Dive Brief:
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The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has fined a Hackensack, NJ-based roofing company $112,487 for one serious and three repeat safety violations for fall-related hazards and for failing to provide eye protection at two multifamily job sites in New Jersey.
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The agency started its investigation into Hackensack Roofing Co. Inc. on Oct. 18 on a site in East Rutherford, NJ, after inspectors saw employees there working on a roof without fall protection. OHSA’s probe on another site, in Wellington, NJ, followed a complaint alleging fall hazards.
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The company was cited for similar breaches in 2014.
Dive Insight:
OSHA’s latest investigation comes as part of its Local Emphasis Program on falls. The agency reported 6,929 fall-protection violations this year, the most of any workplace safety violation for the period.
The administration has intensified its focus on fall protection and recently issued a number of fines for fall-related breaches, including a fine of $87,794 for four repeat and two serious violations by Plymouth Meeting, PA-based Real Contractors LLC earlier this month.
That came on the heels of a fine of $80,741 issued by the agency against Burbank, IL-based contractor JW Construction & Plastering Inc. for failing to provide adequate fall protection and protective equipment, among other violations.
OSHA continues to introduce new measures aimed at improving workplace safety. This summer, it hiked the maximum civil penalty payout by 78% to comply with a federally mandated rate rise.
Roughly 520 companies have been added to OSHA’s Severe Violators Enforcement Program from 2010 to mid-April 2016, of which 60% are in the construction industry.
