Foothill Packing, Inc. , a Salinas agricultural company pays $180,000 to U.S. workers terminated wrongfully
Foreign workers under H-2A program kept jobs despite being outperformed
Employer: Foothill Packing, Inc.
Location: 1582 G-Moffet St., Salinas, California
Investigation findings: An investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division determined that the termination of 18 American workers by Foothill Packing, a packing and labeling company, violated the labor provisions of the H-2A guest worker program. The employer claimed the workers – who were U.S. citizens – had failed to meet production standards. Investigators found that many of them had consistently exceeded the production of many of the foreign workers doing the same jobs, yet Foothill did not terminate these foreign workers.
Resolution: Foothill Packing paid $180,000 in back wages to the 18 terminated workers and also paid $55,000 in penalties for the violations of H-2A provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act, and provisions of the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act. Foothill agreed to future compliance and signed an agreement with the department requiring the company to:
Designate a staff member whose primary job duties consist of monitoring and reporting the firm’s compliance with all H-2A regulatory requirements.
Provide annual training to all frontline supervisors involved with the H-2A program.
Provide detailed reasons for any future terminations to the U.S. Department of Labor.
Quote: “The H-2A visa program is explicit in stating that all jobs in this country must be offered to U.S. citizens before an employer may receive authorization to hire foreign workers. That same tenet also pertains to keeping workers on the payroll who are meeting performance standards,” said Susana Blanco, director of the Wage and Hour Division office in San Francisco. “We appreciate Foothill Packing’s cooperating with us to compensate the laid-off workers while also stepping up to the plate to ensure future compliance with federal labor laws.”
Information: The H-2A visa program allows companies and farm labor contractors to bring in foreign agricultural workers on a temporary basis when an adequate amount of qualified U.S. workers cannot be found to perform the work. Employers must comply with a number of provisions, including providing housing, potential costs of inbound and outbound transportation from their home country to the U.S., in some cases meals, and must pay the adverse effect wage rate set by the department. In addition, the employer must demonstrate that they made required efforts to hire U.S. workers prior to having their visas approved. Employers must not give H-2A workers preferential treatment or wrongfully discharge U.S. workers.
For more information about federal wage laws administered by the Wage and Hour Division, or to file a complaint, call the agency’s toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243). All services are free and confidential. Information also is available at http://www.dol.gov/whd/.
Job training assistance helps workers displaced by foreign trade
74 percent of program participants employed within three months of completing program
WASHINGTON – A new report from the U.S. Department of Labor shows 74 percent of workers displaced by foreign trade return to work three months after receiving benefits and services provided through the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Workers program. At the six-month mark, more than 92 percent remain employed.
These findings are included in the Trade Adjustment Assistance for Workers Program’s Annual Report, the department announced today.
“Workers who lose their job through no fault of their own deserve the support they need to prepare for their next job,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez. “Trade Adjustment Assistance is a critical component of our modern workforce training system, and the results included in this report show the positive impact this program has for workers and communities around the country.”
The report addresses TAA operations before and after passage of the Trade Adjustment Assistance Reauthorization Act of 2015, which President Obama signed into law on June 29, 2015. The legislation ensured the continuation of the TAA program for six years and changed group eligibility requirements and individual benefits and services for TAA participants.
From Oct. 1, 2014, to Sept. 30, 2015, the report shows the following:
An estimated 57,631 workers became eligible for TAA benefits and services.
The program served 47,335 participants and 54 percent of those participants received training also.
Nearly 90 percent of those who completed training received an industry-recognized credential or a secondary school diploma or equivalent.
Data shows that TAA participants who received training were more likely to be re-employed than those who did not; and training participants who received a degree or industry-recognized credential were more likely to be re-employed than those who did not. Those who receive a credential or completed training also are more likely to retain their employment.
State fact sheets and an interactive data map are available in addition to the full TAA report.
Dove Die & Stamping Company, an Ohio metal stamping facility, faces more than $45K in federal fines for exposing workers to noise hazards
Employer name: Dove Die & Stamping Company, Brook Park, Ohio
Citations issued: June 7, 2016
Investigation findings: The U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s Cleveland Area Office cited Dove Die & Stamping Company for two willful and two serious safety and health violations.
The agency opened an investigation at the Brook Park metal stamping facility in March 2016 after receiving a complaint alleging unsafe working conditions.
Investigators found the company failed to:
Protect workers from excessive noise exposure.
Train workers about noise hazards.
Establish a hearing conservation program including baseline and annual audiograms.
Quote: “Employers have a responsibility to protect workers from exposure to noise hazards that can lead to debilitating health conditions,” said Howard Eberts, OSHA’s area director in Cleveland. “Training workers, providing and requiring the use of hearing protection and annual audiograms are required to protect worker’s long-term health.”
Proposed Penalties: $45,500
Citations: View here.
To ask questions, obtain compliance assistance, file a complaint, or report amputations, eye loss, workplace hospitalizations, fatalities or situations posing imminent danger to workers, the public should call OSHA’s toll-free hotline at 800-321-OSHA (6742) or the agency’s Cleveland Area Office at (216) 447-4194.
OSHA finds flammable chemicals caused fire hazards, unguarded machine amputated worker’s fingertip at PhytogenX
Cosmetics manufacturer fined $285,300 for hazards at Morgantown facility
Employer name: PhytogenX Inc.
Inspection site: 35 Thousand Oaks Blvd., Morgantown, Pennsylvania
Citations issued: On June 8, 2016, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued citations to PhytogenX for four willful and six serious violations.
Inspection findings: On Dec. 10, 2015, OSHA initiated an inspection after the employer notified the agency that a worker had a finger amputated by a machine. The inspection was also in response to a separate complaint alleging hazards related to the storage and handling of flammable liquids at the cosmetic manufacturer.
The willful violations involved improper storage and handling of flammable liquids.
The agency found serious violations when PhytogenX:
Improperly stored, transferred and processed flammable liquids.
Exposed employees to fall and forklift hazards.
Failed to properly guard a filling machine, which caused the amputation.
Failed to provide fire extinguisher and hazards of flammable liquid training.
Failed to develop and implement a written hazard communication program.
Quote: “PhytogenX did not uphold its legal responsibility to provide a safe workplace by exposing employees to serious fire hazards, and not training them to recognize warning signs or special precautions required when working with flammable liquids,” said Kevin Kilp, area director of OSHA’s Harrisburg office. “An employee needlessly suffered the loss of a fingertip, which is something that could have been prevented through basic machine safeguards. This company must immediately address the cited hazards to avoid further incidents from occurring.”
Proposed penalties: $285,300
The citations can be viewed at:
https://www.dol.gov/sites/default/files/newsroom/newsreleases/OSHA20161188a.pdf
https://www.dol.gov/sites/default/files/newsroom/newsreleases/OSHA20161188b.pdf
The employer has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and proposed penalties to comply, request a conference with OSHA’s area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
To ask questions; obtain compliance assistance; file a complaint; or report amputations, eye loss, workplace hospitalizations, fatalities or situations posing imminent danger to workers, the public should call OSHA’s toll-free hotline at 800-321-OSHA (6742) or the agency’s Harrisburg Area Office at 717-782-3902.
Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA’s role is to ensure these conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.
Worker suffers serious injury after arm caught in machine at Bellefontaine, Ohio, rubber-hose manufacturing plant
HBD/Thermoid cited in May 2015 for similar hazards, faces $70K in OSHA fines
BELLEFONTAINE, Ohio – Less than a year after federal inspectors cited an Ohio rubber-hose manufacturer for 11 machine safety violations, the company now faces an additional $70,000 in fines after safety lapses led a 27-year-old male worker to suffer severe injuries at its Bellefontaine plant.
Inspectors from the U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigating the Feb. 16, 2016, injury at HBD/Thermoid Inc. found an improperly guarded drive belt caught the worker’s left arm and caused lacerations and fractures. The agency issued one willful citation to the company on June 9.
“HBD/Thermoid is a repeat violator that continues to put workers at risk of amputations and serious injuries by ignoring safety rules for industrial machines used by workers who manufacturer rubber hoses at the company’s six facilities across the country,” said Kim Nelson, area director of OSHA’s Toledo office. “The company needs to take immediate action and fix these safety issues at its facilities. Employees and their families pay the painful price when companies don’t follow standards to reduce injuries.”
In May 2015, OSHA cited the Bellefontaine facility, for one willful and 10 serious safety violations and levied penalties of $134,000. The agency initiated the 2015 inspection after receiving a referral from the North Carolina Occupational Safety and Health Division after an employee died after being caught in an industrial machine at the company’s Salisbury facility.
View the current citations here.
HBD/Thermoid employs about 1,000 workers corporatewide and manufactures hoses used in a variety of industries, such as transportation, food processing and agriculture. The company also has facilities in Bell Gardens, California; Chanute, Kansas; Salisbury, North Carolina; Oneida, Tennessee; and Eglin, South Carolina.
The company has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
To ask questions, obtain compliance assistance, file a complaint, or report workplace hospitalizations, fatalities or situations posing imminent danger to workers, the public should call OSHA’s toll-free hotline at 800-321-OSHA (6742) or the Toledo Area Office at 419-259-7542.
Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA’s role is to ensure these conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.