Massachusetts Workers' Compensation Lawyer Blog
Massachusetts contractors Shawnlee Construction and James T. Lynch Contractors, Inc., potentially face over $100,000 in fines for violating federal safety standards, announced the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) last week. OSHA says the construction site of a new McDonald’s restaurant in Concord, New Hampshire put construction workers and other employees at risk for injuries by not following safety standards.
Last November, OSHA compliance officers visited the McDonald’s construction site and found employees of Shawnlee Construction working on 15-foot high trusses without fall protection or properly anchored fall-protection lifelines. The officers also found that Shawnlee workers were not wearing eye protection while using nail guns nor did the company use fall protection harnesses and lanyards properly. OSHA has cited Shawnlee for similar work site violations in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island during the past three consecutive years. Because the Plainville, Mass.-based roofing company is a repeat offender, they received $96,500 in fines.
James T. Lynch Contractors, Inc., an excavation company based in Reading, Massachusetts, was also fined a total of $23,700 for using an access ladder that was too short, not having a hazard communication training program, and for putting construction workers at risk for cave-in accidents. The latter was considered a willful violation, which is the most serious violation, committed with “plain indifference to or intentional disregard for employee safety and health,” according to a press release announcing OSHA’s findings. The excavation company had been sited for similar violations in the past.
Both companies have 15 days to meet with OSHA or contest their fines.
If you suffered injuries from a construction accident, an industrial accident, or another workplace accident, our Massachusetts construction accident attorneys can make sure that you receive the medical treatment you need and the worker’s compensation you deserve under the law. We can protect clients from employers or insurance companies that want to cut off benefits or help families collect compensation in workplace wrongful death cases.
NH officials say 2 Mass. contractors endangered workers at site, Boston Herald, June 10, 2008
Two firms fined for safety lapses, Concord Monitor, June 12, 2008
Related Web Resources:
Massachusetts Department of Industrial Accidents, mass.gov
Occupational Safety & Health Administration, osha.gov
