‘Serial Violator’ That OSHA Found Exposing Employees to Falls Now Faces Citations for 4 Willful Violations
Among the violations is one for not having “an adequate fall protection system.”
- By Alex Saurman
- Feb 13, 2023
An employer that an OSHA area director called a “serial violator” is facing citations after the agency found workers exposed to fall hazards again.
In December 2022, OSHA discovered, during a monitoring inspection, that employees of The Roof Kings were exposed to falls while working on an “unprotected two-story roof” in Quincy, Massachusetts, per a news release.
Previously, OSHA identified similar conditions, for which The Roof Kings received citations for six violations and proposed penalties of $137,196 just four months prior in September 2022, though these have been contested.
After the December 2022 inspection, The Roof Kings now faces citations for four willful violations and proposed penalties of $137,508. According to OSHA, The Roof Kings allegedly did not
- “Provide employees an adequate fall protection system.
- Ensure employees' fall protection equipment was effectively anchored to prevent falls.
- Inspect employees' personal fall arrest systems prior to each use and remove defective components from service.
- Train employees in fall protection and how to recognize fall hazards.”
“This company is a serial violator whose ongoing defiance of the law and willingness to put workers at risk of dangerous and disabling falls is troubling and potentially deadly. Workplace safety is not a game of chance, dependent on whether an employer chooses to protect or risk its employees’ well-being from day to day,” said OSHA Area Director James Mulligan in Braintree, Massachusetts, in the news release.
The Roof King's history of noncompliance extends beyond these two events. A settlement agreement from 2017—stemming from inspections during 2014 and 2016—between The Roof Kings and OSHA required the employer to pay penalties and take certain abatement measures, OSHA said.
After not complying, The Roof Kings was found in contempt in 2021. When the lack of compliance remained, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit and the Department of Labor took further steps.