OSHA fines Clay contractor for fall hazards

CLAY — A roofing and siding contractor based in Clay faces $61,600 in fines after the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Syracuse–area office found it committed safety violations.

Michael C. Graham & Son Construction of 7897 Oswego Road faces citations for lacking fall protection for workers, not training employees on fall hazards, and equipment infractions. The company has 15 business days to comply with the penalties, meet with area OSHA Director Christopher Adams, or contest the findings.

OSHA inspectors marked the company for willful violations — violations committed with intentional knowledge, voluntary disregard of the law, or indifference to worker health — for not providing workers with guardrails, safety nets, or fall-protection equipment while they were staging roofing materials and stripping shingles. The willful violations make up $24,200 of the proposed fines.

Inspectors also levied $33,000 in fines against the company for repeat violations, which are recorded when a firm has previously been cited for a similar infraction within five years. The company did not train workers on fall hazards and let them climb to a roof using a ladder that did not extend far enough above the roof for stability. OSHA found similar issues at work sites in 2012, 2011, and 2008.

A final $4,400 in proposed fines stem from serious violations that OSHA records for hazards that are likely to lead to death or serious physical harm. Inspectors found power tools that were connected to an ungrounded extension cord and receptacle. They also found workers exposed to falls from using a ladder that was not equally supported by two ladder rails.

“Unfortunately, this is not an unusual situation,” OSHA’s Adams said in a news release. “Too often, we encounter work sites where fall protection is inadequate or absent, exposing workers to the number-one killer in construction work. To combat this reality, OSHA has launched a campaign to remind employers and employees alike of what they can do to eliminate fall hazards at their work sites.”

Michael C. Graham & Son Construction did not immediately return a telephone call requesting comment.

Contact Seltzer at rseltzer@cnybj.com