WASHINGTON — While the vast majority of federal contractors play by the rules, every year tens of thousands of American workers are denied overtime wages, are unlawfully discriminated against in hiring or pay, have their health and safety put at risk by those contractors that cut corners or are otherwise unlawfully denied basic workplace protections.

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Oral Arts Laboratory Inc., a dental lab and manufacturer, will pay $115,000 to resolve allegations of systemic hiring discrimination at its Huntsville corporate headquarters. A compliance review by the U.S. Department of Labor's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs found that the federal contractor discriminated against 83 women and 19 African Americans who were denied dental lab technician positions, as well as 57 men who were rejected for shipping positions.

Date of Action: May 21, 2015

Type of Action: Consent Judgment and Order

Names of Defendants: Alfred H. Chan M.D., P.C.; Alfred H. Chan; Judy H. Chan; and the Alfred H. Chan M.D., P.C. Defined Benefit Plan & Trust

OSHA fines Welco Acetylene Corp. $57,400

Employer Name and Location: The acetylene repackaging facility of industrial gas manufacturer Welco Acetylene Corp. is located at 321 Roanoke Place in Newark, New Jersey.

Employer name: Panolam Industries International Inc.

Inspection site: 6300 Atlantic Blvd., Norcross, Georgia 30071

Date inspection initiated: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration initiated the Nov. 20, 2014 inspection after receiving a complaint alleging workplace safety hazards.

TARRYTOWN, N.Y. — A blocked or obstructed exit route can be the difference between life and death. Despite the clear risks, Conway Stores' Bronx location jeopardized workers and shoppers despite two warnings from federal safety inspectors in December 2014.

Employer name: Superior Roll Forming Company, Inc.

Investigation site: 5535 Wegman Drive, Valley City, Ohio 44280

Date investigation initiated and what prompted inspection: On March 2, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration's Cleveland office initiated an inspection at the metal stamping plant after a 55-year-old worker's left index finger was crushed between weld clamps.

Date of Action: May 21, 2015

Type of Action: Consent Judgment and Order

Names of Defendants: Alfred H. Chan M.D., P.C.; Alfred H. Chan; Judy H. Chan; and the Alfred H. Chan M.D., P.C. Defined Benefit Plan & Trust

BROKEN ARROW, Okla. — Alfa Laval Inc. faces $477,900 in proposed penalties after U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspections discovered dozens of serious workplace safety violations, five of which were identified in previous inspections.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A foundry, its owner and three members of its safety consultant company have been found in criminal contempt by U.S. District Judge Beth Phillips after disobeying a court order to allow federal inspectors to investigate a report of an employee at the foundry with an elevated blood lead level.

CLEVELAND — Workers were at risk while using steam hammers and hot metal power presses to forge metal at Sifco Industries Inc. U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspectors found these and other hazards during a November 2014 inspection of the Cleveland-based forging plant.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — A total of 18 workers were hospitalized after exposure to deadly carbon monoxide gas levels of up to 6.71 times the permissible limit, U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspectors found.

OSHA investigators determined that JRI Holdings Inc. employees in November 2014 were testing a commercial industrial parts washer powered by two natural gas heaters. Employees were working inside a building with its doors closed because of cold temperatures, which limited ventilation.

Employer name: Lebanon Seaboard Corporation

Investigation site: 508 W. Ross Lane, Danville, Illinois

Date investigation initiated and what prompted inspection: On Dec. 30, 2014, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration's Peoria office initiated an inspection at the fertilizer manufacturer. The company was on the 2014 Site Specific Targeting List for high-hazard industries.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Skylights are a useful way to allow sunlight into a room or other space, but without safety guards or covers, they can expose rooftop workers to catastrophic falls, serious injury and death.

Atop a warehouse on Powers Avenue in Jacksonville, roofer John W. Miles III crashed through a skylight without an adequate safety cage and plunged more than 24 feet to the ground below. He was admitted to an area hospital in critical condition and later died of his injuries.

Employer name: Suburban Propane Partners LP

Site: Fort Worth, Texas

Date initiated: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration began investigating the propane gas facility in November 2014.

Employer name: Allied Metals LLC

Inspection site: At the time of the inspection, workers were recycling metal at the company's warehouse located at 2902 NW 32nd Avenue, Miami, Florida 33142.

Date inspection initiated: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration initiated the Nov. 21, 2014 inspection as part of the agency's Site Specific Targeting Program.

CALUMET CITY, Ill. — Workers at two Chicago-area Dollar Tree Inc. stores were exposed to safety hazards from blocked exit routes and boxes piled at dangerous heights. The national retailer, who recorded sales of $8.6 billion in 2014, has been cited by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration for more than 200 safety and health violations across the nation since 2009.

Date of Action: April 20, 2015

Type of Action: Amended Complaint to permanently enjoin from serving as a fiduciary to any retirement benefit plan subject to the Employee Retirement Security Income Act of 1974 and from violating the act.

Name of Defendant: AARC Environmental, Inc., an environmental engineering firm in Houston, Texas, and owner Kishore Chainani

Date of Action: May 15, 2015

Type of Action: Default Judgment

Names of Defendants: Janet Finken, I.Q. Marketing, Inc., I.Q. Marketing Inc. 401(k) Plan

Employer name: SSF Inc., doing business as Gourmet Garden

Investigation site: 2255 W. Stadium Blvd. Ann Arbor, Michigan 48103

Investigation findings: The Wage and Hour Division of the U. S. Department of Labor conducted an investigation and found the employer in violation of the minimum wage, overtime and recordkeeping provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act.