Contractor Cited for Willful Violations of Nail Gun Regulations
A carpenter was injured on April 17 at a Lake Forest work site. He was carrying a nail gun in his right hand, with his finger on the trigger, when it discharged, plunging a nail into his left arm.
Cal/OSHA announced Oct. 30 that it he cited Circle M Contractors, Inc. for willful violations of nail gun safety regulations after a carpenter was seriously injured in April 2018 at a residential construction site. The agency's release said its investigation showed Circle M did not train employees on the proper use of pressure-powered nailing tools.
The carpenter was injured on April 17 at a Lake Forest work site. He was carrying a nail gun in his right hand, with his finger on the trigger, when it discharged, plunging a nail into his left arm.
Circle M, located in Rancho Santa Margarita, did not ensure that its workers carry nail guns only by the handle and not with a finger on the trigger, according to Cal/OSHA.
The agency has issued two willful-serious accident-related citations to Circle M, with a total of $225,500 in proposed penalties. "Employers must effectively train workers to safely operate dangerous tools such as nail guns," said Juliann Sum, the agency's chief. "The employer knew these tools are hazardous and did not take the necessary measures to protect their workers from injury."
The release says Cal/OSHA investigated Circle M in 2015 after a worker installing hanger brackets slipped and discharged a nail into his knee, and the agency later cited the company for failing to ensure workers carry nail guns only by the handle. That case was one of three investigations of Circle M that year; the others followed falls by workers.
Cal/OSHA has conducted more than 570 inspections of framing contractors since 2015; the industry is on Cal/OSHA's High Hazard Industry List.