BELLEFONTAINE, Ohio – Less than a year after federal inspectors cited an Ohio rubber-hose manufacturer for 11 machine safety violations, the company now faces an additional $70,000 in fines after safety lapses led a 27-year-old male worker to suffer severe injuries at its Bellefontaine plant.

Employer name: PhytogenX Inc.  

Inspection site: 35 Thousand Oaks Blvd., Morgantown, Pennsylvania

Citations issued: On June 8, 2016, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued citations to PhytogenX for four willful and six serious violations.

Employer name: Dove Die & Stamping Company, Brook Park, Ohio

Citations issued: June 7, 2016

Investigation findings: The U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Cleveland Area Office cited Dove Die & Stamping Company for two willful and two serious safety and health violations.

ALLIANCE, Neb. – A mere 20 minutes after an 8-foot deep trench collapsed, burying a 61-year-old plumber under thousands of pounds of soil, emergency responders pronounced the man dead. Partially buried, his co-worker escaped the trench and frantically tried to rescue the man until help arrived.

Employer name: Soundwich Inc.
Cleveland, Ohio

Citations issued: June 10, 2016

Investigation findings: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued one repeated, 15 serious violations and one other-than-serious violation to Soundwich Inc. after conducting inspections at the aerodynamic and emission control product manufacturer’s Cleveland facility in January and April 2016.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Federal workplace safety and health inspectors have cited a Massachusetts construction company after a worker suffered serious injuries after he fell almost 19 feet from a Portsmouth roof.

Responding to a complaint, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration initiated an inspection of Paramo Daniela Construction of Brockton and found that the employer had:

CHICAGO ‒ As a 54-year-old worker, who fell more than 11 feet as he installed a roof joist, recovered from his injuries, federal inspectors investigating his fall on March 8, 2016, arrived two days later and found a co-worker about 40 feet off the ground without proper fall protection.

HOUSTON – The U.S. Department of Labor filed two separate federal lawsuits in Houston today alleging that two employers operating in the city illegally fired employees for making safety complaints to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. 

Employer name: Park Stein Inc., 613-614 Route 46 East, Clifton, New Jersey

Citations issued: On June 3, 2016, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued citations for one willful violation, eight repeat, five serious and two other-than-serious violations.

Employer’s names: Allen’s Excavation Inc., Capital City Contracting LLC

Inspection site: 2037 Eastgate Way, Tallahassee, Florida 32308.

BOSTON – A truck driver concerned he couldn’t complete his delivery from Massachusetts to New Jersey and back without violating federal safety regulations and putting himself and others at risk thought he’d devised a solution to deliver his cargo on-time and comply with the regulations. Instead of thanking him, his employer fired him.

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Ashley Furniture, the nation’s largest retailer of home furnishings, have entered into a corporate wide settlement agreement that provides an effective framework for protecting workers from machine hazards.

Employer name: Motor Castings Company, West Allis, Wisconsin                                

Citations issued: May 26, 2016

Investigation findings: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration

CONCORD, N.H. – Federal workplace safety and health inspectors have cited a Dublin window restoration company for exposing workers to unsafe levels of lead, and other hazards.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration conducted a follow-up inspection of Window Master Inc. and found that the company had:

MENTOR, Ohio – As he helped widen a road on Station Street in Mentor, a 28-year-old water and sewer utility worker suddenly found himself buried beneath thousands of pounds of soil when a trench, more than 5-feet deep in which he worked, collapsed on him. Hours later, his injuries led to the man’s death in a nearby hospital.

Employer name: Dent Wizard International Corp.

Inspection site: 1190 Lancaster Road, Manheim, Pennsylvania

Citations issued: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued 31 serious and nine other-than-serious health and safety citations on June 1, 2016.

Employer name: U.S. Postal Service, 125 West South Street, Indianapolis, Indiana

Citations issued: June 2, 2016

Investigation findings: A follow-up inspection by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration found a U.S. Postal Service sorting facility in Indianapolis failed to adequately address hazards from a crumbling parking structure that was falling on its workers.

ATLANTA – As they recover from the impacts of Tropical Storm Colin and tornados, Florida’s emergency workers, employers, and the public at-large should be aware of the hazards they may encounter and take necessary steps to stay safe, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration urges.

Employer name: Coastal Building Systems of Amelia Inc.

Inspection site: 32157 Juniper Parke Drive, Fernandina Beach, Florida 32034

Citations issued: Citations were issued to the employer on June 3.

Employer Name: Barney’s Inc. doing business as Barney’s Police Supply

Inspection Site: 218 Four Park Road, Lafayette, LA 70507

Citations issued: June 6, 2016