Columbus Workers Comp Lawyers Question SeaWorld’s Response to OSHA

The US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is still working on its investigation of a workplace fatality at SeaWorld in Florida in February of 2010 when a six-ton Orca whale killed a trainer. The trainer was working with the whale when the whale pulled the trainer underwater. OSHA is requesting interviews with SeaWorld managers.

OSHA charged SeaWorld with citations in August 2010 relating to the accident, but SeaWorld officials did not provide adequate answers to some of the questions. SeaWorld contested OSHA’s penalties for exposing workers to drowning hazards, but refused to disclose all the information requested by OSHA.

“The employee testimony for the follow-up abatement inspection, required by a subpoena, allows OSHA inspectors to determine if SeaWorld employees continue to be exposed to unsafe and unhealthy working conditions,” says OSHA’s Dr. David Michaels. “Abating safety and health hazards in the workplace needs to be as important to the employer as recognizing the hazards in the first place.”

There is no use for OSHA to be inspecting facilities and issuing fines if companies like SeaWorld do not correct the hazards. By refusing to fully cooperate it seems as though SeaWorld has something to hide. Please visit our site for more information on workers comp and contact our firm for a free consultation.

Larrimer & Larrimer, LLC—Columbus workers comp attorneys.