Following
up on OSHA’s fall prevention campaign, developed in conjunction with NIOSH and
its National Research Agenda program, and intended to reduce the 250 fall
related construction worker deaths and 10,000 fall related injuries in 2010,
OSHA is cracking down on construction sites where construction companies fail
or refuse to implement fall protection for tradespeople and laborers. This
month the agency issued fall protection citations with proposed fines of nearly
half a million dollars against four companies involved in a Jersey City, New
Jersey project located at 837 Jersey Avenue.
The
OSHA citations were issued based on a site inspection December 7, 2011 in which
OSHA inspectors discovered workers on the fourth floor of the 20 story project
working without fall protection. Concrete subcontractors Altura Concrete, for
the foundation, and Nathill Corp., for the superstructure, face proposed fines
totaling $355,000.00 for working with open sides and edges on six levels of the
project, working around open holes, and other violations. General contractor White
Diamond Properties faces proposed fines of $95,400.00 for willful fall
protection violations, failing to have shoring drawings on site, and other
violations.
The
balance of the proposed fines were assessed against masonry subcontractor Blade
Contracting for failing to provide fall protection, improper scaffolding use,
and scaffolding inspection failures. OSHA is on the warpath, so have your
workers tie off every day.
