June 15, 2015
62-year-old worker dies after manufacturer ignores safety hazards.
OSHA cites Ridewell Corp. for 1 willful safety violation
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – If they had been in place, safety
mechanisms might have saved a 62-year-old parts assembler who died
after he was struck by a 4-pound metal spacer that flew off a 4-ton
hydraulic press, U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health
Administration inspectors determined.
An investigation at Ridewell Corp., a Springfield-based manufacturer
of vehicle suspension systems, found the worker received multiple broken
bones and internal injuries in the January incident. He had been
employed at the company for 31 years. Inspectors found that the machine
he was working on lacked required safety mechanisms.
"This tragic loss could have been prevented," said Barbara Theriot,
OSHA's area director in Kansas City.
"Ridewell workers are at risk for life-threatening hazards every time
machinery is operated because this company chooses not to keep them
safe."
OSHA cited Ridewell for one willful and one additional safety
violation. The willful violation cites the company for failing to
protect workers from operating parts of machinery. The company also
failed to provide the requested First Report of Injury document within
the required four-hour timeline, resulting in one other-than-serious
violation. OSHA has proposed penalties of $71,000.
Ridewell has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and
penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA's area
director in Kansas City, 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 Kansas
City office at (816) 483-9531.
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.