U.S. Department of Labor Files Contempt Petition Against Massachusetts Roofing Company for Not Complying with Court-Ordered Safety Settlement

BOSTON, MA – The U.S. Department of Labor has asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit to hold The Roof Kings LLC and its owner, Craig Galligan, in civil contempt for not fulfilling the terms of an order issued by the First Circuit in 2018. The order enforces a settlement agreement between the company and the Department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

OSHA cited the Massachusetts roofing contractor for fall and other hazards at four eastern Massachusetts worksites between 2013 and 2016. OSHA and The Roof Kings reached a settlement as part of a consent order – issued on September 25, 2017 – that was approved by the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC). The order required that the company provide OSHA with abatement certification for 32 cited safety hazards, written notice of upcoming roofing jobs, and pay $72,000 in penalties in 60 monthly installments.

The Roof Kings LLC made three initial payments of $1,200 each, but failed to pay more or fulfill other obligations under the settlement. In October 2018, the First Circuit granted the Department's petition for an order requiring the company to comply with the settlement agreement. The Department's petition asks the court to find the defendants in civil contempt, order them to provide written certification that they have abated the violations affirmed in the settlement agreement, and pay overdue penalties of $206,090 plus interest, within 20 days. If the defendants refuse or fail to do so, the Department requests the court to subject The Roof Kings and Galligan to coercive sanctions, including incarceration.

"The U.S. Department of Labor will use all available legal tools to ensure that employers comply with their obligations under the Occupational Safety and Health Act," said Solicitor of Labor Kate S. O'Scannlain.

"Employers must adhere to their legal obligation to provide workplaces free of hazardous conditions," said OSHA Regional Administrator Galen Blanton. "Worker safety can be achieved when employers comply with the law."

OSHA's Andover and Braintree Area Offices conducted the inspections. The Office of the Solicitor is litigating the case for the Department.

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Scalia v. Roof Kings LLC
No. 18-1425