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Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
For more information call: 202-219-8211
The PDM case is a tragic example of what can happen when basic
precautions are not followed. This accident could have been avoided altogether
by following steel erection procedures and providing appropriate training for
workers. The Departments of Labor and Justice pursued this case to show that
the Clinton administration will not tolerate a lax attitude toward worker
safety and health. OSHA's recently-promulgated regulations on steel erection
are part of the Labor Department's comprehensive effort to make workplaces such
as Pitt-Des Moines safer for the men and women who work in this industry.
The jury recognized that PDM was negligent in its flagrant and willful
disregard for its employees. I applaud the fine work of the Departments of
Labor and Justice in bringing this case to trial and seeing it through to a
successful conclusion. All of us at the Department of Labor continue to feel
for the families of the workers who were killed in this senseless accident. I
hope that today's verdict eases some of the pain they're still feeling.
Note to Editors:
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration
(OSHA) issued citations to Pitt-Des Moines (PDM) on May 2, 1994, following its
investigation of a November, 1993, structural steel collapse that killed two
ironworkers during construction of the Chicago Post Office. The citations
alleged two willful violations with a combined penalty of $140,000 for failure
to secure structural members during the setting of structural steel and for
failure to calculate load limits of the columns.
The Justice Department accepted a referral from OSHA recommending
criminal prosecution, and on Aug. 26, 1996, a federal grand jury returned a
two-count indictment charging the employer with criminal violations of the
Occupational Safety and Health Act for causing the deaths of the two workers.
Trial in the case began on July 7, 1997, before U.S. District Judge Ann
Williams of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. The
case went to the jury on July 29, 1997.
Archived News Release--Caution:
information may be out of date.
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