Workers Exposed to Asbestos Hazards at Metal Service Center
A.M. Castle & Co. has been issued two repeat and five serious violations
A.M. Castle & Co. was cited for two repeat five serious safety violations after a complaint led to an OSHA investigation of the company’s Franklin Park, IL, site. The complaint alleged various safety and health hazards including occupational exposure to asbestos, insufficient training for employees on asbestos in the workplace, and lack of permit-required confined space procedures.
"A.M. Castle has a responsibility to train its workers in the hazards of being exposed to asbestos and confined spaces," said Angeline Loftus, OSHA's area director in Des Plaines. "Asbestos exposure can cause long-term and irreversible damage to the lungs. A. M. Castle needs to re-evaluate this facility and correct these hazards immediately."
Two repeated violations were given due to not providing awareness training to employees who perform housekeeping operations in areas that contain asbestos or presumed asbestos containing material, and not making a copy of the OSHA Asbestos Standard readily available and accessible to affected employees.
The five serious violations were cited for: not evaluating the workplace to determine if any confined spaces were permit-required; not posting danger signs or notifying employees of a permit-required confined space; not developing and implementing a written permit-required confined space entry program; failing to inform employees, who perform maintenance in areas where asbestos is present, of the presence, quantity and location of asbestos containing material or presumed asbestos containing material which might have been contacted during such work activities; failing to ensure training on asbestos was in accordance with OSHA standards; and failing to provide annual asbestos training to employees involved in Class IV asbestos operations.