OSHA News Release
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Region 1
Region 1 News Release: 10-54-BOS/BOS 2010-051
Fri., Jan. 29, 2010
Contact: Ted Fitzgerald
Phone: 617-565-2074
US Labor Department's OSHA proposes nearly $55,000 in fines against Legacy Builders in Quincy, Mass., after Boston scaffold collapse injures workers
BRAINTREE, Mass. - The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited a Quincy, Mass., contractor for 15 alleged serious violations of safety standards following the collapse of a ladder jack scaffold at a Boston, Mass., worksite that injured four of its workers.
Legacy Builders LLC faces a total of $54,750 in fines after the Aug. 5, 2009 incident, which took place at 86 Crispus Attucks Place in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood.
OSHA's inspection found that the ladder jack scaffold was overloaded beyond its rated weight capacity and erected with a damaged wooden work platform. Both the employees working on the scaffold and those performing shingling work on the roof were exposed to falls from 14 to 17 feet due to missing or inadequate fall protection safeguards and a lack of training in the recognition of fall protection and scaffold hazards.
Additional fall hazards stemmed from damaged, misused or inadequate extension ladders; no proper access to the scaffold work platform; improperly tied off lifelines and workers carrying bundles of roofing shingles while climbing ladders. Workers also lacked required head and eye protection.
"This case is a clear example of what can and does happen when adequate and effective scaffolding and fall protection are lacking at a jobsite," said Brenda Gordon, OSHA's area director for Boston and southeastern Massachusetts. "While it is fortunate that these workers were not killed, workplace safety cannot and must never be a matter of fortune. The lives and well-being of workers depend on complete, effective and continual adherence to standards meant to protect them against work-related hazards."
OSHA issues serious citations when death or serious physical harm is likely to result from hazards about which the employer knew or should have known. Detailed information on scaffold hazards and safe work practices, including an interactive e-Tool, is available online at http://www.osha.gov/SLTC/scaffolding/index.html.
Legacy Builders has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and proposed penalties to comply, participate in an informal conference with OSHA's area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. The inspection was conducted by OSHA's Boston South Area Office in Braintree; telephone 617-565-6924.
Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to assure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.
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