July 31, 2018
U.S. Department of Labor Cites Oregon Shipbuilder
For Serious and Willful Safety Violations
PORTLAND, OR –
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Vigor Marine Inc. for 16 willful and serious violations following an inspection at the shipbuilder’s Portland, Oregon, facility. The facility is located in Swan Island. The company faces proposed penalties totaling $370,727.
OSHA investigated the facility after receiving employee complaints of workplace hazards while performing hot work in the engine room of a passenger ferry. Inspectors determined that the company allowed employees to work on energized circuit boxes; failed to conduct fit-testing and medical evaluations before providing respirators and implement an effective hearing conservation program; and failed to make sure employees wore seat belts when operating powered industrial trucks. Oregon and Alaska workplace safety and health agencies have also cited the company with similar violations at its facilities in those states.
“This employer’s failure to monitor work areas for the presence of hazards, and implement effective controls is putting their employees at risk for serious injuries,” said OSHA Seattle Area Office Director Cecil Tipton.
The company has 15 business days from receipt of the 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.
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 help 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 www.osha.gov.
=========================
Our 60-acre Swan Island shipyard is one of largest and most capable shipyards on the West Coast. We offer the full range of all our Vigor services in this single yard.
About Vigor
With nine locations and approximately 2,300 workers Vigor is the leading provider of shipbuilding, ship repair and complex fabrication in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska.
We build fishing boats, tugs, ferries, barges, fireboats, high performance combatant crafts and a variety of aluminum workboats. Our shipbuilding experts live for the challenge of delivering new vessels on time and on budget.
If it floats, we repair it. From small fishing boats to the country’s largest catcher processors, from basic barges to state-of-the-art articulated tug and barge sets, from offshore supply vessels to floating drill rigs, and from aircraft carriers to cruise ships, Vigor’s ship repair teams can tackle any repair project, where our customers need us, when they need us.
We fabricate heavy, high complexity projects from structural bridge girders to nuclear containment devices, from dam lift gates to space launch complex towers. We love to build. The tighter tolerance and the more complex the better.
We're privately owned and publicly minded. We value training, hard work, and smart thinking. We hold every employee accountable for success: theirs, ours, and our customers. We minimize barriers and respond quickly to market conditions and customers' needs. We're serious about safety and environmental stewardship.
Our companies share a common goal: providing world-class maritime and industrial services to support our customers and strengthen the communities where we live and work.