OSHA proposes $120K in penalties for Georgia’s Candler Concrete

Source: Occupational Safety and Health Administration

An OSHA inspection of Candler Concrete Products Inc. spurred citation for 19 safety and health violations at the ready mixed producer’s Gainesville, Ga., plant. One willful safety violation for fall hazard exposure, with a proposed $48,400 penalty, was cited for requiring employees performing vehicle and equipment maintenance to work within 3 feet of an open and unguarded pit.

Six repeat safety violations, with $45,830 in proposed penalties, involve failing to remove equipment blocking an exit route; mark signs at fire exit doors; correctly mark a door that could be mistaken for an exit door; provide lockout/tagout training to equipment and machinery maintenance workers; close an unused electrical panel opening; provide outer insulation to an electrical cord; and, protect employees from electrical shock hazards. Six serious safety violations, with proposed penalties of $19,250, involve failing to keep a clean and orderly work site, illuminate an exit sign, maintain an operable emergency pull cable, and provide flashback protection for a gas welding torch.

OSHA proposes a total of $120,370 in penalties for these and other alleged violations. Candler Concrete has 15 days to respond to the findings from the inspection, which was initiated under the OSHA Site-Specific Targeting Program and conducted by the agency’s Atlanta-East Area Office.