour course Anybody who lives in the states mentioned above should get certified if they plan to work in a construction fie...

Danville, Ill - The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cites the Atlas Excavating Inc. in West Lafayette, Ind., with two alleged willful violations for not following the federal safety standards at trenching operation in Danville and was proposed penalties of total $130,200. OSHA started an inspection in May 2009 in Danville at excavation jobsites after receiving the information that the employees were working in about 8 feet deep excavations without cave-in protection. And as a result to the inspection, OSHA issued two willful violations in failing to provide the workers in a trench a means of exit. OSHA’s definition of willful violation as one committed with intentional disregard or plain indifference to the safety and health of the employee. A serious citation is issued if there is a substantial probability that physical harm or death could result from a hazard about which the employer should have known. "It has long been known that cave-in fatalities are enti...

Braintree, Mass. - OSHA has cited Dale Medical Products Inc. for alleged and willful serious violations of workplace safety standards after a worker lost the tip of his finger while operating a packaging machine in March. Fine of $58, 100 is proposed to the Plainville, Mass., manufacturer and packager of medical equipment. The injury took place when the worker’s finger was pinched by a heat seal bar which was used to seal plastic bags. On the inspection by OSHA, it found three such packaging machines in the plant that did not had the required safeguards to keep the employees from becoming caught in their point of operation. Due to this condition workers were exposed to laceration and amputation injuries. "It's imperative that machines be adequately guarded and the guarding continually maintained to prevent the possibility of accidents such as this one," said OSHA’s area director for Southeastern Massachusetts. "In this case, three other similar machines were allowed...

Naperville, Ill. - OSHA has imposed utility equipment maintenance contractor Midsun Group Inc., Southington, Conn., with serious and willful violations of the federal workplace safety standards at worksites in Naperville, Ill, with a proposed fine of $50,250. OSHA’s inspection started in July after getting information that the workers were exposed to potential electrocution when painting transmission poles in the Naperville area. The inspection revealed nine alleged serious and two alleged of willful violations of the OSHA standards. One willful violation addressed potential electrocution based on the energized transmission lines which were not grounded. And the second willful violation addressed to the employees working within the minimum approach distance in a bucket truck which was improperly rated for the work being conducted. A willful violation is explained as one committed with knowing, intentional or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirements or with the plain indifference ...

Eau Claire, Wis. - Workers from the greater Eau Claire will continue to benefit from the renewal of the alliance between Chippewa Technical College (CVTC) and the OSHA designed to prevent and reduce some of the most common workplace illness and injuries threats. The formal alliance between the two was signed in Eau Claire to develop safety training programs and materials that focus on the relevant health and safety issues. Over the past two years, the alliance of CVTC and OSHA has provided workplace safety and health courses for supervisors, employees and management officials those employed in the district of CVTC and all the area covered by the alliance. "This alliance continues to help us combat all kinds of hazards through the development and presentation of programs designed to keep working men and women safe on the job," said Mark Hysell, OSHA’s Area Director in Eau Claire. "Working with an organization that has the stature and reputation of the Chippewa Valley Tech...