OSHA proposes more than $576,000 in penalties against Sims Bark and Sims Stone

OSHA just proposed more than $576,000 in penalties against Sims Bark and Sims Stone for 142 safety and health violations. The enforcement action and citations target their plants in Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi. OSHA is proposing $576,750 in penalties against Sims Bark Co. and Sims Stone Co. for 142 workplace safety and health violations.

OSHA first began their inspection after receiving a complaint. Following their first inspection, OSHA determined that similar hazards might exist at other locations of the two companies. OSHA is proposing 20 violations and $94,400 in penalties for the company's bark plant in Brent, Ala.; 59 violations and $260,900 in penalties for the bark and stone plants in Tuscumbia, Ala.; 49 violations and $142,350 in penalties for the bark and stone plants in Woodbury, Ga.; and 14 violations and $79,100 in penalties for the Olive Branch, Miss. The willful and serious citations include a range of violations and hazards ranging from a lack of employee training, exposure to electric shocks, lack of fall protection, lack of machine guards, exposure to noise hazards, struck-by dangers and accumulations of combustible dust.

"Sims Bark and Sims Stone management have displayed a systemic indifference to the safety and health of their own employees, resulting in a dangerous work environment," said Cindy Coe, OSHA's regional administrator in Atlanta.

Source:
www.osha.gov