August 4, 2016
Tubing manufacturer's fall, electric shock, unguarded equipment
and other safety hazards yield nearly $197K in proposed fines
GD Copper cited for 14 willful, repeat and serious violations
Employer name: Golden Dragon Copper Inc., doing business as GD Copper USA Inc.and other safety hazards yield nearly $197K in proposed fines
GD Copper cited for 14 willful, repeat and serious violations
Inspection site: 405 GD Copper Drive, Pine Hill, Alabama 36769
Citations issued: The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued citations to GD Copper for two willful, one repeat, nine serious and two other-than-serious safety violations.
Investigation findings: The agency issued willful citations for exposing employees to slip, trip and fall hazards and allowing employees to work on equipment without following proper safety procedures to protect them from hazardous stored energy. One repeat violation relates to failing to provide training on hazardous energy sources and the methods available to secure the energy prior to performing maintenance on equipment.
The serious violations relate to:
- Exposing employees to unguarded machine parts and equipment.
- Putting workers in danger of falls due to missing safety rails.
- Failing to evaluate a permit required confined space prior to workers entering.
- Not conducting annual audits of the energy control procedures.
- Exposing workers to electric shock hazards.
Proposed penalties: $196,900
Quote: "Our inspection has identified numerous serious safety hazards that put employees at risk of injury or death," said Joseph Roesler, OSHA's area director in Mobile. "GD Copper must be more proactive in identifying these hazards and taking action to correct them. Employers should not wait for an OSHA inspection or an incident to occur before they assess their workplace to ensure workers at protected."
The citations can be viewed at: www.osha.gov/ooc/citations/GDCopper_1125762.pdf
GD Copper manufactures tubing for heating and cooling systems, appliances, refrigeration and plumbing. Based in China, the company employs approximately 390 workers in Pine Hill. 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 Mobile Area Office at 251-441-6131.
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.
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A bumpy start for GD Copper: communication crises, union battles and safety failures
GD Copper holds its grand opening in Sunny South, Alabama. The new copper facility will employ 300 in Wilcox County. (Joe Songer/jsonger@al.com).
Joe Songer | jsonger@al.com
Michael Finch II
on January 16, 2015 at 3:15 PM, updated January 19, 2015 at 11:56 AM
SUNNY SOUTH, Alabama -- GD Copper USA has barely been open a year, but by most measures 2014 was a rough one: Safety regulators proposed a $36,000 fine against the company. Workers recently started a union.
And now a National Labor Relations Board official will soon visit the plant in Wilcox County to sort out a series of allegations filed with the federal agency. Despite an appeal from Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley, a slim majority of the workers chose to join the United Steelworkers Union last year at the factory in the small rural community of Sunny South.
The latest complaint to the labor board came from an employee heavily involved in the pro-union campaign charging that he was disciplined -- at least in part -- for his participation in organizing at the plant of more than 180 employees.
Joseph Boykins worked as a crane operator, until management removed him from his job after the hook of the crane made contact with another employee's head less than one month later. Boykins, 49, described the event as a minor incident that didn't result in any loss time or injury, but he was required to take a drug test, was suspended for 90 days and had to reapply to be recertified for his old job.
The incident, he said, occurred in late November. So it came as a surprise when it wasn't mentioned during a staff meeting the following month. "For the month of November we had no recordable injuries. We had no mishaps," he said. "But by the same token I was taken off my job. I just think it was retribution for the union."
Meanwhile, employees, GD Copper management and local economic development officials are still awaiting a decision from the NLRB to determine the outcome of the election. GD Copper claims that some employees were coerced with threats or promises; and interrogated to join the United Steelworkers Union prior to the election held last November.
Boykins denied that the union coercion charge was true. "At that time, during the campaign we had about 154 employees. I take it 128 of them signed union cards," Boykins said. "We didn't need to threaten anybody because everybody wanted it."
A field investigator will visit the plant in hopes of sorting out the complaints. The charges could be dropped, or the company could be issued a citation if it violated the law.
A rocky start
A Chinese-owned firm, GD Copper has experienced something of a rocky beginning since starting production. In the months after its grand opening in May, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration opened two cases, issuing penalties for 14 serious health and safety violations.
The OSHA fine coincides with employee concerns about safety inside the factory, which ultimately led them to unionize. Communication issues between workers and Chinese trainers also influenced their decision. Attempts to reach GD Copper officials and their attorneys were unsuccessful.
GD Copper is Golden Dragon Precise Copper Tubing Group's first plant in the United States. The company also owns a factory in Mexico. The area surrounding the plant has become an indicator of economic development success and Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley's No. 1 exhibit for job creation in the state.
The unionization effort prompted Bentley to author a letter to employees, urging them not to join.
"Let's give GD Copper a chance to respond and address your concerns in an open way when they arise," Bentley wrote in the letter. "This is only fair, especially when the company has made such an investment in you and your community."
Economic developers are keeping a close watch over the company as the events unfold.
Thomasville Mayor Sheldon Day, who had a hand in recruiting the manufacturer to the state, said all signs show that the firm is doing better. Hiring has continued. The firm is expected to soon reach 300 employees as a part of its agreement with state and local governments.
Day dreamed up the idea to create a "metals corridor" in southwest Alabama. Golden Dragon was headed for neighboring Clarke County, but found a better location in Wilcox.
The jobs, he said, are "having a positive impact on our economy and our community." As for the bumpy rollout so far, Day said the region is still committed to the company. "We don't just stand with them at the ribbon cutting. We stand with them going forward."