The United States Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has
cited Behr Iron and Steel for fourteen safety and health violations, comprised of five willful and
nine serious violation. They come in response to an inspection of a worksite in Rockford, Illinois
in September of 2014 as part of the OSHA Severe Violator Enforcement Program. These
violations are for hazards relating to fall and confined space hazards. These violations carry
proposed penalties of $366,400.
“Behr Iron & Steel continues to fail its workers by not implementing required safety procedures
at its facilities, despite repeated OSHA violations and serious injuries to workers,” said Nick
Walters, regional administrator for OSHA in Chicago. “OSHA’s investigation found that safety
training within the company remains inefficient and employees are exposed to amputation and
other serious hazards when operating metal shredding equipment. Behr must make immediate
health and safety program improvements. No worker should be subject to such conditions to earn
a living.”
The company received two willful violations for exposing workers to operating parts of
dangerous machinery during service and maintenance. It also failed to use energy control
procedures, such as powering off and affixing locking devices, to prevent unintentional operation
of machinery. The company also failed to conduct annual inspections of these procedures for
effectiveness. These violations accounted for the five willful violations.
As you can see from the violations, the inspector reviewed all facets of the business to find all of
the potential violations. This is why it is imperative to have complete, updated policies and
procedures relating to lockout tagout for your facility. Should you get an audit, you want to be
sure everything is up to code.
If you have any questions about this investigation or about occupational safety and health in
general, please contact us. If you have anything else to add, please leave a comment.
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