The United States Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has

cited FIC America, Corp. for eleven safety and health violations, comprised of one repeated, nine

serious, and one other than serious violations. They come in response to inspections of a facility

in Carol Stream, Ill. in January of 2014. This inspection was initiated after an incident where an

employee was injured, resulting in the loss of a fingertip. This injuries happened in January of

2014, as a result of improper machine safety procedures. These violations carry proposed

penalties of $89,000.

“Workers are at risk for debilitating injuries when machine safeguards are ignored,” said Jake

Scott, OSHA’s area director for its North Aurora office, which investigated the incident.

“Machine hazards are among the most frequently cited by OSHA. Manufacturer-installed guards

and industry-standard locking devices protect workers from the dangers of operating machinery.

Yet, each year thousands of workers are injured because employers ignore machine hazards and

do not train workers on safety procedures.”

Eight of the violations were for hazards relating to a failure to protect workers from machinery

operating parts. These violations include: lack of machine guards, failure to establish procedures,

such as using locking devices to prevent unintentional machinery operation during service and

maintenance, and not training workers on machine safety procedures.

If you have any questions about this case or about how to protect your company from fines and

your employees from injuries, please contact us. If you have anything to add about these

findings, please leave a comment.