OSHA 10 HR CONSTRUCTION COURSE- Mohawk Valley Builders Exchange
March 29th & March 30th, 2022 7:30AM-1:30PM
To aid in your compliance with the various Federal, State and City regulations requiring this training, the LSM safety department is once again offering the OSHA 10 Hour Course. The course is provided by our OSHA certified instructors. Each employee who successfully completes the program will receive a certification card from OSHA.*Pre-registration is required. Please complete attached form.
Completed forms may be submitted to: LSMSafetyDepartment@LovellSafety.com
OSHA 10 Hour Course – December 3rd and 4th – Whitesboro, NY
December 3rd & December 4th, 2019 7:30AM-1:30PM
To aid in your compliance with the various Federal, State and City regulations requiring this training, the LSM safety department is once again offering the OSHA 10 Hour Course. The course is provided by our OSHA certified instructors. Each employee who successfully completes the program will receive a certification card from OSHA.
To aid in your compliance with the various Federal, State and City regulations requiring this training, the LSM safety department is once again offering the OSHA 10 Hour Course. The course is provided by our OSHA certified instructors. Each employee who successfully completes the program will receive a certification card from OSHA.
*Pre-registration is required. Please complete attached form.
Visit Lovell at Booth #37 at the PIA Hudson Valley RAP
Visit Lovell at the PIA Hudson Valley RAP October 30 at the Crowne Plaza in Suffern, NY. We will be at Booth #37.
Learn about what Lovell has to offer including:
- Cash-flow savings through high advance discounts
- Substantial savings from consistent dividends
- Improved experience ratings
- Safety programs resulting in fewer accidents and higher productivity
- Early medical intervention and return-to-work strategies
Lovell Safety Management offers up-front discounts of up to 25% and dividends as high as 35% to Safety Group enrollees. Our experience, expertise, level of service, and industry vision continue to benefit our broker producers. We pay commissions to brokers and respect your relationship with your clients.
We look forward to seeing you at Crowne Plaza, in Suffern, NY!
Your Workers’ Compensation Insurance Experts for over 80 Years
For more information, visit our website: Lovellsafety.com
Prosecutors Getting More Aggressive On Worker Safety Cases
In 2016, a New York State construction contractor received a manslaughter charge of criminally negligent homicide and reckless endangerment for his role in the worker’s death. As recent as August 2019, two employers were criminally charged for workplace fatalities.
One employer was charged with manslaughter after a worker’s death in a trench collapse in Colorado. The employee was tying copper piping in a main water line, about 8-feet deep in a trench, according to an OSHA inspection notice, when the trench collapsed and buried him. The incident, investigated by OSHA and local police, supported a criminal prosecution.
Another incident involved an owner of a western New York tree removal service who was arrested and charged with second degree manslaughter for allegedly operating a crane too close to power lines, resulting in the death of an employee. The charges allege that the employer put the employee in danger by operating the crane too close to the power lines and failed to put known proper safety protocols in place.
Prosecutions against employers in New York, ranging from Fortune 500 companies to small contractors, are on pace to meet and potentially exceed estimates by the end of the year, according to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. Since 2015, New York’s Construction Fraud Task Force investigations have resulted in 20 criminal convictions. They are becoming more efficient at predicting bad actor companies before accidents happen.
The Construction Fraud Task Force of the Investigation Division for the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office has developed an anonymous WhatsApp number for employees to leave tips. With WhatsApp, employee statements can be anonymous and they can take live video and pictures.
Willful Violations Can Lead to Prosecutions
OSHA commonly cites construction employers whose employees fail to use fall protection. In fact, 29 CFR § 1926.501 (Fall Protection in Construction) is the most frequently cited regulation by federal OSHA. Employers who fail to provide and enforce the use of fall protection do so at their own risk, as OSHA will cite employers with willful violations, dramatically increasing the civil penalties. In the event of a fatality, a willful citation can then lead to a criminal prosecution by the Department of Justice.
One case from July 2018 is an example of just this kind of prosecution, when OSHA cited an employer for a willful violation of the fall protection standard for steel erection. The contractor was also criminally prosecuted, convicted, and sentenced to the maximum penalty ($500,000).
The employer appealed, stating that the Department of Justice failed to prove the three elements necessary to find a criminal conviction: (1) that the company violated an applicable standard, (2) that it did so willfully, and (3) that the violation caused an employee’s death.
The employer argued that its conduct was not willful because it provided fall protection and anchorage points, and the employee was wearing a harness. The Court countered that while the employee had a personal fall-arrest harness and connectors, he was not using them to secure himself to an anchorage point. The Court explained that “the regulations state that employees ‘shall be protected’ by appropriate equipment, not that they merely be provided with or possess such equipment.”
Employers Should Contest Unfounded Citations
Because They Can Establish Criminal Intent
The court noted that the contractor had a previous citation for violating the same standard, and concluded that the contractor was aware of its requirements.
Employers can learn from this case. Obviously, providing a safe workplace and ensuring that employees follow safe work practices is a basic requirement. This will not only help prevent an injury from occurring, but will also allow the employer to prove the defense of employee misconduct when an employee fails to use his/her safety equipment. This case also illustrates how accepting and settling citations may set up an employer for a willful citation in the future, and even a criminal prosecution in the event of a fatal accident. Employers should consult with legal counsel regarding an OSHA citation and ensure that any defensible citations are contested.
Supreme Court Involvement
As New York prosecutors continue their work, pending cases could affect how the nation’s prosecutors do their job in the future. Local prosecutors taking on safety cases could have been left in limbo if the U.S. Supreme Court took on a California case that asked the nation’s high court to resolve whether prosecutors could have a role in worker safety law enforcement.
The California Supreme court held that a plastics company is criminally liable for a water heater explosion that killed two of its employees. The state’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health, also known as Cal/OSHA, determined that the explosion was caused by a failed safety valve and that the heater lacked safety features due to “manipulation and misuse.” This ruling supports California State prosecutors who have been bringing criminal charges against companies for decades. In June 2017, the company petitioned the U.S. Supreme court to hear the case. On October 15, 2018 the U.S. Supreme Court denied the petition to hear the case, thereby holding up the decision of the California Supreme court.
OSHA 10 HR Construction Course-NRLA
August 21 & August 28, 2019 8:00AM-2:00 PM
To aid in your compliance with the various Federal, State and City regulations requiring this training, the LSM safety department is once again offering the OSHA 10 Hour Course. The course is provided by our OSHA certified instructors. Each employee who successfully completes the program will receive a certification card from OSHA.
*Pre-registration is required. Please complete attached form.
GREAT NEWS FROM LOVELL!
Lovell Safety Groups Earn Dividends
New York, NY… Lovell Safety Management Co., LLC, announced the 2017-2018 dividend earnings of four of its Safety Groups:
- Launderers and Cleaners, Safety Group #34
- Building Metal Trades, Safety Group #420
- Municipalities, Safety Group #496
- Retail Lumber Association, Safety Group #531
Safety Group #34 returned to members a 22.5 percent dividend. Qualifying members received an advance discount of 25 percent on the 7/1/19 renewal.
Safety Group #420 returned to members a 25 percent dividend. Qualifying members received an advance discount of 25 percent on the 7/1/19 renewal.
Safety Group #496 returned to members a 17.5 percent dividend. Qualifying members received an advance discount of 25 percent on the 7/1/19 renewal.
Safety Group #531 returned to members a 20 percent dividend. Qualifying members received an advance discount of 25 percent on the 7/1/19 renewal.
Lovell Safety Groups are fully insured, non-profit entities that return any underwriting profit to group members. Any extra premium dollars collected-not used to pay losses or expenses-can be returned to members in the form of a dividend. Lovell Safety Groups provide businesses with the benefits of a guaranteed cost premium with additional savings earned through dividends.
Fork Lift Operator Certification
OSHA fines a New Jersey company for failure to certify their powered industrial truck operators
(Fork Lift operators)
Posted by OSHA- June 5, 2019, 3:28 PM
Employer contests a repeat citation with a fine of $37,885. The repeat citation includes the alleged violation of 29 C.F.R. 1910.178(l)(6), for failure to certify that all employees operating powered industrial trucks have been trained and evaluated as required by Paragraph (l) of this standard. (No. 19-0676)
Make sure this doesn’t happen to you. The Lovell Safety department offers a number of different options to ensure your compliance with the requirement for training every 3 years.
On Line: Contact our office for the needed paperwork and then have your employees watch
our eTalk at the link below:
https://youtu.be/HUgTzQzqZp8
On Site: Your local safety representative can provide the training at your location.
Spring Landscaping Safety
Landscaping season is here. The attached LSM Safety Alert can help you ensure that your employees stay safe.
Working in the Summer Heat
Dear Lovell Group Member:
Very soon your employees may have to be working out in the hot summer sun.
Attached are 2 Safety Alerts that we believe can help you ensure that they stay safe.
Follow Us
