The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced last Tuesday that it is proposing an additional $39,200 in fines against a North Attleboro stone fabricator for allegedly failing to correct previous citations.
In a news release, the department said that OSHA first cited Mountain Marble and Granite in February, imposing $5,200 in fines for six “serious violations.” According to the release, those violations include: lack of respiratory protection and hazard communication programs for employees exposed to silica and other hazardous substances; untrained forklift operators; a forklift that was improperly modified to fit stone slabs; and unguarded cutting wheels on a stone grinder.
The company paid the fine, but has failed to show OSHA proof that it has corrected the violations, the release said. OSHA conducted a follow-up investigation in June and found several violations still outstanding. Consequently, OSHA has now cited Mountain Marble and Granite with five instances of failing to remedy the outlined violations.
“The ongoing failure to fix these hazards leaves employees continually exposed to potential lung disease, crushing hazard, lacerations and amputations,” Robert Hooper, OSHA’s acting area director for southeastern Massachusetts, said in the release.
Mountain Marble and Granite has 15 days to respond to Tuesday’s request by requesting an informal conference with Hooper or by contesting the citations and fines to the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
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