US Department of Labor cites Hattiesburg poultry facility after 16-year-old worker pulled into machine, suffers fatal injuries

HATTIESBURG, MS – For the second time in just over two years, a poultry processing plant in Hattiesburg has disregarded safety standards that have led to a worker’s death, this time a 16-year-old sanitation worker who was pulled into a machine, federal safety investigators found.   

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration found that on July 14, 2023, a contract worker employed by Onin Staffing, LLC was performing a deep clean of the deboning area at the Mar-Jac Poultry MS, LLC plant. While sanitizing the still-energized machine, the teen was caught in the rotating shaft and sprockets and pulled in, sustaining fatal injuries. Investigators found that – despite a manager’s supervision in and around the area prior to and during the fatal incident –  lockout/tagout procedures were not utilized to disconnect power to the machine and a lockout/tagout device was not used to prevent the machine from unintentionally starting during the cleaning. 

“Mar-Jac Poultry is aware of how dangerous the machinery they use can be when safety standards are not in place to prevent serious injury and death. The company’s inaction has directly led to this terrible tragedy, which has left so many to mourn this child’s preventable death,” said OSHA Regional Administrator Kurt Petermeyer in Atlanta.

OSHA cited Mar-Jac Poultry with 14 serious and three other-than-serious violations after finding the company failed to: 

• Ensure energy control procedures were used to prevent the unexpected start-up of machines while employees performed sanitation, exposing workers to caught-in hazards. 
• Ensure employees used lockout/tagout devices on machinery when performing cleaning.
• Ensure an energy control procedure included specific steps for blocking and securing portions of the machinery while workers performed cleaning. 
• Failed to ensure the machinery retained guarding to prevent employees from entering danger zones while machinery was in operation. 
• Cover open holes in 480-volt electrical cabinets, exposing workers to electrical hazards. 
• Prevent workers from using portable ladders incorrectly to gain access to elevated work surfaces, exposing workers to fall hazards.

OSHA has proposed $212,646 in penalties, an amount set by federal statute. 

The agency previously cited Mar-Jac Poultry after a May 31, 2021, incident in which an employee’s shirt  sleeve was caught in a machine and they were pulled in, pinning their body against the support and the machine’s carousel, resulting in fatal injuries. 

“Following the fatal incident in May 2021 Mar-Jac Poultry should have enforced strict safety standards in its facility,” Petermeyer added. “Only about two years later nothing has changed and the company continues to treat employee safety as an afterthought, putting its workers at risk. No worker should be placed in a preventable, dangerous situation, let alone a child.” 

In addition to OSHA’s investigation, the department’s Wage and Hour Division has an open child labor investigation and the matter is currently pending.

Headquartered in Gainesville, Georgia, Mar-Jac Poultry was founded in 1954 and has facilities in Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. The company raises live birds for poultry production food service sold to numerous countries.

The company has 15 business days from receipt of their citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. 

Visit OSHA’s website for information on developing a workplace safety and health program. Employers can also contact the agency for information about OSHA’s compliance assistance resources and for free help on complying with OSHA standards.