High Quality Concrete has been fined

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited High Quality Concrete - based in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands - for crushing and other hazards following an employee fatality on 6 September, 2019. OSHA cited the concrete factory for wilful, serious and other-than-serious violations, with proposed penalties of USD90,217.

The employee suffered fatal injuries after the forklift he was using to lift and move a 3,200 lb. (1,450 kg) bag of cement overturned due to an unstable load.

OSHA cited High Quality Concrete for not training forklift operators on how to properly lift and transport loads and failing to ensure that operators knew how to handle stable loads and wore seatbelts while operating forklifts.

Following the fatality, OSHA inspectors returned to the factory three times and found that High Quality Concrete continually failed to ensure that employees handled stable or safely arranged loads, resulting in the wilful violation.

OSHA issued an additional citation for the employer's failure to report the employee fatality within eight hours.

High Quality Concrete has 15 business days from receipt of the citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA's area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.