OSHA Inspection: RICHWOOD EQUIPMENT COMPANY, LLC DBA NEHER BURIAL VAULTS

Issued

Apr 10, 2024

Penalty

Initial $2,765 · Current $1,500 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.134(c)(2) Where respirator use is not required: (ii) In addition, the employer must establish and implement those elements of a written respiratory protection program necessary to ensure that any employee using a respirator voluntarily is medically able to use that respirator, and that the respirator is cleaned, stored, and maintained so that its use does not present a health hazard to the user. Exception: Employers are not required to include in a written respiratory protection program those employees whose only use of respirators involves the voluntary use of filtering facepieces (dust masks).   a) On or about December 19, 2023, the employer did not establish and implement a written respirator protection program for employees who wore the Gerson half-mask respirators when working with Portland cement and aggregate (which contain crystalline silica), while adding chemicals for and the mixing of concrete, and hammering off the edges of concrete burial vaults.

Issued

Apr 10, 2024

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.134(e) Medical evaluation. Using a respirator may place a physiological burden on employees that varies with the type of respirator worn, the job and workplace conditions in which the respirator is used, and the medical status of the employee. Accordingly, this paragraph specifies the minimum requirements for medical evaluation that employers must implement to determine the employee's ability to use a respirator. (1): General. The employer shall provide a medical evaluation to determine the employee's ability to use a respirator, before the employee is fit tested or required to use the respirator in the workplace. The employer may discontinue an employee's medical evaluations when the employee is no longer required to use a respirator.   a) On or about December 19, 2023, the employer did not provide a medical evaluation for employees who wore the Gerson Half-Mask tight fitting elastomeric respirator when operating the concrete mixer.

Issued

Apr 10, 2024

Abate by

May 28, 2024

Penalty

Initial $4,839 · Current $1,500 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.212(a) Machine guarding- (1): Types of guarding. One or more methods of machine guarding shall be provided to protect the operator and other employees in the machine area from hazards such as those created by point of operation, ingoing nip points, rotating parts, flying chips and sparks. Examples of guarding methods are-barrier guards, two-hand tripping devices, electronic safety devices, etc.  a) On or about December 19, 2023, the employer did not ensure that the concrete ribbon mixer was guarded to prevent employees from reaching the rotating mixing blades while adding materials and during the mixing process.

Issued

Apr 10, 2024

Abate by

Jun 28, 2024

Penalty

Initial $3,457 · Current $1,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.1053(d)(1): Exposure assessment-(1) General. The employer shall assess the exposure of each employee who is or may reasonably be expected to be exposed to respirable crystalline silica at or above the action level in accordance with either the performance option in paragraph (d)(2) or the scheduled monitoring option in paragraph (d)(3) of this section.   a) On or about December 19, 2023, the employer did not assess employees exposure levels to respirable crystalline silica when mixing, hammering, and grinding concrete for concrete burial vaults.

Issued

Apr 10, 2024

Penalty

Initial $3,457 · Current $1,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.1200(h)(1): Employee information and training. Employers shall provide employees with effective information and training on hazardous chemicals in their work area at the time of their initial assignment, and whenever a new chemical hazard the employees have not previously been trained about is introduced into their work area. Information and training may be designed to cover categories of hazards (e.g., flammability, carcinogenicity) or specific chemicals. Chemical-specific information must always be available through labels and safety data sheets.   a) On or about December 14, 2023, the employer did not provided training to employees on hazardous chemicals in their work area including but not limited to Portland Cement and Aggregate, both of which contain silica (Carcinogen).

Issued

Apr 10, 2024

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.132(d) Hazard assessment and equipment selection. (2): The employer shall verify that the required workplace hazard assessment has been performed through a written certification that identifies the workplace evaluated; the person certifying that the evaluation has been performed; the date(s) of the hazard assessment; and, which identifies the document as a certification of hazard assessment.    a) On or about December 14, 2023, the employer did not provide a written certified workplace hazard assessment for work including but not limited to mixing concrete, sanding and knocking off edges, and moving concrete burial vaults. Employees wear personal protective equipment such as gloves, aprons, steel toe boots, safety glasses, and respirators.

Issued

Apr 10, 2024

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.134(k) Training and information. This paragraph requires the employer to provide effective training to employees who are required to use respirators. The training must be comprehensive, understandable, and recur annually, and more often if necessary. This paragraph also requires the employer to provide the basic information on respirators in appendix D of this section to employees who wear respirators when not required by this section or by the employer to do so. (6): The basic advisory information on respirators, as presented in Appendix D of this section, shall be provided by the employer in any written or oral format, to employees who wear respirators when such use is not required by this section or by the employer.   a) On or about December 19, 2023, the employer did not provide respirator training for Appendix D for employees who voluntarily wore the Gerson half-mask respirators when working with Portland cement and aggregate which contain crystalline silica, while mixing concrete and hammering off the edges of concrete burial vaults.

Issued

Apr 10, 2024

Penalty

Initial $0 · Current $0

General-duty citation text

29 CFR  1910.1200(e)(1) Employers shall develop, implement, and maintain at each workplace, a written hazard communication program which at least describes how the criteria specified in paragraphs (f), (g), and (h) of this section for labels and other forms of warning, safety data sheets, and employee information and training will be met, and which also includes the following: (i): A list of the hazardous chemicals known to be present using a product identifier that is referenced on the appropriate safety data sheet (the list may be compiled for the workplace as a whole or for individual work areas);    a) On or about December 14, 2023, the employer did not maintain a list of hazardous chemicals present at the workplaces including but not limited to Portland cement and aggregate.