OSHA Inspection: LABOR READY CENTRAL, INC.

Issued

Dec 3, 2010

Abate by

Jan 5, 2011

Penalty

Initial $4,250 · Current $4,250

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 was free from
recognized hazards
which were likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees in
that, employees
were exposed to crushing hazards:
a)  On or about September 20, 2010 and at times prior, helper employees
were exposed to
crushing and struck-by injuries while they rode the side steps on the back
of the waste
collection trucks in narrow alleys which were full of utility poles and
other obstacles.
Employees did not have sufficient space while riding to safely clear these
obstacles, and, as a
result, one employee was crushed between a truck and a utility pole in the
alley behind the
800 block of 13th Street in Pueblo, Colorado.  Prior to this accident,
this helper employee
was not provided with the job-specific helper safety training required by
ANSI Z245.1 which
would have aided him in recognizing hazards, such as obstacles, while
performing waste
collection duties and riding on the side steps of refuse collection
vehicles.
Abatement:
Among other methods, several feasible and acceptable abatement methods to
correct the
hazards would be to implement the requirement of the contract between
Waste Management
and Labor Ready which states (in section 5) that Labor Ready, as the
contractor, "is
obligated to ensure that Personnel supplied to Waste Management have
viewed the safety
training, including use of PPE, that Waste Management has provided to
Contractor."  This
initial helper training video, combined with training by Waste Management
staff, should
provide the Labor Ready employees with the training required by ANSI
Z245.1(1999) for
waste collection helpers.
Abatement Note:  Abatement certification is required for this item (see
enclosed
"Sample
Abatement-Certification Letter").-Certification