Commercial bakery in the Bronx cited by US Labor Departments OSHA for 26 serious violations of safety and health standards

Zaro Bake Shop faces $118,000 in proposed fines

TARRYTOWN, N.Y. Zaro Bake Shop Inc., a commercial bakery in the Bronx, has been cited by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration for 26 serious violations of workplace safety and health standards. OSHA initiated inspections in April in response to a complaint, and is proposing $118,000 in fines.

A safety inspection by OSHA's Tarrytown Area Office found 20 violations, including inadequate guarding of moving machine parts, a lack of lockout/tagout procedures to prevent machines from starting up while workers service them, and slippery and uneven floors, as well as various electrical, fall and exit access hazards. The citations carry $93,000 in proposed fines.

A health inspection found six violations involving combustible dust hazards, not providing eye protection for employees working around corrosive materials, a lack of eyewash stations for workers exposed to hazardous chemicals, a failure to develop and implement a written hazard communication program, and a failure to provide information and training on hazardous chemicals to workers. The citations carry $25,000 in proposed fines. A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.

"Left uncorrected, these conditions expose workers to the hazards of lacerations, amputations, electric shocks, fires, explosions, eye injuries and being unable to swiftly exit the workplace in the event of an emergency," said Diana Cortez, OSHA's Tarrytown area director. "For the safety and health of its workers, Zaro Bake Shop must take effective action to ensure that proper safeguards are in place at all times."

"An effective illness and injury prevention program in which employees and managers work together to identify and eliminate hazardous conditions can prevent injuries from occurring in the first place," added Robert Kulick, OSHA's regional administrator in New York.

Zaro Bake Shop has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, meet informally with OSHA's area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

The citations can be viewed at http://www.osha.gov/ooc/citations/ZaroHlth.pdf and http://www.osha.gov/ooc/citations/ZaroSft.pdf.

To ask questions, obtain compliance assistance, file a complaint or report workplace hospitalizations, fatalities or situations posing imminent danger to workers, the public should call OSHA's toll-free hotline at 800-321-OSHA (6742) or the agency's Tarrytown office at 914-524-7510.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to ensure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.