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Conn-Selmer Inc., an Eastlake, Ohio, musical instrument manufacturer, is facing $273,447 in Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) penalties for three repeat and three serious violations, the agency announced January 24. On July 14, 2023, a worker suffered a fingertip amputation while setting up a machine die inside a press used to manufacture sousaphones. Investigators […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Martin-Brower Co. LLC, a Fairfield, Ohio, food services warehouse, for exposing its employees to ergonomic hazards, the agency announced January 19. Although there’s no federal ergonomics standard—a Clinton administration ergonomics rule was rescinded by Congress in 2001—OSHA cites employers for ergonomics hazards using its authority under […]
Last week, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited Illinois and Ohio manufacturers with lockout/tagout and machine guarding violations. Both employers are facing six-figure penalties. An Itasca, Illinois, custom manufacturer faces $298,453 in penalties for one willful and 13 serious violations—all involving required machine safety procedures—following the agency’s investigation under its National Emphasis Program […]
Back to Basics is a weekly feature that highlights important but possibly overlooked information that any EHS professional should know. This week, we examine near-miss reporting. Incident investigation often focuses on finding the causes of adverse safety events, but it’s also a good idea to investigate near-miss incidents (also known as “close calls”). Near misses […]
Wisconsin sawmill Tigerton Lumber Co. faces $283,608 in Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) penalties after a follow-up inspection, the agency announced January 9. The company was added to OSHA’s Severe Violators Enforcement Program (SVEP) in 2019 after an agency investigation into how an employee suffered fatal injuries in 2018. Employers in the SVEP are subject to […]
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) continues to carry out inspections and issue citations to employers that expose workers to hazardous conditions. We’ve summarized some of the key enforcement cases from the past few months for a look at where OSHA is focusing its efforts. Corn milling company fined $1.8 million OSHA entered into […]
Nebraska Beef Ltd. of Omaha, Nebraska, faces $274,569 in Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) penalties following the agency’s investigation into an amputation injury, OSHA announced January 5. The agency cited Nebraska Beef with two willful and 11 serious safety and health violations. OSHA investigators determined that a worker’s fingertip got caught in a forklift attachment […]
Pepsi Guam Bottling agreed to pay $132,591 in Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) penalties to settle safety and health citations for exposing employees to amputation and other serious injuries, the agency announced January 3. Last year, OSHA cited Pepsi Guam Bottling with one willful, one repeat, and six serious violations of machine safety procedures after […]
In a final investigation report into a fatal well blowout, the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) called on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to include onshore well drilling and well servicing operations in the agency’s process safety management (PSM) standard or develop a separate federal standard to address such operations. […]
Two Rhode Island companies, under separate, recently proposed settlements with the EPA, have been ordered to pay combined fines of approximately $280,000 due to alleged violations of reporting requirements for their uses of anhydrous ammonia and metals. The companies alleged violations stem from compliance with the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) and the […]