After Two Workers Suffer Finger Amputations, OSHA Finds 12 Violations
The medical technology firm Becton, Dickinson and Company was cited twice for machine hazards in 2015, according to the agency.
OSHA announced that federal investigators have found a number of machines lacking safety guards at the Holdrege, Neb., facility of Franklin Lakes, N.J.-based Becton, Dickinson and Company, a global medical technology company. The investigation started after two workers suffered partial amputations of their index fingers.
OSHA has cited the company for one repeat and 12 serious safety violations and proposed $112,700 in penalties. The company was previously cited for machine hazards in April and September 2015, according to OSHA.
"In 2015, a total of 52 Nebraska workers suffered preventable amputation injuries," said Jeff Funke, OSHA's area director in Omaha. "OSHA's common sense safety standards require manufacturers to provide training, safe guards and procedures to prevent workers from coming in contact with the operating parts of a machine. Employers like BD must do more to protect workers from these debilitating injuries."