Labor Law News

Fatal Accident Proposed Penalties Total $154,800

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Aleluya Roofing Co., Miami, with alleged safety and health violations following a fatal construction accident. The agency is proposing penalties totaling $154,800.

"This horrific accident could have been avoided if the employer had followed required safety procedures," said Luis R. Santiago, OSHA's area director in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. "Tragedies like this simply should not happen."

The fatality occurred Jan. 25, 2006, when an employee fell from the roof of a six-story Abbott Avenue building in Miami and was impaled on the pickets of a wrought-iron fence. The worker had been assisting the operator of a trolley hoist when the rear of the machine lifted up, causing the machine and the employee to fall to the street below.

OSHA issued one willful citation with a maximum $70,000 proposed penalty for the employer's failure to comply with the manufacturer's operating specifications for the trolley hoist. A willful citation is issued when an employer has shown an intentional disregard of, or plain indifference to, the requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. An additional willful citation with a proposed penalty of $44,000 was issued because fire exits were reportedly fastened closed with lumber and blocked on four separate occasions.

Aleluya Roofing also received 11 serious citations with proposed penalties totaling $40,800. These citations included the failure to do the following: provide fall protection in a hoist area and at the edge of a flat roof; train employees to recognize fall hazards; and protect employees from an array of dangers.

OSHA personnel issues serious citations when there is a substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result, and that the employer knew or should have known of the hazards.

The company has 15 days to contest the citations and proposed penalties before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. Staff from the Fort Lauderdale OSHA office located at Jacaranda Executive Court, Building H-100, 8040 Peters Road, phone (954) 424-0242, conducted the inspection.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing a safe and healthful workplace for their employees. OSHA's role is to assure the safety and health of America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards; providing training, outreach and education; establishing partnerships; and encouraging continual process improvement in workplace safety and health. For more information, visit osha.gov.

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