OSHA Fined Major Companies In Q1 2024: Ensuring Safety

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has a strict policy regarding violating safety guidelines. Besides only setting the policy and safety rules, OSHA’s monitoring system is up to the mark. In violation of the rules, the penalties imposition is another strictly followed rule.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) imposed large fines on several construction companies in the first quarter of 2024 for serious safety violations. These penalties are a clear reminder of how crucial it is to follow safety regulations to safeguard employees on construction sites. These penalties also keep the business’s focus religiously on the safety measures at the construction sites.

Adrian Construction Group

Penalty: $1,017,248 

Adrian Construction Group, located in Paterson, New Jersey, was fined a shocking $1 million for continuously putting its employees in danger of falls. OSHA cited six deliberate violations for failing to provide eye and fall protection during a July 2023 inspection at a Franklin Lakes, New Jersey, work site. In addition, the use of dangerous scaffolds and the absence of hard hats resulted in four major infractions.

Adrian Construction Group had encountered difficulties previously. Since 2016, OSHA has conducted five inspections of the business, and each time it found violations related to fall protection. The company was included in OSHA’s Severe Violators Enforcement Program as a result of its persistent disregard for safety procedures.

Pyles Contractors for Plumbing and Utilities

Penalty: $308,125

Following a terrible occurrence on August 10, 2023, Pyles Plumbing and Utility Contractors, a Macon, Georgia-based company, was hit with hefty sanctions. A trench box that was being used by two workers collapsed, burying the workers. A 20-year-old employee passed away, while another was admitted to the hospital.

Due to a failure to provide a safe exit and trench shields, OSHA imposed two intentional violations. Three major infractions were also recorded for permitting workers to enter the trench without the required safety precautions or training. The corporation is presently challenging the recommended fine, which is $308,125 as the total amount.

Brothers Construction Services

Penalty: $306,229

After regularly putting employees in danger of falls, Framingham, Massachusetts-based Brothers Construction Services, a roofing contractor, was hit with large fines. At a home project site in Boston’s Hyde Park district, OSHA saw workers at an altitude of up to 20 feet with no proper fall protection in August 2023.

Initially, eight tickets were issued to the business by the OSHA. There were three willful, three repeat, one serious, and one other-than-serious citation. These tickets were given for neglecting to provide fall protection, teach workers about falls, ensure ladders are used safely, and have a qualified individual check the job site for dangers. Whereas, $306,229 was the total amount of penalties.

United Custom Homes

Penalty: $264,143

Following many violations, United Custom Homes, located in Oswego, Illinois, was hit with hefty fines. In August 2023, inspectors saw workers at a job site in Naperville, Illinois, working at heights of up to 20 feet without wearing safety gear. One intentional, one serious, one other-than-serious, and one repeat citation resulted from this. They included $238,572 in old fines in the total suggested penalties of $264,143. These fines are being challenged by United Custom Homes.

Hurtado Construction Co.

Penalty: $257,811

Following a catastrophic occurrence in September 2023, Richmond, Virginia-based Hurtado Construction Co. was charged with a heavy amount of fine. Unsafe excavation techniques using the used wheeled excavator close to Fulshear, Texas, claimed the life of an 18-year-old laborer. The collapse occurred because an unprotected worker entered an excavation.

Due to OSHA’s failure to guarantee the safety of the trench box, one intentional and five severe citations were issued. The $257,811 in original fines were paid. With eight tickets from a worker fatality in January 2007 and prior citations in 2021 for not having adequate employee safeguards, Hurtado Construction has a history of similar offences.

A Closure

OSHA’s heavy fines in the first quarter of 2024 serve as a stark reminder of how crucial it is for the construction sector to follow safety regulations. These incidents highlight the serious repercussions of disregarding worker safety and highlight OSHA’s responsibility for implementing these regulations to stop workplace deaths. These penalties act as a sharp reminder of the significant risks associated with preserving a safe workplace environment as businesses negotiate the complexity of compliance.