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In Rochester, Mass., Covanta has been cited for seven alleged “serious” violations of federal safety rules at its SEMASS waste incinerator by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The citations include an accumulation of fly ash on energy 208-volt electrical equipment and exposing workers to electrical hazards such as arc flash and blast. The total proposed penalties add up to $13,500 against the company.

The citations were issued following an inspection requested by Utility Workers Union Local 369, which represents employees at the plant. A spokesperson for the company said it will not appeal OSHA’s decision or fines on the June 1 citations and will drop its appeal of previous OSHA citations, because it is in the process of renewing its OSHA Voluntary Protection Program participation and needs the support of Local 369.

Four earlier citations were issued on April 2, 2009 and included alleged violations such as “maintaining” electrical equipment with duct tape and cardboard and storing combustible acetylene cylinders next to oxygen cylinders.

Covanta cited again for safety violations, WickedLocal.com, June 18, 2009 Continue reading

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A North Attleboro, Massachusetts metals refining company has been cited by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for 10 alleged serious violations of safety standards. A November 7, 2008 gas lack at the plant prompted an inspection by OSHA’s Boston South Area Office in Braintree. That inspection uncovered several alleged deficiencies in the plant’s Process Safety Management (PSM) program.

According to the citations, the company had not compiled information on the chemicals, equipment, and technology used in the purifying process, and it had not developed and implemented written procedures outlining the process or posted a sign to indicate a confined space, among other safety issues.

OSHA issues serious citations when death or serious physical harm is likely to result from hazards about the employer knew or should have known. The North Attleboro company has 15 business days from receipt of the citations to comply, request an informal conference with the OSHA Area Director, or contest the citations and proposed penalties before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

OSHA proposes more than $46,000 in fines against North Attleboro, Mass., metals plant following chlorine gas leak, HR.CCH.com, June 10, 2009 Continue reading

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Last Monday, a 42-year-old technician was airlifted to the intensive care unit at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston following a wave soldering machine accident.

The machine reportedly caught fire and burned the worker from the chest up when he opened a service door on the machine to add an alcohol-based chemical, according to the fire marshal. A sprinkler above the machine put out the fire before the fire department arrived at the scene of the accident.

The worker, who was identified only by the first name of Scott, was conscious and alert when emergency responders arrived. Officials said his injuries are not life-threatening. Representatives from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are planning an accident investigation to determine if any safety standards were violated. The company released other workers early on the day of the accident.

Man burned in accident on the job in Salem, Eagle-Tribune, June 9, 2009
NH EMS Worker Burned in Wave Accident, CircuitAssembly.com, June 12, 2009 Continue reading

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A Roxbury man has filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against RCN Corp., claiming the broadband company misclassified him and as many as 1,000 other United States installers. According to the lawsuit filed in Boston last week, Fritz Elienberg was employed as an “independent contractor” from 2005 until he was fired in February.

Elienberg claims he and the other “independent contractors” were misclassified so that the company could deny them insurance benefits, overtime, and other benefits. He was also denied compensation to cover medical bills for an injury he sustained on the job.

The lawsuit claims that his employer violated the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and Massachusetts’ independent contractor and overtime laws. RCN provides cable TV, internet, and phone services in Boston and in 16 other Massachusetts communities. Elienberg’s attorney says that an increasing number of companies are misclassifying workers as independent contractors to avoid paying workers compensation, Social Security taxes, and other expenses.

Man sues RCN for ‘abuse’ of contract workers, Boston Herald, June 2, 2009 Continue reading

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Last week, a construction accident claimed the life of a subcontractor who was doing HVAC work for a Wal-Mart Supercenter. The 54-year-old worker was applying sealant to a ceiling duct when he apparently fell off the ladder, hitting his head on the concrete floor. There were no witnesses to the fatal accident; however, another worker found the victim lying on the floor bleeding from the head.

Following the accident, the subcontractor was rushed to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. An EMS crew reportedly told police he had suffered a severe brain bleed.

Falling from a ladder is just one of the possible hazards that workers face. Other risks include on-site explosions, fires, welding accidents, electrical shock accidents, and motor vehicle accidents. These can result in death or serious, life-altering injuries.

Fatal Construction Accident at North Springfield Walmart, KSPR.com, June 4, 2009 Continue reading

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The parents of a worker who died in a construction site accident on I-495 in Lawrence, Massachusetts are campaigning for rules to improve workplace safety and prevent future accidents. The mother of Robert Augeri says that her son’s death could have been prevented if the truck that ran him over had been outfitted with rear motion sensors and other safety devices.

The proposed law, called Rob’s Law, would require trucks to have those and other safety device like day/night rearview cameras. Augeri is hoping to persuade lawmakers to pass the law in Massachusetts and New Hampshire. Eventually, the goal is to make it a federal mandate.

After the fatal construction site accident, OSHA cited two of the companies involved in the accident. Lewis Maynard Trucking, which was the subcontractor who employed the man the driving the truck, was cited for failing to start and maintain an effective safety program. Brox Industries, which employed Augeri, was cited for failing to ensure that its safety program dealt with directing traffic in areas where workers were on foot and for failing to make sure employees were properly trained.

Parents of I-495 victim seek tougher workplace safety rules, The Eagle-Tribune, June 3, 2009 Continue reading

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Last Thursday, the owner of a construction company was crushed and killed when a large metal silo collapsed on top of him. Ron Samford, 50, was tearing down the silo with two of his employees, according to the county sheriff’s chief.

The company was hired to demolish a facility that had produced lime. The facility had been inactive for at least 15 years and had several 100,000 pound metal silos.

According to Tooele County deputy Duke North, “They were just using torches and cutting the metal and the bracing down and they had just completed their cutting and were moving out of the way when it just came down on them.”

The business owner died around 1:30pm. Three hours later, rescue crews were still working to lift the silo off of him. Another worker sustained minor injuries in the industrial accident but did not require a trip to the hospital, and the third worker was not injured.

Construction Business Owner Killed in Industrial Accident, Fox13Now.com, May 28, 2009
Business owner crushed to death by silo, Salt Lake Tribune, May 28, 2009 Continue reading

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In Peabody, Massachusetts, a transfer machine crushed the legs of a worker who was part of a highway repaving project on Route 128 south. According to Phil Jodoin, the resident engineer for MassHighway who was on the scene to oversee the project, the construction accident occurred at 10:30 on Monday evening when the worker was run over by a machine that transfers asphalt dumped by trucks into a paving machine that puts it on the road.

Work stopped temporarily while the work crew waited for a safety officer from the Dracut-based heavy construction company to arrive at the scene of the machinery accident, along with a representative from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

The injured worker was not identified, but the Peabody Deputy fire Chief told the media he was taken by ambulance to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.

Machine crushes worker’s legs, Salem News, May 27, 2009 Continue reading

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Safety and health violations at a residential construction site in Woburn, Massachusetts have resulted in OSHA issuing $79,000 in proposed fines to a North Reading roofing contractor. After an OSHA inspection discovered employees working on a two-story roof without fall protection and with ladders that did not extend at least a yard above the upper landing surface, the company was issued two willful citations, carrying $56,000 in proposed fines. A willful citation is defined as when a safety violation is committed with indifference to or intentional disregard for employee’s health and safety.

In addition to two willful citations, OSHA also issued the roofing contractor 14 serious citations for several scaffold hazards including lack of fall protection, unsecured ladders, lack of head, eye, and face protection for employees exposed to overhead hazards. Those fines amounted to $23,000. OSHA issues serious citations when death or serious physical harm is likely to result from hazards which the employer knew or should have known about.

As OSHA’s area director for Middlesex and Essex counties pointed out, “It takes only one slip or misstep to turn a construction site into an accident scene.”

The company has 15 business days from the receipt of the citations and proposed penalties to comply, request and participate in an informal conference with the OSHA area director or contest the citations and proposed penalties before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

OSHA proposes $79,000 in Fines For Fall Hazards, EHSToday.com, May 19, 2009 Continue reading

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Following an inspection in response to chlorine gas leak at a North Attleboro, Massachusetts metal refining plant, OSHA has cited a Massachusetts company for 10 alleged serious violations of safety standards. The citations carry $46,500 in proposed fines.

OSHA inspectors found the plant’s Process Safety Management (PSM) to be lacking. The PSM is a detailed set of requirements and procedures employers must follow to assess and address potential safety hazards associated with large quantities of hazardous chemicals. The company had not compiled information on the chemicals, technology, and equipment used in the metal purifying process, nor had it performed an initial process hazard analysis. The company also failed to post signs indicating a confined space.

These safety violations resulted in 10 alleged serious citations, which OSHA issues when death or serious physical harm is likely to result from hazards which the employer knew or should have known about. The company has 15 business days from receipt of the citations to respond.

OSHA Proposes More than $46,000 in Fines for Chlorine Gas Leak, OHSonline, May 7, 2009 Continue reading

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