OSHA Inspection: BEATRICE CHEESE, INC.

Issued

Jun 24, 1991

Abate by

Dec 31, 1991

Penalty

Initial $3,500 · Current $1,750 Reduced

General-duty citation text

section 5(a)(1) of the occupational safety and health act of 1970: the
employer did not furnish employment and a place of employment which were
free from recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause death
or serious physical harm to employees in that employee were required to
perform tasks involving repetitive motions resulting in stresses that
had caused, were causing, or were likely to cause cumulative trauma
disorders:
a) cheese, packaging & shredding departments - the employees must handle
8000 six (6) pound loaves of cheese in an eight (8) hour shift. the
evaluation of this task indicates that employees are exposed to a
hazard which is causing or likely to cause musculoskeletal disorders.
the employer did not implement an effective control strategy to
reduce or eliminate such disorders. the injuryand illness records
for 1989, 1990, documented a pattern of repetitivemotion injuries,
observed on or about 4/2/91.
among other methods, one feasible and acceptable abatement method to
correct this hazard is the implementation of an ergonomics management
program consisting of the following four elements:
1) worksite analysis to recognize and identify existing cumulative
trauma disorders in the workplace. this analysis should include
development and use of an ergonomic checklist and employee
questionnaire. periodic surveys of the worksite shall be conducted at
least annaully to evaluate work practices and engineering controls.
employee participation in the ergonomic program should be encouraged.
2) medical management which includes accurate recordkeeping of
ctds. the program should address early recognition, evaluation,
and referral of ctd cases, and should include conservative treatment
and conservative return to work. systematic worksite review by the
medical team should also be included in the program.
3) training and education for exposed employees, including methods
to evaluate the effectiveness of the training. retraining should
be done annually, or as operations change.
training should address hazards associated with the job, the risks,
of developing ctds, symptoms of exposure, and how to prevent the
occurence of ctd. a superviors' training program should also be
implemented to allow recognition of the signs of ctds and to
reinforce the employer's ergonomic program.
4) hazard prevention and controlwhich includes engineering, work
practice, and administrative controls, and personal protective
equipment where relevant.
a) administrative controls are implemented which reduce the duration,
frequency, and severity of exposure to ergonomic stress. these
controls may include job rotation, reduction of repetitions, and
preventative maintenance of related equipment. personal protective
equipment shall be evaluated to determine any contribution
ergonomic stress.
b) Work practice controls are implemented which include proper work
techniques, new employee conditioning, and monitoring and
modifications as necessary to minimize ergonomic stressors.
examples of work practice controls applicable to this workplace include:
1) cheese, packaging and shredding
a) rotate more employees through each work station to eliminate physical
fatigue and stress to a particular set of muscles and tendons.
b) rotate employees on a more frequent basis.
c) engineering controls are designed by a qualified ergonomist and may
include work station redesign, tool and handle redesign, and change
or work methods. the goal of this program should be to make the job
fit the person.
examples of engineering controls applicable to this workplace include:
a) adjust the height of conveyor to 42 inches.
1) use elevated work floors for shorter employees.
b) position the conveyor so the twisting and turning motion is reduced
to 45-90 degrees.
c) the reach across on the conveyor should not exceed 18-20 inches.
d) replace present knife with a hawk bill knife to eliminate wrist
movement.
step 1-
implementation of an ergonomics program for worksite ananlysis, medical
management, and training and education, as detailed in items 1-3, above.
step 2-
submit to the area director a written, detailed plan of abatement,
outlining a schedule for the implementaion of the administrative, work
practice and engineering controls as detailed in items 4(a)-4(c).
all proposed control measures shall be approved for each
particular use by a person trained in teh evaluation of
workplace conditions which cause cumulative trauma disorders.
sixty (60) day procgress reports are required during the
abatement period.
step 3-
implementaion of administrative, work practice and engineering controls,
as described in items 4(a)-4(c), above.

Issued

Jun 24, 1991

Abate by

Sep 24, 1991

Penalty

Initial $2,500 · Current $1,250 Reduced

Issued

Jun 24, 1991

Abate by

Dec 31, 1991

Penalty

Initial $8,750 · Current $8,750

General-duty citation text

section 5(a)(1) of the occupational safety and health act of 1970: the
%%
employer did not furnish employment and a place of employment which were
free from recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause death
or serious physical harm to employees in that employees were required to
perform lifting tasks resulting in stresses that had caused, were
causing, or were likely to cause musculoskeletal injuries:
a) shredding and freight department - employees were lifting 45-48
pound boxes of cheese and the evaluation of this manual lifting
task indicates that emloyees are exposed to a hazard which is
causing or likely to cause musculoskeletal injuries. the employer
did not implement an effective control strategy to reduce or
eliminate such injuries. the injury and illness records for 1989,
1990, documented a pattern of musculoskeletal injuries, observed
on or about 4/2/91.
among other methods, one feasible and acceptable abatement method to
correct this hazard is the implementation of an ergonomics management
program consisting of the following four elements:
1) worksite analysis to recognize and identify existing manual lifting
hazards in the workplace. this analysis should include development
and use of an ergonomic checklist and employee questionnaire.
periodic surveys of the worksite shall be conducted at least annually
to evaluate work practices and engineering controls. employee
participation in the ergonomic program should be encouraged through a
mechanism such as a safety committee.
2) medical management which includes accurate recordkeeping of manual
lifting injuries. the program should address recognition, evaluation,
treatment, and referral of lifting injuries. the program should
address recognition, evaluation, treatment, and referral of lifting
cases. systematic worksite review by the medical team should also be
included in the program.
3) training and education for exposed employees, including methods to
evaluate the effectiveness of the training. re-training should be
done annually, or as operations change. training should address
hazards associated with the job, the risks of manual material
handling, and how to prevent lifting injuries. a supervisors'
training program should also be implemented to allowrecognition of
manual lifting hazards, and to reinforce the employer's erogonomic
program.
4) hazard prevention and control which includes engineering, work
practices and administrative controls.
a) administrative controls are implemented which reduce the duration,
frequency, and severity of exposure to manual lifting hazards. these
controls may include job rotation, reduction of repetitions, multiple
person lifts, and preventative maintenance of related equipment.
b) work practice controls are implemented which include proper work
techniques, new employee conditioning, proper placement of loads,
and reduction of weight lifted.
examples of work practice controls applicable to this workplace include:
1) shreeding department:
a) lift no more than 1/2 case of cheese per lift.
b) use four (4) work stations and place the cheese loaves directly into
the shredder hopper from the skid.
c) rotate employees hourly and daily.
d) use eight (8) employees to handle the cheese.
c) engineering controls are designed by a qualified erogomomist and may
include work station redesign, tool and handle redesign, and use of
mechanical lifting aids. the goal of this program should be to make
the job fit the person.
examples of engineering controls applicable to this workplace include:
1) shredding department:
a) place pallets of cheese on a hydraulic lift table and maintain the
lifting task at waist height.
b) do not box the cheese, send it directly to the shredder via conveyor
and store the final product.
2) freight department:
a) re-design the Vacu-Hoist to lift all boses of cheese.
step 1-
implementation of an ergonomics program for worksite analysis, medical
management, and training and education, as detailed in items 1-3, above.
step 2-
submit to the area director a written, detailed plan of abatement
outlining a schedule for the implementation of the administrative, work
practice and engineering controls as detailed in items 4(a)-4(c).
all proposed control measurees shall be approved for each
particular use by a person trained in the evaluation of
workplace conditions which cause musculoskeletal desorders.
sixty (60) day progress reports are required during the
abatement period.
step 3-
implementation of administrative, work practice and engineering controls
as described in items 4(a) - 4(c), above.
THE EMPLOYER WAS PREVIOUSLY CITED FOR A VIOLATION OF THIS OCCUPATIONAL
SAFETY AND HEALTH STANDARD OR ITS EQUIVALENT STANDARD WHICH WAS
CONTIANED IN OSHA INSPECTION NUMBER 0900951 CITAITON NUMBER 1, ITEM
NUMBER 1, ISSUED ON MAY 22, 1986.
THE EMPLOYER WAS PREVIOUSLY CITED FOR A VIOALTION OF THIS OCCUPATIONAL
TOTAL OF SAFETY AND HEALTH STANDARD OR ITS EQUIVALENT STANDARD WHICH
WAS CONTAINED IN OSHA INSPECTION NUMBER 0866764 CITATION NUMBER 1,
ITEM NUMBER 1, ISSUED ON FEBRUARY 2, 1989.

Issued

Apr 26, 1991

Abate by

May 26, 1991

Penalty

Initial $1,500 · Current $500 Reduced

Issued

Apr 26, 1991

Abate by

May 26, 1991

Penalty

Initial $3,500 · Current $1,500 Reduced

Issued

Apr 26, 1991

Abate by

May 26, 1991

Issued

Apr 26, 1991

Abate by

May 11, 1991

Penalty

Initial $1,500 · Current $500 Reduced

Issued

Apr 26, 1991

Abate by

May 11, 1991

Issued

Apr 26, 1991

Abate by

May 11, 1991

Penalty

Initial $2,000 · Current $800 Reduced

Issued

Apr 26, 1991

Abate by

May 11, 1991

Issued

Apr 26, 1991

Abate by

May 11, 1991

Issued

Apr 26, 1991

Abate by

Apr 29, 1991

Penalty

Initial $5,000 · Current $2,350 Reduced

Issued

Apr 26, 1991

Abate by

May 1, 1991

Penalty

Initial $5,000 · Current $2,350 Reduced

Issued

Apr 26, 1991

Abate by

May 1, 1991

Issued

Apr 26, 1991

Abate by

May 11, 1991

Penalty

Initial $1,000 · Current $500 Reduced