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Last month, OSHA issued 40 citations to two Pennsylvania employers. A construction company in Philadelphia and a box manufacturer in Luzerne County were hit with fines of over $200,000 each for a variety of serious, repeat and willful violations. The current penalty/fine amount for a serious violation is roughly $13,000, and the amount for a repeat or willful violation is about $130,000.
For a willful violation, the employer must have either 1. knowingly failed to comply with or purposefully disregarded a legal requirement/OSHA regulation, or 2. acted with plain indifference to employee safety. For a repeat violation, the employer must have been cited for the same or substantially similar condition. Visit the OSHA violations and law page for more info.
Philadelphia Construction Company Cited for Over 20 Violations
A Philadelphia construction company was cited for a total of 22 OSHA violations: 11 serious violations, 6 willful violations and 5 repeat violations. The fines totaled just over $220,000. Many of the citations were for various fall accident safety issues including:
- improper use of a ladder,
- exposing workers to falls of about 50 feet without proper use of fall protection systems (guardrails, safety nets, or fall arrest systems),
- exposing workers to falls of about 80 feet without proper use of fall protection systems (guardrails, safety nets, or fall arrest systems), and
- multiple scaffold safety and fall protection failures.
Pennsylvania Box Manufacturer Cited for 18 Violations, Including 12 Repeat Violations
A Pennsylvania box manufacturer was cited last month for a total of 18 OSHA violations: 3 serious violations, 3 willful violations and most notably, 12 repeat violations. The fines totaled over $200,000. The paper company’s factory is located in Plains Township, PA, just outside of Wilkes-Barre.
OSHA conducted an investigation last fall, following up on a 2015 OSHA investigation and in response to a complaint. The April 2018 citations showed that OSHA found the employer continuing to engage in unsafe work practices. The willful and repeat violations were issued for:
- failing to implement lockout/tagout procedures,
- machine guarding dangers,
- failing to provide forklift training/certifications,
- exposing workers to chemical hazards, and
- exposing workers to electrical hazards.
For more info about work injury law, visit the PA & NJ Work Injury Law Library.
Philadelphia Work Injury Law Firm – Working to Protect Injured Workers & Their Families
LBK is a Philadelphia law firm focusing on work injury and accident cases. Our attorneys are licensed in several states including Pennsylvania and New Jersey and have recovered over $150 million for injured workers.
Contact our firm for a free consultation at (866) 641-0806. The main office is located in Center City, Philadelphia. Additional offices are located in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York.
