WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Labor today announced a final rule clarifying the rights of employees to authorize a representative to accompany an Occupational Safety and Health Administration compliance officer during an inspection of their workplace will be published in the Federal Register on April 1.

SAN FRANCISCO ‒ The U.S. Department of Labor has ordered a former senior vice president and two managers employed by PrimeLending to pay $35,000 in emotional damages and the legal fees of two California employees who the company fired illegally after they reported a branch manager pressured them to pass on fees to loan applicants caused by the company’s internal processing delays. 

BELLEFONTAINE, OH ‒ In October 2023, following the receipt of a complaint, U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspectors opened an inspection at an Ohio industrial hose manufacturer’s Bellefontaine plant. This was OSHA’s eighth investigation into HBD Thermoid Inc. since 2013. 

SHELBY, OH ‒ Despite citations from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration for similar hazards at its Shelby facility in 2022, ArcelorMittal Tubular Products USA LLC — a subsidiary of one of North America’s largest steel suppliers — failed to protect a 60-year-old employee from severe injuries after they became caught in a pinch point created by a bundle of steel tubes and a rotating roller conveyor in December 2023.

HO-HO-KUS, NJ – Vigorous litigation by the U.S. Department of Labor has convinced a New York roofing company to stop contesting the egregious willful and other citations it received and the $687,536 penalty assessed after a 2022 workplace safety investigation at a Ho-Ho-Kus worksite. 

CULLMAN, AL – A 38-year-old worker at a Cullman manufacturing plant suffered fatal injuries after getting caught inside a molding machine, a fatality the employer could have prevented by following established safety rules, a U.S. Department of Labor workplace safety investigation found.

Employer:      Dean Sausage Co. Inc.

                        3750 Pleasant Valley Road

                        Attalla, AL 35954

WASHINGTON ‒ Home of the iconic Corn Palace — a symbol of the region’s healthy agricultural climate since 1892 — Mitchell, South Dakota will be the host location on March 25 for the national kick-off of the 2024 Stand Up 4 Grain Safety Week.   

GAINESVILLE, GA – The U.S. Department of Labor has filed a federal court complaint against a Lawrenceville pesticide and agricultural chemical manufacturer after the company allegedly terminated a worker’s employment in retaliation for filing a safety and health complaint with the department. 

OKLAHOMA CITY – An Oklahoma City employer’s failure to follow federal safety procedures left a 30-year-old worker suffering fatal asphyxiation as they tried to make repairs inside a water tank at a McClain County wellsite in September 2023, a federal investigation has found.

HOUSTON – A Houston-area contractor’s willful disregard for required safety procedures contributed to an 18-year-old worker fatality when a 15-foot trench wall collapsed on him near Fulshear in September 2023, a federal investigation has found. 

Who:               U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration

What:             2024 Central Alabama Construction Safety Conference and Expo

When:             March 14, 2024

NEW YORK – An East Patchogue construction contractor will pay $144,000 in penalties and implement enhanced compliance actions and policies to reduce workplace hazards for its companies’ and subcontractors’ employees as part of a stipulated settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Labor.

VINELAND, NJ – A Vineland subsidiary of Hanover Foods Corp., a prominent northeast food manufacturer, allowed workers to service and clean equipment without having procedures in place to stop machinery from starting unexpectedly, a recent federal investigation has found.

BRAINTREE, MA — The Aug. 29, 2023, fatal injury of a forklift operator at Boston’s Logan International Airport may have been prevented if his employer, a Rochester, New York-based maintenance firm, had ensured proper safeguards for operating and maintaining forklifts, a U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspection has found.

VALENCIA, PA – A federal investigation has determined a Valencia finishing company could have prevented a 46-year-old supervisor from suffering fatal injuries in September 2023 by following required safety standards.

ATLANTA – The U.S. Department of Labor has cited an Atlanta chemical manufacturer with a staggering 67 serious violations and a proposed penalty of $289,439 for exposing workers to a series of workplace dangers associated with chemicals and struck-by hazards.

LIBERAL, KS – Federal investigators determined a Liberal truck washing company failed to protect workers from hydrogen sulfide gas as they entered over-the-road tanker trailers to clean them out, causing one worker’s fatal injuries and hospitalizing two co-workers. 

MILLVILLE, NJ – The U.S. Department of Labor has reached a settlement to resolve litigation against a Pennsylvania manufacturer that followed a safety and health investigation. The investigation resulted in 17 affirmed violations of federal workplace safety standards at the Regal Industrial Corp. in Millville in 2022.

ROBBINSVILLE, NJ – A Robbinsville frozen food manufacturer with an extensive history of violating federal safety and health standards was cited again by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, after a worker suffered an amputation in August 2023.

The agency determined the company exposed workers to lockout/tagout hazards – where energy may be inadvertently released – and cited it for four willful, one repeat and three serious violations, amounting to a $551,719 penalty.