Dive Brief:

• The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has fined a Plymouth Meeting, PA-based contractor $87,794 for four repeat and two serious violations, including fall-related hazards.

• OSHA began its investigation into Real Contractors LLC in June on a site in Philadelphia after a compliance officer observed workers there being exposed to the risk of falls.

• The agency cited the company for failure to provide workers with safe access to scaffold platforms, fall protection for heights up to 13 feet and fall prevention training. The company was cited for similar violations in February 2016, 2015, 2014 and 2013.

Dive Insight:

Fall protection topped the list of workplace safety violations this year, with the agency reporting 6,929 breaches.

OSHA has recently issued a number of high fines for fall protection infringements. Earlier this month, Illinois contractor JW Construction & Plastering Inc was fined $80,741 for failing to provide adequate fall protection and protective equipment, as well as for not offering the training required to work safely with silica and Portland cement.

This followed a $307,824 fine issued to Ohio-based A&W Roofing in November for also failing to provide proper fall protection.

OSHA has recently rolled out new initiatives aimed at improving safety on job sites. This summer, it raised the maximum civil penalty payout by 78% for all violations to comply with a federally mandated rate rise.

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