OSHA Inspections & OSHA Fines

Violations and Penalties

OSHA Inspections & OSHA Fines

OSHA Cites Green Bay Packaging Company for Multiple Safety Hazards

Company: Services Plus Inc.

Inspection site: 1001 Discovery Road, Green Bay, Wisconsin

Citations received: Jan. 27, 2016

Investigation findings: The U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Appleton Area Office cited the Services Plus Inc., a Green Bay packaging company, for one willful and five serious safety violations.

Federal inspectors found the company failed to install guards and use recommended safety procedures to prevent workers from the dangers of amputation and other serious injuries caused by moving parts of machinery.

Inspectors also found the company:

Failed to assess the workplace to determine if personal protective equipment should be provided.
Did not require employees to use appropriate hand protection when exposed to thermal burns.
Did not install electrical equipment properly, in accordance with instruction.
Improperly used flexible electrical cords.

Quote: “Each year thousands of workers are injured on the job by machine and electrical hazards like we found at Services Plus,” said Robert Bonack, OSHA’s area director in Appleton. “Services Plus must immediately reevaluate its safety and health practices to protect their workers on the job.”

Services Plus is a custom packaging company that also inspects and repackages product that may have become damaged or mislabeled.

Proposed OSHA Fines: $83,025

View Citations here:

Below is a brief review of a few violations that occurred in the not too distant past. As George Santayana stated, "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."

US Department of Labor Finds 11 Violations at Previously Cited US Minerals LLC

Company: US Minerals LLC, Harvey, Louisiana

Scope: In September 2013, the U. S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited U.S. Minerals LLC for 11 health and safety violations after a follow-up inspection.

Investigation findings: In June 2010, OSHA's Baton Rouge Area Office conducted an initial inspection and issued 18 serious, 10 repeat and two other-than-serious violations. $118,800 in fines were imposed.

Serious violations included:

Failure to provide an adequate retrieval system;
Inadequate training;
Failure to evaluate prospective rescuer's competency level;
Failure to review the confined space entry program annually;
Failure to train workers on the hearing conservation program;
Failure to ensure workers had a choice of suitable hearing protectors;
Failure to provide adequate forklift training and certification;
Failure to remove unsafe forklifts from service;
Failure to ensure adequate egress from the facility.

One repeat violation was issued for failing to conduct annual inspections of the company's lockout / tagout procedures.

Proposed OSHA Fines: US Minerals LLC, a manufacturer of abrasive blasting and roofing materials, faces $77,770 in fines for failing to implement safe lockout / tagout procedures when maintenance is performed on equipment, train and protect workers when entering hazardous confined spaces, provide required protection for workers exposed to excessive noise levels and ensure forklift operators knew how to operate forklifts safely. The company has 15 working days from receipt of its citations to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA, or contest the proposed penalties and citations before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. US Minerals LLC contested the citations, and a formal settlement agreement was reached in August 2012.

A serious violation is one in which there is substantial probability that serious physical harm or death could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known. A repeat violation exists when an employer previously has been cited for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years.

US Department of Labor Seeks Penalties against Manufacturer

Company: Great Dane Limited Partnership, Danville, Pennsylvania

Scope: In October 2013, OSHA opened its investigation under its Hexavalent Chromium National Emphasis Program as a follow-up to a February 2013 investigation.

Investigation findings: Investigators found that Great Dane Limited Partnership, a manufacturer of truck trailers, had exposed a welder to hexavalent chromium at more than 4.6 times the permissible exposure limit. The company also failed to implement feasible engineering controls and workplace practices to reduce employee exposure to the chemical. These were repeat violations since the company had been previously cited for these violations in June 2013.

Proposed OSHA Fines: The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Great Dane Limited Partnership for two repeat violations for exposing employees to hexavalent chromium at its Danville facility. Proposed osha fines total $30,000. The company has 15 working days from receipt of its citations to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA, or contest the proposed penalties and citations before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

Hexavalent chromium is known to cause cancer, as well as problems in the respiratory system, kidneys, liver, skin and eyes, and poses serious risk to employees.