US Department of Labor investigation finds Chicago construction employer exposed workers to continued safety hazards, proposes $265K in penalties

-
US Department of Labor investigation finds Chicago construction employer exposed workers to continued safety hazards, proposes $265K in penalties CHICAGO – The U.S. Department of Labor has cited a Calumet City-based residential construction and carpentry employer after two separate investigations into its continued failure to provide fall protection for workers. The department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigated two worksites operated by Martin Araujo – doing business as Araujo Construction Corp. – and found that carpenters and general construction laborers were installing roof rafters and roof sheeting without fall protection, exposing them to falls of up to 25 feet. OSHA cited Araujo Construction with two willful violations for not providing fall protection, while working from heights during residential construction at the two worksites. OSHA also cited the employer with nine repeat safety violations for failing to provide head and eye protection, l...
Post a Comment

Department of Labor announces enforcement, compliance initiative to protect workers from silica exposure in engineered stone fabrication, installation

-
Department of Labor announces enforcement, compliance initiative to protect workers from silica exposure in engineered stone fabrication, installation
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor announced that its Occupational Safety and Health Administration today launched a new initiative focused on enhancing enforcement and providing compliance assistance to protect workers in the engineered stone fabrication and installation industries.“Many workers in the engineered stone industry are experiencing illnesses so severe that they’re unable to breathe — much less work a full shift — because of their exposure to silica dust,” explained Assistant Secretary for Occupational Safety and Health Doug Parker. “Among them is a 27-year-old worker in California who went to an emergency room with shortness of breath in 2022 and whose lung biopsy later revealed he had silicosis. Since then, he has been on an oxygen tank and unable to support his wife and three young children financially.”Supplementing OSHA’s current National Emphasis Program for Respirable Crystalline Silica, this initiative will focus enforcement efforts on industry employers to make sure they’re following required safety standards and providing workers with the protections required to keep them healthy. It establishes procedures for prioritizing federal OSHA inspections to identify and ensure prompt abatement of hazards in covered industries where workers face exposure to high levels of silica dust. OSHA and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health identify silica dust exposure as a health hazard for workers involved in manufacturing, finishing and installing natural and manufactured stone, which includes the man-made, engineered artificial or cultured types. When inhaled, very small crystalline silica particles expose workers to the risk of silicosis, an incurable, progressively disabling and sometimes fatal lung disease. Unsafe silica dust exposure can also lead to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or kidney disease. Industries subject to the prioritized programmed inspections include those engaged in Cut Stone and Stone Product Manufacturing as well as Brick, Stone and Related Construction Material Merchant Wholesalers. Outreach efforts will continue to include additional industries that may work with engineered stone. A July 2023 study released by the American Medical Association underscores the dangers for workers in these industries. The “Silicosis Among Immigrant Engineered Stone Countertop Fabrication Workers in California” study cited 52 male patients diagnosed with silicosis caused by occupational exposure to respirable silica dust from engineered stone. Of these patients, 20 suffered progressive massive fibrosis, 11 needed lung transplants and 10 died due to their exposures. As part of the initiative, OSHA is sending affected employers and stakeholders information on the initiative, including fact sheets on dust control methods and safer work practices for engineered stone manufacturing, finishing and installation operations.Learn more about crystalline silica.

Published at September 24, 2023 at 05:00PM
Read more at https://dol.gov

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Settlement affirms willful OSHA violations, $215K penalties, against contractors for fall hazards at multiple New Jersey work sites

-
Settlement affirms willful OSHA violations, $215K penalties, against contractors for fall hazards at multiple New Jersey work sites HASBROUCK HEIGHTS, NJ – Two related North Jersey construction contractor companies – Primetime Construction LLC and its subsidiary Primetime Contractors LLC of Paterson – have agreed to pay $215,000 in penalties and undertake several significant safety measures to resolve numerous safety violations found at five Paterson construction worksites in 2021, as part of a settlement with the U.S. Department of Labor.The department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration initially cited Primetime Contractors LLC for four willful violations that occurred in September 2021 after agency inspectors found the employer exposing workers to fall hazards by repeatedly failing to ensure construction site stairways at company worksites had handrails and stair rails, even after being counseled by OSHA about the relevant safety requirements. Primetime Contrac...
Read more

Statement by US Secretary of Labor Su on July jobs report

-
Statement by US Secretary of Labor Su on July jobs report WASHINGTON – Acting U.S. Secretary of Labor Julie A. Su issued the following statement on the July 2023 Employment Situation report:  “Today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the American economy added 187,000 jobs in the month of July — and added an average of 218,000 jobs per month over the past three months — continuing the steady and stable growth that is bringing economic security to workers and families across the country. The unemployment rate ticked down to 3.5 percent, continuing the longest period of under 4-percent unemployment in over 50 years. Healthcare, social assistance, construction, and financial activities all gained jobs in July.  “This jobs report is the latest evidence that the Biden-Harris administration’s Investing in America agenda is expanding pathways to the middle class and leaving no one behind. The solid job market continues to deliver employment and earnings opportunities for ...
Read more

Proper planning, safeguards could have prevented New Bedford dock collapse, US Department of Labor inspection finds

-
Proper planning, safeguards could have prevented New Bedford dock collapse, US Department of Labor inspection finds BRAINTREE, MA – A Connecticut marine and heavy construction contractor could have prevented the October 2023 collapse of a 200-foot section of pier on Hervey Tichon Avenue in New Bedford — which plunged five workers into the Acushnet River and injured two of them — by adhering to legally required safety standards, a U.S. Department of Labor inspection has determined. Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspectors found that Mohawk Northeast Inc. of Plantsville did not determine if the pier’s walking and working surfaces had the strength and structural integrity to support employees safely with the weight of materials and equipment on it. OSHA issued the company a willful citation and assessed $161,323 in proposed penalties.The agency also proposed an additional $53,004 in penalties for four serious violations related to potential fall, d...
Read more