Shipyard faces nearly $1.4M in OSHA fines

An especially high financial penalty issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is a strong reminder of the consequences that come with a lack of safety compliance. Such a fine was recently issued in northwestern Wisconsin, where a shipyard on Lake Superior faces a seven-figure price tag for a variety of worker health and safety violations. The most recent investigation by the federal regulator at the shipyard means potential costs to the company of $1,395,000 and revealed 19 instances of broken rules. It also placed the business in OSHA's Severe Violator Enforcement Program, according to local ABC affiliate WIRT.

Exposure to hazardous material attracts OSHA attention
The main motivation for OSHA's most recent set of fines for the shipbuilder was the discovery of highly elevated lead levels in a number of employees working on refitting an existing ship, WIRT reported. When a group of active workers were sampled as part of the investigatory process, 14 were found to have bodily lead levels up to 20 times the official limit. OSHA believes the harmful exposure is related to a specific project, the retrofitting of a vessel's engine room.

"[The shipyard] accepted a contract with a very low profit margin and penalties for delayed completion, but could not meet the schedule without endangering its workers," said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for Occupational Safety and Health, in a press release from the organization. "This employer was unwilling to pay the necessary costs to protect employees from lead exposure. When companies prioritize profits and deadlines over the health and safety of their workforce, it is the workers who pay the price. Law-breaking employers must be held accountable for their unlawful behavior."

Local NBC affiliate KBJR reported the 14 violations included the issues with lead exposure, one recorded for each worker as a serious violation, as well as five willful violations. Those rule-breaking instances include failing to monitor the exposure of employees to lead, failure to use a lead compliance program and respiratory safety program and the lack of educational efforts related to lead and asbestos. As OSHA inspected the company 28 times since its initial investigation and found a number of violations, officials made the decision to place the shipyard in the SVEP program as well.