 
Glass Manufacturer Charged with More OSHA
Violations at Indiana Plant
August 24, 2012
by Katie O'Mara, komara@glass.com
Auto glass manufacturer Pilkington has been notified of additional
Indiana Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) safety
violations. The company was fined $150,000 for six
violations at the end of July and the new violations bring fines
of $453,000, the largest single set of penalties from OSHA in the
state of Indiana since 2005. Pilkington, in turn, has filed a Notice
of Intent to Contest the citations.
The inspection by OSHA comes almost two years after an employee
was fatally injured in the plant while completing a maintenance
operation in 2010. The employee, Kelly Caudill, died at the hospital
later from injuries sustained in the accident. The Shelbyville plant
was cited for OSHA violations following the tragedy.
According to an official from Indiana's Department of Labor, Pilkington
employees alerted OSHA early in 2012 claiming that the company had
not fixed all of the violations that it was supposed to have addressed
from the 2010 inspection. While inspectors were at the Shelbyville
facility investigating the employees' report they saw other safety
issues that needed further investigation and ultimately led to these
most recent violations.
In the latest notification
from OSHA, Pilkington is fined for a variety of violations including
repeat, knowing and serious violations. Knowing violations are characterized
as safety issues that the company is aware of and has not fixed.
These are considered the most egregious violations, next to repeat
violations. As with the July safety order, some of the new violations
pertain to paperwork and training concerns. Other violations include
crushed glass on top of catwalk, wet floor conditions, lack of guardrails,
blocked exit routes, flammable materials stored in rooms that did
not have fire resistive rating or self-closing fire door, lack of
guards protecting workers from pulleys and belts and lack of fall
protection.
"The Shelbyville, Indiana plant was inspected by IOSHA in March
2012," reads a statement released by Pilkington. "IOSHA
issued certain safety related citations relating to this inspection,
some of which were corrected immediately. The remaining citations
raised by the IOSHA inspectors are being evaluated for opportunities
to enhance existing programs in line with our constant desire and
push for continuous improvement in the safety of our workplaces."
The violations are required to be fixed and fines paid by September
14. On August 16, Pilkington filed a Notice of Intent to Contest
the citations. The notice gives the company more time to complete
discussions with IOSHA officials.
"In addition, an integral part of IOSHA's inspection and enforcement
process is the chance to discuss informally with the agency any
proposed citations to ensure their accuracy and the company has,
and will continue to, participate in that process," reads Pilkington's
statement. "IOSHA encourages such discussions and, where possible,
amicable settlements. However, there is a short window for completing
informal settlements and complicated matters often require additional
time. Therefore, following a meeting with IOSHA on August 16, the
company filed a Notice of Intent to Contest the citations in order
to preserve our rights and continue discussions and negotiations
with IOSHA aimed at resolving this matter, while doing everything
possible to ensure the safety of our people.
Pilkington's request is currently with the Board of Safety Review
and there is a possibility that, pending approval, the violations
from both safety orders could be combined.
"The NSG Group has always strived to maintain the highest standards
and expectations when it comes to the safety of our workers. We
share a common goal with IOSHA, with the United Steelworkers and
with our workforce, to provide a safe workplace for all our employees.
The company will continue to work cooperatively and proactively
with our employees and with IOSHA in this regard," reads Pilkington's
statement.
This story is an original story by AGRR™ magazine/glassBYTEs.com™. Subscribe to AGRR™ Magazine.
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