An insulation manufacturing facility in Pennsylvania has been cited by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for violations that may have put the health and safety of its workers at risk. The federal safety agency has called for the company to pay more than $66,000 in penalties for seven violations at its Luzerne County facility. Four of the violations are said to be serious. The violations were handed out on April 28 and stem from a complaint filed in October 2015.
When they inspected the company’s Laflin manufacturing facility, OSHA personnel found ventilation machinery that had not been properly protected against explosions. This left workers vulnerable to injuries caused by fire, deflagration and combustible dust. Inspectors also found large quantities of flammable cellulose fiber dust on surfaces and equipment at the plant and a number of unguarded platforms. OSHA also claims that some of the workers at the plant lacked the proper training to work with dangerous chemicals.
An OSHA representative said that an Ohio facility run by the same insulation manufacturer was cited in 2010 for problems related to combustible dust. The company has 15 days from the date of the citations to either comply with OSHA’s demands, contest the findings or request a meeting with the area director of the agency.
There are situations when people who are injured while on the job may choose file a lawsuit against their employers instead of submitting a workers’ compensation claim. One such situation could be where the negligence of employers is so serious that it amounts to a willful disregard to their employees’ safety. Attorneys with a background in this type of case might assist injured workers by examining the the facts and determining whether a lawsuit or a workers’ compensation claim would be the most prudent path to take.