Nine contractors at the Oasis Park Square residential development in Doral, Florida learned a hard lesson when OSHA inspectors visited the work site in November 2014.

Repeated and serious safety violations were found, citations were issues and fines levied. The agency cited contractors Shoma Alliance Management Corp., the project manager; Garmon Construction Corp.; Zavala & Associates Inc.; Blue Panther Roofing & Construction Corp.; PP All Corp.; Unity Windows Inc.; Fast Carpentry 1 Inc.; and New World Masonry Inc. OSHA also conducted two separate inspections of L.C. Service Drywall Inc. Seven of the employers are Miami-based; Garmon Construction is based in Coral Gables, and Fast Carpentry is located in Homestead.

Numerous hazards

"Shoma Alliance Management Corp. and its contractors exposed their employees to numerous safety hazards or permitted multiple risks, including falls that could have resulted in death or serious injury" said Condell Eastmond, director of OSHA's Fort Lauderdale Area Office. "Developers and general contractors are responsible for the safety of employees at their work sites."

Shoma is the residential construction developer of the luxury housing complex. The company was issued three serious citations for exposing workers to fall hazards; improperly using a ladder and not providing ladder safety training.

OSHA inspectors issued the following citations:

• Garmon, Zavala, Blue Panther, PP All, Unity Windows, New World and L.C. Service Drywall were each cited for one serious violation for not protecting workers from falling from heights up to 35 feet.
• PP All, Fast Carpentry and New World were each issued one serious violation for poor housekeeping of the work site.
• Garmon Construction received two additional serious violations for not maintaining an accident prevention program and for poor housekeeping of the work site by not cleaning up wood and debris.
• Fast Carpentry was issued a repeated citation for not providing fall protection.
• Unity Windows also received a serious violation for improper ladder use.
• Zavala Associates, specializing in carpentry, sheathing and formwork, was also issued four additional serious citations for allowing employees to work without head protection and eye protection, not providing fall protection training and failing to cover exposed rebar ends.
• PP All, a carpentry contractor, was cited for three serious violations for not providing fall protection training, failing to cover rebar ends and not ensuring workers wore eye protection. It was also cited for one additional serious violation for failing to install a handrail on a stairway.
• New World, a masonry contractor, was cited for one serious violation for not installing a handrail. It was cited for one additional other-than-serious violation for not developing a hazard communication program when employees were working with products that contained silica dust.
• L.C. Drywall was cited for one serious violation for not installing a handrail. It was also issued four additional citations for allowing workers to access a landing that was not protected with a guardrail system; not ensuring the scaffolding system was fully planked; exposing employees to a 23-foot fall from an aerial lift; and permitting employees to work from a scaffold without fall protection.