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The US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued fines to Ellicott Development Co. for workplace violations at its facility in upstate New York, according to Buffalo Business First. Ellicott is a real estate development and property management company.
OSHA officials inspected one of Ellicott’s sites in December of 2012. Investigators cited Elliot for exposing its demolition workers at the site to lead. The wall that the crew tore down was painted with lead, and OSHA cited Ellicott for failure to test the lead levels in the air. The crew was not provided respiratory protection or protective clothing to limit their exposure to lead. Proposed fines against Ellicott total $44,000.
“This employer failed to take the basic steps necessary to protect workers against a potentially significant health hazard,” said OSHA’s Arthur Dube. “Exposure to lead can damage the blood-forming, nervous, urinary and reproductive systems. Even short-term exposure can have consequences. Ellicott Development must ensure that the proper safeguards are in place, in use and effective at this and all its job sites where workers may be exposed to lead.”
It is disturbing that a company that regularly performs demolition work did not think to test the air at the site for lead, as that is a process that should be a routine procedure. Please contact our firm for a free consultation if you need assistance filing for workers comp.
Larrimer & Larrimer, LLC—Columbus Workers Comp Attorneys
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