Cranesville’s Osha Troubles Continue With Block Plant’s $45,000 Fine

On the heels of a late-2009 fine for its aggregate division’s Scotia, N.Y. bagging plant that may amount to more than $500,000, Cranesville Block Co. is once again on the receiving end of proposed OSHA penalties, totaling $45,500, for alleged “repeat and serious violations of safety and health standards” at its Kingston, N.Y., operation

Sources: U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Region 2, Albany, N.Y.; CP staff

On the heels of a late-2009 fine for its aggregate division’s Scotia, N.Y., bagging plant that may amount to more than $500,000, Cranesville Block Co. is once again on the receiving end of proposed OSHA penalties, totaling $45,500, for alleged repeat and serious violations of safety and health standards at its Kingston, N.Y., operation.

The citations and fines follow OSHA safety and health inspections prompted by employee complaints and concern over chemical and electrical hazards, as well as lack of personal protective equipment for workers. Specifically, OSHA found blocked exits, workers lacking safety glasses and gloves while working with acid, unlabeled containers of hazardous chemicals, unmarked electrical equipment, exposed live electrical parts, and moisture in electrical equipment. “The serious and recurring nature of these hazards is disturbing,” said Edward Jerome, OSHA’s area director in Albany. “Employees are exposed to the hazards of electrocution, burns, eye and hand injuries, and being unable to swiftly exit the workplace in the event of a fire or other emergency. This employer must address these hazards effectively.”

OSHA has issued Cranesville Block two repeat citations, totaling $27,500 in fines, for the lack of personal protective equipment and the unlabeled containers of chemicals, as it had cited the company in 2009 for similar hazards at Fishkill and Glens Falls, N.Y., locations. The remaining hazardous conditions identified in Kingston resulted in the issuance of six serious citations, with $18,000 in fines. OSHA issues serious citations when death or serious physical harm is likely to result from hazards about which the employer knew or should have known.

Cranesville Block has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and proposed penalties to comply, participate in an informal conference with OSHA’s area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.