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Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Federal Government Sues Firm For $1M In OSHA Penalties
An article in today's edition of the Saipan Tribune reports "The U.S. government filed yesterday a lawsuit against Sablan Construction Company Ltd. to collect its alleged delinquent debts totaling over $1 million arising from numerous penalties imposed by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration."
The lawsuit was filed on March 18th in the Northern Mariana Islands District Court with the Presiding Judge being Chief Judge Alex R. Munson. The Northern Mariana Islands are a U.S. Commonwealth. They are located in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines.
The Saipan Tribune article states that the government complaint alleges "that on July 18, 1991, an OSHA safety officer conducted a comprehensive safety inspection of the company's operations at its Sablan Building in Chalan Piao and found multiple violations."
As a result on Oct. 17, 1991, OSHA issued 15 citations, including seven “serious” violations. Additional inspections that resulted in citations and fines were conducted in 1992, 1995, 1999 and 2001.
For example, OSHA reports that following up on a report they received in January 1999, an inspection of the Marpi Road Expansion Project was conducted that resulted in citations for two willful violations with penalties of $80,000, and three serious violations with penalties of $12,600.
The two willful violations were allowing employees to work in conditions where cave-ins could occur without providing adequate cave-in protection; and for falsifying the records of occupational injuries and illnesses. The serious violations included failure to provide a safe means of escape from an excavation; allowing employees to work under a suspended load; and for failure to keep excavated soil and other material a safe distance from the edge of a trench.
The 1999 OSHA inspection also revealed that the company falsified required records of injuries. Although the company was the subject of a number of workers compensation insurance claims over the last few years, company records did not show any injuries. Injury records are reviewed during OSHA inspections and are one of the factors considered in proposing penalties for violations.
The $1,000,000 the government is suing for a total of $700,000 in fines, $65,335.20 in accrued pre-judgment interest, $228,999.87 in administrative charges, $52,501.50 in penalty charges, and $350 in filing fees.
The lawsuit was filed on March 18th in the Northern Mariana Islands District Court with the Presiding Judge being Chief Judge Alex R. Munson. The Northern Mariana Islands are a U.S. Commonwealth. They are located in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to the Philippines.
The Saipan Tribune article states that the government complaint alleges "that on July 18, 1991, an OSHA safety officer conducted a comprehensive safety inspection of the company's operations at its Sablan Building in Chalan Piao and found multiple violations."
As a result on Oct. 17, 1991, OSHA issued 15 citations, including seven “serious” violations. Additional inspections that resulted in citations and fines were conducted in 1992, 1995, 1999 and 2001.
For example, OSHA reports that following up on a report they received in January 1999, an inspection of the Marpi Road Expansion Project was conducted that resulted in citations for two willful violations with penalties of $80,000, and three serious violations with penalties of $12,600.
The two willful violations were allowing employees to work in conditions where cave-ins could occur without providing adequate cave-in protection; and for falsifying the records of occupational injuries and illnesses. The serious violations included failure to provide a safe means of escape from an excavation; allowing employees to work under a suspended load; and for failure to keep excavated soil and other material a safe distance from the edge of a trench.
The 1999 OSHA inspection also revealed that the company falsified required records of injuries. Although the company was the subject of a number of workers compensation insurance claims over the last few years, company records did not show any injuries. Injury records are reviewed during OSHA inspections and are one of the factors considered in proposing penalties for violations.
The $1,000,000 the government is suing for a total of $700,000 in fines, $65,335.20 in accrued pre-judgment interest, $228,999.87 in administrative charges, $52,501.50 in penalty charges, and $350 in filing fees.
Labels: OSHA Citations, OSHA Fines
posted by Steve Hudgik |
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