Fostermation Inc., a Meadville, Pennsylvania, metal components manufacturer, paid $14,700 to settle six serious and one other-than-serious Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) violations, the agency announced May 12.
An investigation by OSHA and the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division into a minor-aged worker’s fingertip amputation in May 2024 found that the employer violated federal law and exposed employees to a half dozen serious workplace safety violations. Investigators determined that a 16-year-old suffered a thumb tip amputation while operating a metal-forming machine.
OSHA conducted a complaint investigation and another investigation under the agency’s National Emphasis Program on Amputations in Manufacturing Industries. OSHA identified amputation and machine guarding hazards, as well as deficiencies in lockout/tagout procedures to prevent machines from accidentally starting.
“Child labor laws were established to protect minors from workplace dangers. Employers have a legal responsibility to ensure the safety and well-being of young workers,” Catherine Glencoe, the Wage and Hour Division’s assistant district director for Charleston, West Virginia, said in a statement.
The company paid $50,192 in civil penalties for child labor violations.
ASSP awards standards medal, recognizes safety educator
The American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) recently awarded two safety professionals the Thomas F. Bresnahan Standards Medal and William E. Tarrants Outstanding Safety Educator honors.
Georgi Popov was the recipient of the standards medal for his extensive work in developing and advocating for voluntary national consensus standards in environment, health, and safety (EHS), the ASSP announced May 12. Popov is a professor in the Occupational Risk and Safety Sciences Department at the University of Central Missouri. His work on the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/ASSP Z590.3 standard, chairing the standards development committee, took prevention through design from concept to reality, according to the ASSP.
Popov has authored three books, and his work has been published in peer-reviewed articles, trade journals, and safety standards. He’s also the vice chair of the newly formed ANSI/ASSP Z310 Risk Management standards committee.
EHS educator Ibukun Awolusi, PhD, received the Outstanding Safety Educator Award, the ASSP announced May 6. Awolusi is an associate professor in the School of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Construction Management at the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA).
“Dr. Awolusi is a brilliant academic and selfless manager who has become an essential and well-liked leader and mentor,” Arturo Schultz, director of the UTSA’s School of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Construction Management, said in a statement.
Awolusi is an active ASSP member in the group’s South Texas Chapter, the Blacks in Safety Excellence (BISE) Common Interest Group, and the Construction and Engineering Practice Specialty.
In addition to his academic work and research at UTSA, Awolusi has delivered professional development training for corporations, associations, and OSHA. He has also trained more than 400 construction employees on heat stress prevention in the construction industry.
“Dr. Awolusi’s leadership in bridging academia and industry is greatly valued,” Emmanuel Winful, administrator of the ASSP’s BISE Common Interest Group, said in a statement. “His dedication leaves a lasting impression on the next generation of safety professionals.”