2002 - 11/18/2002 - Multiple Safety Hazards Lead to $63,000 in OSHA Penalties Against Lynn, Mass. Dairy

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OSHA News Release
2002 - 11/18/2002 - Multiple Safety Hazards Lead to $63,000 in OSHA Penalties Against Lynn, Mass. Dairy

OSHA News Release - Table of Contents

Region 1 BOS 2002-233
Monday, November 18, 2002
Contact: John M. Chavez
Phone: (617) 565-2075

Multiple Safety Hazards Lead to $63,000 in OSHA Penalties Against Lynn, Mass. Dairy

METHUEN, Mass. -- A Lynn, Mass. dairy with a higher than average record of workdays lost to injuries exposed workers to falls, unguarded machinery and other significant safety hazards, according to citations issued Oct. 30, 2002, by the U.S. Labor Department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Proposed fines total $63,000.

Garelick Farms of Lynn (formerly known as West Lynn Creamery) has been cited by OSHA for a total of 27 alleged violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act at its milk processing facility at 626 The Lynnway.

The citations and fines resulted from an inspection conducted from May 6 to Aug. 6 under OSHA's Site Specific Targeting Program which focuses inspections on workplaces where the number of workdays missed by employees due to injuries is higher than average.

"Safety standards require employers to protect workers against fall hazards," said Richard Fazzio, OSHA's area director for Essex and Middlesex Counties. "Employees at Garelick Farms were found to be in danger of falling into unguarded pits and tanks, floor holes and unguarded open-sided work platforms."

The inspection also found numerous instances of unguarded nip points and rotating parts on machines; lack of an exit in the dairy's receiving area; missing exit signs; improper fit-testing for respirators; inadequate lockout/tagout precautions; improper storage of flammable liquids; and inadequate emergency response training, equipment and documentation."

A total of 21 alleged serious violations of safety standards accounted for $60,000 of the proposed fines. A serious violation is cited when death or serious physical harm could be caused by a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.

The company also faces a $3,000 fine for six alleged other-than-serious violations. These include incomplete or unavailable illness and injury logs, unavailable audiometric testing records, lack of eye and face protection, failure to inspect energy control procedures and excess air pressure in a cleaning hose. An other-than-serious violation is a condition that would probably not cause death or serious physical harm but would have a direct and immediate relationship to the safety and health of employees.

Garelick Farms of Lynn has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and proposed penalties to elect to comply with them, to request and participate in an informal conference with the OSHA area director, and/or to contest them before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

The OSHA area office in Methuen, Mass., conducted the inspection. Its telephone number is (617) 565-8110.

A fact sheet detailing the citations and proposed fines is attached.

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OSHA Citations and Proposed Fines Garelick Farms of Lynn Lynn, Mass.

Twenty-one alleged serious violations, with $60,000 in proposed penalties, for:

unguarded open tanks and pits; unguarded floor hole; unguarded open-sided platforms; stairway missing railing; defective ladder available for employee use;
no exit for the receiving area; unmarked exits; non-exits not marked as such;
no verification that employees assigned to work on the ammonia refrigeration system had received and understood required process safety management training and no records of training;
list of emergency responders did not list their duties in an emergency; inadequate number of SCBA tanks and needed backup gear available for emergency response; emergency responders did not receive annual medical exams; lack of certification that all emergency responders had received or completed initial training; emergency responders did not receive annual refresher training;
an employee not medically cleared to wear a respirator was fit-tested for respirator use; emergency responders were not fit-tested annually; employees were not properly fit-tested for respirator use;
employee did not utilize proper lockout/tagout procedures; improper tagout device used; incomplete tagout label;
numerous instances of unguarded nip points and rotating parts on various machines; unguarded point of operation on a compactor; inadequately guarded grinder;
unlabeled electrical switches; flexible cords used as fixed wiring; no strain relief for an electrical cord; use of electrical outlets not suitable for a damp location; employee not trained in safety related electrical work practices;
flammable liquids stored in an inadequate cabinet; two industrial trucks not properly inspected.

Six alleged other than serious violations, with $3,000 in proposed fines, for:

incomplete illness and injury logs;
illness and injury log not available;
unavailable audiometric testing records;
failure to ensure use of appropriate eye and face protection where required;
lack of annual or more frequent inspections of energy control procedures;
excess pressure in an air hose.

Total proposed fines $63,000

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OSHA News Release - Table of Contents


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