It seems that there is no workplace that is perfectly safe. This means that every worker has the potential to sustain an injury while on the job. If you are injured at work, you may be entitled to workers’ compensation and should seek the assistance of a legal professional when making a claim. In addition to this, there are organizations out there protecting the rights of workers to do their jobs in safe conditions. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration was designed to make sure that employers do not allow their employees to become exposed to unnecessary risks while working.
For instance, OSHA recently fined an Ohio company for a number of safety violations it discovered during an investigation. Scenic Wood Products was told that it will have to pay $64,400 in fines for the 20 violations that were reportedly apparent during the OSHA investigation. These violations include: fire extinguisher provision failure, lack of fall protection, inadequate machine guarding, and many other things.
Scenic Wood Products was inspected due to the fact that it is a workplace that has a high rate of injury and illness. OSHA takes note of these employers and inspects them under its Site Specific Targeting Program to help make sure that those rates do not go any higher. Claims of workers’ compensation are likely very successful against employers such as this because a federal agency finds violations that solidify the company’s lack of care for the safety of its employees.
According to the area director, Scenic Wood Products is responsible for its employees and is required to make sure that they are properly trained in safety and maintenance, particularly in regard to the equipment that they are required to operate. In addition, the company must provide personal protective equipment that is designed to work against the known hazards of the workplace. Any company that has known hazards – as defined by regulations – must provide this sort of protective equipment.
Source: Occupational Health & Safety, “Ohio Company Fined $64,400 After OSHA Investigation,” April 3, 2013