US Department of Labor investigation finds Birmingham construction company willfully exposed workers to trench collapse at Bessemer worksite

-
US Department of Labor investigation finds Birmingham construction company willfully exposed workers to trench collapse at Bessemer worksite BIRMINGHAM – A U.S. Department of Labor investigation has found numerous safety hazards at a civil construction employer’s worksite following a trench collapse in Jefferson County. The department’sOccupational Safety and Health Administration investigators found CB&A Construction LLC workers removed and installed drain pipes for Jefferson County under a suspended load, without hard hats, and at the edge of an excavation that lacked protective restraints.OSHA cited CB&A Construction with a willful violation and proposed $170,145 in penalties.CB&A Construction LLC has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. Penalties and citations may...
Post a Comment

Department of Labor finds Tamuning contractor endangered employees installing a sewer line in a Mangilao trench, despite knowing the risks

-
Department of Labor finds Tamuning contractor endangered employees installing a sewer line in a Mangilao trench, despite knowing the risks
DEDEDO, GUAM ‒ Two weeks after federal workplace safety inspectors warned the operator of a Tamuning construction company of hazardous conditions facing employees working in an excavation, they returned to find the company again exposing workers to potentially deadly trench hazards as they installed a sewer line at the Paradise Court subdivision in Mangilao. The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited Superman Corp. after a May 2023 inspection for two serious violations related to the company’s failures to provide adequate means to enter and exit the trench within 25 feet of the workers and test oxygen levels in the trench before employees entered.OSHA also cited the company with a willful violation after the agency determined Allen Kim, president of Superman Corp., failed to provide required protection from cave-ins for employees working in an excavation. Investigators learned Kim was trained previously on trenching and trench safety and had been warned repeatedly of related hazards by peers and engineers that visited the site before OSHA’s inspection. In addition, Kim admitted to safety officers that he was aware that motorized equipment operating near the trench was causing debris to fall in the trench and that the equipment’s vibrations increased the risk of collapse.Superman Corp. faces $73,219 in proposed penalties for the violations.“Working in a trench is demanding and dangerous work that requires specific precautions and protections to keep workers safe,” explained OSHA Area Office Director Roger Forstner in Honolulu. “By running soil compactors and excavators within 20 feet of workers in the trench and failing to provide accessible ladders, Superman Corp. chose to put production before safety, endangering the lives of its employees.”Trench collapses are among the serious dangers in the construction industry. Excavations can collapse in seconds and can potentially bury workers under cubic yards of soil, each weighing as much as 3,000 lbs. In 2022, OSHA reported that at least 39 industry workers died. From 2011 to 2018, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports 166 workers died in trench collapses.OSHA has a National Emphasis Program on trenching and excavations. Trenching standards require protective systems in trenches deeper than 5 feet. Additionally, trenches must be inspected by a knowledgeable person and have a safe means of entering and exiting prior to allowing a worker to enter.View the citations.Based in Tamuning, Guam, Superman Corp. is a general contractor that specializes in multi-family residential construction projects.The company has 15 business days from receipt of the citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. Learn more about OSHA. 

Published at September 13, 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

St. Louis contractor faces $258K in fines after exposing roofing workers to potentially deadly fall hazards 5 times in 7 weeks at Wentzville worksites

-
St. Louis contractor faces $258K in fines after exposing roofing workers to potentially deadly fall hazards 5 times in 7 weeks at Wentzville worksites ST. LOUIS – Federal workplace safety inspectors have cited a Missouri roofing contractor for 21 violations for illegally exposing roof workers — five times in seven weeks — at six Wentzville residential worksites to the dangers of fall hazards, the construction industry’s leading cause of serious injuries and death. The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration opened its investigations after observing 13 Construction & Pro Services LLC allowing its employees to work on roofs without required protection equipment at separate sites on Oct. 31, Nov. 2 and Dec. 14, 2023.Specifically, OSHA alleges the company allowed employees to work without protection at heights greater than six feet, did not have a competent person inspect and evaluate job site hazards daily and failed to train workers to recognize ...
Read more

Department of Labor encourages construction industry employers, stakeholders to join 2024 National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls

-
Department of Labor encourages construction industry employers, stakeholders to join 2024 National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration is encouraging construction industry employers and workers across the nation to take part in its 11th annual National Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in Construction from May 6-10. The event focuses attention on preventing the industry’s leading cause of worker deaths.The national stand-down recommends employers and workers pause voluntarily during the workday for safety demonstrations, hazard recognition and fall prevention training, and “tool-box” talks about hazards, protective methods and their company’s safety policies, goals and expectations. This year, OSHA is partnering with Construction Safety Week, an organization of more than 70 national and global construction firms, to enlist employers in the U.S. to create the largest industry-wide cons...
Read more