Federal OSHA has cited CITGO Refining and Chemicals LP in Corpus Christi Texas for workplace safety violations resulting from a catastrophic release of hydrocarbon and hydrofluoric acid from the alkylation unit at this facility. Proposed penalties total $236,500.

“CITGO did not ensure adequate maintenance and oversight of its process safety equipment, exposing workers to the release of toxic chemicals and posing a danger to not only the company’s employees but to the community, as well,” said Dean McDaniel, OSHA’s regional administrator in Dallas, Texas.

OSHA has alleged two willful, 15 serious and one repeat violation following an investigation that began July 20, 2009. The willful violations include failing to adequately repair and maintain process equipment, and to update changes in operating procedures. A willful violation is one committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law’s requirements, or with plain indifference to employee safety and health.

Serious violations include failing to maintain floor holes to prevent employees from tripping, to properly label electrical equipment, to prevent exposure to electrical parts, to update piping and instrumentation diagrams, and to address process hazard analysis deficiencies. A serious violation is one that could cause death or physical harm that can result from a hazard an employer knew or should have known exists.

The repeat violation addresses failing to train workers regarding modified procedures. A repeat violation is issued when an employer previously was cited for the same or similar violation of any standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facilities in federal enforcement states within the last three years.

Top Stories

I don’t know how many times over the years I have heard various people state that if you have less than 10 employees you are exempt from OSHA.   I can understand why they have come to this conclusion.  However, this train of thought may not be totally accurate.  So let’s take a closer look.

Looking at OSHA’s compliance directive CPL 02-00-051 - CPL 2-0.51J – “Enforcement Exemptions and Limitations under the Appropriations Act” it outlines who OSHA can inspect and for what reasons.  The table below best outlines this information.  But in a nutshell if you are part of a farm that has 10 or fewer employees and don’t have any temporary labor camps, Federal OSHA pretty much cannot come in for any reason.  If you are a farm with more than 10 employees or you have had a temporary labor camp within the last 12 months then they can inspect you for pretty much any reason. 

If you are part of an operation outside of farming with an SIC (Standard Industrial Classification Code) with a Days Away, Restricted, or Transferred (DART) rate less than the national average rate of 2.0 then there are some types of inspections you are exempt from.  Such as programmed general safety inspections.  However, you are not exempt for programs health inspections.  To see the whole list take a look at the chart below.

Now, how do you know if your SIC is on the list of exempt?  Well the best bet is to click the link and go to appendix A of the CPL 02-00-051 - CPL 2-0.51J – “Enforcement Exemptions and Limitations under the Appropriations Act“.

Keep in mind this is for Federal OSHA only and State programs may and do have different rules. 

There is one other bit of information for non-farm employers of ten or fewer employees who do receive an inspection from OSHA.  If it is a complaint that prompted the inspection, it must be made by a current employee.  Citations may be issued for any violation found during a complaint inspection whether or not the violation found was a subject of the complaint. But penalties may only be assessed when the violations are classified as willful violations or failure to abate notifications and when such violations and failure to abate notifications are related to the original complaint.

So while small employers do have some exemptions unless you are a small farm OSHA can inspect your operation.  But keep in mind whether OSHA can or can’t come through your doors it is still imperative to keep employee safety first and foremost in all you do.

Note: OSHA defines “Ten or fewer employees” as an employer who employs 10 or fewer employees currently and at all times during the last 12 months. 

Click here to register for our free monthly safety newsletter.

Top Stories

OSHA has cited HomeGoods for 16 alleged violations of workplace safety standards. The retailer faces a total of $233,500 in proposed fines, chiefly for exit access, fire and crushing hazards at its Commack, N.Y., store.

Responding to an employee complaint, OSHA found exit routes obstructed by stock and equipment, an exit route too narrow for passage, stacked material that prevented employees from identifying the nearest exit, blocked access to fire extinguishers, workers not trained in fire extinguisher use and boxes stored in unstable 8-foot high tiers.

OSHA had cited Home Goods in 2006 and 2007 for similar conditions at the company’s Mount Olive, N.J., and Somers, N.Y., locations. As a result of what OSHA calls “recurring conditions”, OSHA issued the company five repeat citations, with $200,000 in proposed fines, for the hazards at the Commack store.

“It’s been 99 years since the fire at The Triangle Shirtwaist Co. in New York City took the lives of nearly 150 workers and almost 19 years since two workers were killed when they were unable to exit the McCrory’s store in Huntington Station, N.Y., during a fire,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Dr. David Michaels. “Blocked fire exits can be deadly. It is that simple.”

OSHA’s Commack inspection identified additional hazards, including a defective fire alarm box, a missing exit sign, electrical hazards and inadequate chemical hazard communication. These conditions resulted in nine serious citations, with $32,500 in fines. Finally, the store was issued one other-than-serious citation, with a $1,000 fine, for not providing injury and illness logs.

“There can be no delay in exiting a workplace during a fire or other emergency when the difference between escape and injury or death can be measured in seconds,” said Michaels. “Employers must ensure that exit routes are unobstructed at all locations.”

“One means of preventing recurring hazards is for employers to establish an effective comprehensive workplace safety and health program through which involve their employees in proactively evaluating, identifying and eliminating hazards,” said Robert Kulick, OSHA’s regional administrator in New York.

A fact sheet covering emergency exit routes is available at http://www.osha.gov/OshDoc/data_General_Facts/emergency-exit-routes-factsheet.pdf.

�
Need help with developing your emergency action plan call Advanced Safety & Health at 1-866-339-8040

Top Stories

Investigations reveal combustible dust, noise, lack of machine guards, and guardrails producing over $250,000 in fines

Federal OSHA is proposing 41 safety and health violations against Birdsong Corp.’s facilities in Sylvester and Blakely, Ga.

According to Robert Vazzi (OSHA Area Director) “Our inspections, and a worker fatality at the Blakely plant, show the need for management to get serious about the safety and health of its employees.”

OSHA began an inspection of Birdsong’s Sylvester plant in June 2009. Compliance officers found 21 serious safety violations and one other-than-serious safety violation, including lack of machine guards, fall hazards, electrical hazards, a lack of emergency lighting and unmarked exit doors. In July 2009, a separate inspection was opened to address possible noise hazards at the plant, resulting in three serious and one other-than-serious health violations.

In September 2009, OSHA moved on to the company’s Blakely, Ga., facility following a fatality at the site in which a worker was caught in a conveyor belt. That investigation led to the issuance of three serious safety violations and one other-than-serious safety violation, including lack of machine guarding and lack of guardrails.

During the course of the fatality investigation, the compliance officer grew concerned about possible combustible dust hazards at the plant. A separate combustible dust inspection was begun and resulted in the issuance of 11 serious violations.

The inspections resulted in proposed penalties of $137,250, $88,200 for the Sylvester plant and $49,050 for the Blakely plant.

Birdsong Corp. is headquartered in Suffolk, Va., and has facilities in Georgia, Texas and Virginia.

Top Stories

OSHA issued CES Environmental Services Inc. 15 willful and 54 serious citations after an investigation into a fatal explosion at the company’s Griggs Road facility in Houston Texas. Proposed penalties total $1,477,500.In July 2009, an employee cleaning a tank was killed in an explosion when an altered piece of equipment ignited flammable vapors inside the tank. The fatality was the third death in less than a year at this employer’s facilities; two hydrogen sulfide exposure-related deaths at a related facility, Port Arthur Chemical & Environmental Services LLC (PACES), occurred in December 2008 and April 2009.

“Proper precaution prevents deaths,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis. “Employers should take steps to eliminate hazards and provide a safe working environment for their workers. That is the law.”

Based on the most recent investigation, OSHA has issued 15 willful citations with proposed penalties totaling $1,050,000, alleging that 15 pieces of electrical equipment were unsafe to use in the tank wash area due to the presence of flammable and combustible vapors. Two additional willful citations with proposed penalties totaling $125,000 have been issued. One alleges that CES failed to ventilate tanks in which employees were working, exposing the workers to toxic atmospheric hazards. The other alleges that CES stored flammable and reactive chemicals together, which posed fire and explosion hazards.

In addition, OSHA has issued 54 serious violations with proposed penalties totaling $302,500. These include allegations that CES failed to implement all aspects of the process safety management standard; provide proper respiratory protection, confined space rescue equipment and adequate fall protection; properly install and maintain boiler equipment; implement an emergency response plan, and adequate energy control procedures; train powered industrial truck operators; guard and to anchor machinery adequately; store compressed gas cylinders safely; and label hazardous chemicals.

OSHA previously cited PACES following the Dec.18, 2008 and the April 14, 2009, fatalities and proposed penalties of $16,600 and $207,800, respectively. Both of those fatalities occurred in Port Arthur, Texas. Those citations were contested and are being litigated before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. CES and PACES together employ 155 workers.

See related Articles:
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hotstories/6798145.html

http://ohsonline.com/articles/2010/01/04/osha-sends-message-with-filing.aspx?admgarea=news
�


 

Top Stories

OSHA has cited International Masonry Inc. in Columbus Ohio with proposed penalties totaling $140,800 for alleged serious and willful violations of federal workplace safety standards after investigating the death of a worker.

International Masonry Inc. has been cited with three willful violations. The proposed penalties of $112,000 are for allegedly modifying the manufacturer’s designed outrigger brackets on scaffolding, not ensuring scaffolding was properly secured to prevent tipping and not ensuring bracing was installed according to manufacturer’s recommendations.The company also has received citations for seven serious violations, with proposed fines of $28,000. Some of the violations address the company’s failure to ensure that power industrial-truck operators were properly trained; failure to repair or replace damaged scaffolding components; guardrail not properly installed; and ladders not used as required, according to safety standards. The company also received an other-than-serious violation with a fine of $800 for not maintaining proper recordkeeping logs.

“Fatalities and injuries of workers due to falls from scaffolding are very much preventable if proper safety procedures are adhered to,” said Deborah Zubaty, OSHA’s area director in Columbus. “OSHA will use all legal measures to ensure that employers that willfully ignore OSHA safety regulations come into compliance. We want workers to return home, safe and healthy, at the end of every shift.”

OSHA conducted their inspection in July 2009 following the fatality of a worker who fell approximately 37 feet after the scaffolding he and two other workers were on collapsed. The family owned company, which employs approximately 100 people, specializes in masonry and stonework construction and has had 59 previous OSHA inspections resulting in 41 violations since 1973, including a fatality inspection in 2002.

Top Stories