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OSHA News Release
2008 - 05/28/2008 - Fall hazards at Norwich, Conn., jobsite lead to $117,000 in U.S. Labor Department OSHA fines for Milford, Mass., contractor |
OSHA News Release - Table of Contents |
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Region 1 News Release: 08-629-BOS/BOS 2008-157 Wed., May 28, 2008 Contact: Ted Fitzgerald Phone: 617-565-2074 Fall hazards at Norwich, Conn., jobsite lead to $117,000 in U.S. Labor Department OSHA fines for Milford, Mass., contractor
Alex General Construction twice previously cited in Rhode Island for similar hazards HARTFORD, Conn. - A Milford, Mass.-based roofing contractor with a history of fall protection violations again has been cited by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for fall hazards, this time at a residential construction site in Norwich, Conn. Alex General Construction Inc. was cited for 11 alleged repeat and serious violations of safety standards following OSHA's inspection of a worksite located at 29 School St. The inspection began Nov. 19, 2007, when an OSHA inspector observed Alex employees working without fall protection on a steep-pitched roof 24 feet above the ground. "The sizable fines proposed in this case reflect both the seriousness and the recurrence of this potentially deadly and disabling hazard," said C. William Freeman III, OSHA's area director in Hartford. "This employer's repeated failure to ensure a basic safeguard leaves employees exposed to falls, the number one killer in construction work." OSHA has issued the company four repeat citations, carrying $85,000 in proposed penalties, for lack of fall protection and inadequate fall protection training for employees working on a 24-foot-high roof, extension ladders that did not extend at least 3 feet above their landing surface and placement of an aluminum extension ladder within 18 inches of an energized power cable. OSHA had cited Alex Construction in July and September 2006 for similar hazards at worksites in Providence and Johnston, R.I. An additional $32,000 in fines has been proposed for seven serious citations addressing lack of protection against falling objects, an improperly erected ladder jack scaffold, no fall protection for employees working on the scaffold, use of a damaged extension ladder, no ladder safety training and improper ladder use. A serious citation is issued when death or serious physical harm is likely to result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known. The company has 15 business days from receipt of its citations to contest them before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. This inspection was conducted by OSHA's Hartford Area Office; telephone 860-240-3152. Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing a safe and healthy workplace for their employees. OSHA's role is to promote the safety and health of America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards; providing training, outreach and education; establishing partnerships; and encouraging continual process improvement in workplace safety and health. For more information, visit www.osha.gov. ### U.S. Department of Labor releases are accessible on the Internet at www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format (large print, Braille, audiotape or disc) from the COAST office upon request. Please specify which news release when placing your request at 202-693-7828 or TTY 202-693-7755. The Labor Department is committed to providing America"s employers and employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit www.dol.gov/compliance. |
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