Undeterred by cease and desist orders issued by the Long Island Power Authority, three New York contractors exposed their employees to electrocution hazards from working in close proximity to power lines, according to OSHA.

A directive issued recently by OSHA chief Dr. David Michaels addresses an issue that’s been brewing over the past few years: fatalities in workplaces that have been granted VPP status.

A NY architectural hardware manufacturer may have been hoping that OSHA inspectors would not return for a follow-up visit when they decided to not abate hazards cited at their facility. S.A. Baxter LLC now faces $117,920 in additional fines, for failing to correct safety conditions found during an initial inspection at the company’s Chester, NY manufacturing facility.

OSHA has cited Austin Powder Co. with 51 health and safety violations carrying proposed fines of $258,000 for multiple violations of OSHA's standards for process safety management at facilities that use highly hazardous chemicals.

In 2004,OSHA issued citations and proposed penalties to Pieper Electric, Inc., of Milwaukee, Wis., for failing to protect workers from electrical hazards. The penalty and OSHA citations are based on an inspection initiated in September 2003 following an incident at a Racine, Wis., wastewater treatment facility where Pieper Electric was contracted to furnish and install various electrical equipment.

In a 2010 enforcement case, OSHA cited the U.S. Postal Service for workplace safety violations related to electrical hazards found at the Capitol Heights, Maryland, Processing and Distribution Center. Proposed penalties total $272,000.

OSHA cited O'Connell Electric Co. Inc. of Victor, N.Y., for 14 alleged serious violations of safety standards after a company employee was burned in an electrical arc flash on the North Campus of the State University of New York (SUNY) Buffalo. The electrical contractor faces a total of $88,200 in proposed fines.

A packed assembly room at the AIHce was treated to a conversation between OSHA boss Dr. David Michaels and a former OSHA chief, John Henshaw, who headed OSHA during the Bush II administration. Here are some takeaways from Dr. Michaels’ comments:

OSHA has cited Accadia Site Contracting Inc. for alleged willful and serious excavation safety violations found at a water main site at Lewiston Road and McKinley Avenue in Niagara Falls. The Depew-based contractor faces a total of $84,000 in proposed fines after an inspection by OSHA's Buffalo Area Office.