The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has proposed $59,800 in penalties against Lyons Tool and Machine Inc. for four alleged safety violations following an inspection of its Lyons, Ga., plant in March.
The company has been cited for a willful violation of OSHA standards with a $56,000 proposed penalty for failing to provide machine guards on its mechanical power press. A willful citation is issued when an employer has shown an intentional disregard of, or plain indifference to, the requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
"Amputation is a very real threat when machines lack the proper safety features," said John J. Deifer, OSHA's area director in Savannah. "OSHA inspectors found that this employer continued to disregard the agency's requirements on machine guards, despite an earlier citation for a similar violation in 2006."
The metal fabrication company also has been cited with two serious violations and $2,800 in penalties for exposing employees to struck-by hazards from compressed gas cylinders that were not properly secured. A $1,000 penalty has been proposed against the company for failing to produce an OSHA 300 log for 2008, which companies are required to maintain to record work-related injuries and illnesses.
The company has 15 business days to contest the citations and proposed penalties before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
