Big buck fines keep piling up (6/23)
There’s no let up in OSHA’s enforcement surge. And no surprises, either. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis and then-acting OSHA chief Jordan Barab said one year ago at the ASSE national meeting in San Antonio that there was a new sheriff in town. Here’s what the sheriff has been up to in the past 30 days:
Creekstone Farms Premium Beef of Arkansas City, Kan., cited for allegedly exposing workers to a potential catastrophic release of ammonia at its meat processing facility. Proposed violations total $130,000.
UCB Manufacturing hit with a proposed a total of $357,300 in fines for alleged willful and serious violations of workplace health and safety standards at its Rochester, N.Y., pharmaceutical manufacturing plant. Citations chiefly concern the company's failure to address hazards for workers whose duties involve exposure to methylene chloride, a potential carcinogen.
Loup Valley Alfalfa of Burwell, Neb., cited for alleged violations following a December 2009 inspection of the grain handling facility. The agency has proposed $293,000 in penalties against the company.
Scuba Clean Inc. in St. Petersburg, Fla., for alleged safety and health violations after an inspection triggered by a complaint after receiving a complaint in December 2009. Penalties total $200,900.
U.S. Postal Service fined $497,000 for workplace safety violations related to electrical hazards found at two Philadelphia facilities after receiving complaints about both locations.
U.S. Postal Service fined $299,500 for workplace safety violations related to electrical hazards found at the Pittsburgh mail processing facility.
CEC Elevator Cab Corp., a Bronx, N.Y., manufacturer of elevator cabs, cited for 18 alleged violations of safety and health standards, chiefly for failing to correct hazards cited during prior OSHA inspections. The company faces a total of $346,500 in proposed penalties.
And state regulators are coming down hard, too:
Utah regulators fined Silver Eagle Refining Inc. more than $1 million for an explosion last November that knocked four workers to the ground and damaged dozens of nearby houses. The firm told the Associated Press it will contest the 51 violations, which singled out problems with equipment, safety procedures and record-keeping.
Creekstone Farms Premium Beef of Arkansas City, Kan., cited for allegedly exposing workers to a potential catastrophic release of ammonia at its meat processing facility. Proposed violations total $130,000.
UCB Manufacturing hit with a proposed a total of $357,300 in fines for alleged willful and serious violations of workplace health and safety standards at its Rochester, N.Y., pharmaceutical manufacturing plant. Citations chiefly concern the company's failure to address hazards for workers whose duties involve exposure to methylene chloride, a potential carcinogen.
Loup Valley Alfalfa of Burwell, Neb., cited for alleged violations following a December 2009 inspection of the grain handling facility. The agency has proposed $293,000 in penalties against the company.
Scuba Clean Inc. in St. Petersburg, Fla., for alleged safety and health violations after an inspection triggered by a complaint after receiving a complaint in December 2009. Penalties total $200,900.
U.S. Postal Service fined $497,000 for workplace safety violations related to electrical hazards found at two Philadelphia facilities after receiving complaints about both locations.
U.S. Postal Service fined $299,500 for workplace safety violations related to electrical hazards found at the Pittsburgh mail processing facility.
CEC Elevator Cab Corp., a Bronx, N.Y., manufacturer of elevator cabs, cited for 18 alleged violations of safety and health standards, chiefly for failing to correct hazards cited during prior OSHA inspections. The company faces a total of $346,500 in proposed penalties.
And state regulators are coming down hard, too:
Utah regulators fined Silver Eagle Refining Inc. more than $1 million for an explosion last November that knocked four workers to the ground and damaged dozens of nearby houses. The firm told the Associated Press it will contest the 51 violations, which singled out problems with equipment, safety procedures and record-keeping.
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