Brick Contractor Fined $74K for Safety Violations

A Brick contractor was cited for nine safety violations and fined more than $74,000 by a federal agency Tuesday.

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited La Conti Concrete & Masonry Inc., located on Mantoloking Road, for nine safety and health, including two repeat, violations at a Secaucus work site stemming from an investigation that took place in March.

The department, in a statement, said the investigation took place after an "imminent danger" complaint was received. The complaint alleged employees were working on the fifth level of a supported scaffold without fall protection.

The repeat safety violations, with a $53,900 penalty, involve failing to provide safe access to a scaffold and ensure workers were not exposed to a 35-foot fall while working on an unguarded scaffold, the agence said.

A repeat violation occurs when an employer previously has been cited for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years. The company was cited for similar violations in 2006, 2007 and 2011.

The agency levied an addition $20,930 penalty against the company for what it termed "serious" violations. Those violations included: failing to properly store propane tanks; ensure a competent person inspected a scaffold before employees worked on it; establish and implement a written respiratory protection program for workers required to wear respirators, including medical evaluations and respiratory protection training; develop and implement an effective written hazard communication program for workers exposed to hazardous chemicals, including crystalline silica; provide chemical hazard training to employees working with hazardous chemicals; and maintain material safety data sheets.

A serious violation occurs when there is "a substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from dangerous tasks without proper safety measures."

"This employer continues to jeopardize the safety and health of its workers by failing to correct these hazards, which is unacceptable," said Kris Hoffman, director of OSHA’s Parsippany Area Office, in a prepared statement. "Employers are responsible for providing a safe and healthful workplace, and will be held legally accountable when they fail to do so."

According to OSHA, La Conti Concrete & Masonry employed 34 workers at the Secaucus work site and has 15 business days from receipt of the citations to comply, ask for an informal conference with OSHA’s area director or contest the citations and proposed penalties before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

Joanna P. Hawkins, Deputy Regional Director for the U.S. Department of Labor's Philadelphia region, said OSHA is currently engaged in a campaign encouraging employers to ensure their workers are working safely from ladders, scaffolds and roofs in an effort to prevent deadly falls in the construction industry. In 2010, more than 10,000 construction workers were injured as a result of falling while working from heights, and more than 250 workers were killed.