US Department of Labor's OSHA cites R.R. Dawson Bridge Co. for willful and serious safety violations following worker fatalities

MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Two workers were killed after falling approximately 90 feet while working on the construction of the I-85 interchange Outer Loop overpass. The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited R.R. Dawson Bridge Co. LLC with four safety violations following its January 2014 investigation of the fatalities.

"Falls continue to be the leading cause of fatalities in the construction industry, but these hazards can be easily identified and eliminated to save lives," said Joseph Roesler, OSHA's area director in Mobile. "OSHA will continue to enforce fall protection requirements aggressively to reduce deaths."

OSHA issued a willful violation for failing to provide employees working near the bridge's edge with required fall protection. A willful violation is one committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law's requirements, or with plain indifference to worker safety and health.

Three serious violations were issued for exposing workers to fall hazards and for failing to inspect employee fall arrest systems before use. 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.

Proposed penalties total $54,500. R.R. Dawson Bridge Co., in Bessemer, has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and proposed penalties to comply, request a conference with OSHA's area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety & Health Review Commission.

OSHA has created a fall prevention Web page at http://www.osha.gov/stopfalls with detailed information in English and Spanish on fall protection standards. The page offers fact sheets, posters and videos that vividly illustrate various fall hazards and appropriate preventive measures.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, preliminary data from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries shows that, in Alabama, there were 84 fatalities in 2012 and 4,628 in the United States. Additional details are available at http://bls.gov/iif/home.htm.

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 Mobile Area Office at 251-441-6131.

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.