OSHA Inspection: SOUTHWEST AIRLINE COMPANY

Issued

Aug 23, 2004

Abate by

Aug 26, 2004

Penalty

Initial $5,000

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 exposed to:  traffic hazards/ struck by hazards.
a) On or about 05/07/04, Employees were working on ramp next to a road
that was
changed from a two lane to a one lane. The employees were loading,
unloading,
restocking and routine maintenance on an airplane. Th employer change the
traffic from
a two way traffic to one way traffic. The employer exposed the employees
to struck by
hazards.
Among other methods, one feasible and acceptable abatement method to
correct this
hazardous condition would be to follow the fundamental principles of
temporary traffic
control and the temporary traffic control elements as outlined in the
Manual on Uniform
Traffic Control Devices, MUTCD 2003, of the U.S. Department of
Transportation,
Federal Highway Administration. Section 6F.20 ONE LANE ROAD Sign (W20-4)
Standard:
The ONE LANE ROAD (W20-4) sign (see Figure 6F-4, Sheet 3 of 4) shall be
used only
in advance of that point where motor vehicle traffic in both directions
must use a
common single lane (see Section 6C.10).
Disclaimers:
1. You are not limited to the abatement methods suggested above.
2. The methods explained are general and maybe not effective in all cases
3. The employer is responsible for selecting and carrying out appropriate
methods.
Hazards: struck by.