OSHA proposes $253,556 in penalties after inspectors observed workers without fall protection nearly 20 feet off the ground
A roofing contractor persistently puts his workers at risk of injury by failing to use fall protection and having protective equipment readily available on job sites, according to a recent U.S. Department of Labor Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspection.
OSHA Neal Weaver and an employee of his roofing company – operating as Grand Valley Carpentry LLC – working without fall protection on a residential roof nearly 20 feet off the ground.
The department cited Weaver – who, in the past, has not cooperated with federal safety inspectors under a previous company name, Dutch Heritage LLC – for exposing workers to deadly fall hazards for the sixth time in five years, proposing $253,556 in penalties. Inspectors also found the crew working without required eye protection.
"Too often OSHA inspectors find employees working on residential roofs without fall protection and discover their employer has the safety equipment on-site and refuses to ensure its use," explained OSHA Area Director Howard Eberts in Cleveland. "Fall hazards make roofing work among the most dangerous jobs in construction. Employers must ensure that employees working from heights greater than 6 feet are provided fall protection equipment, and that they train workers to use the equipment safely."
OSHA cited Dutch Heritage for similar hazards in December 2016, August and September 2018, and in November and December 2019. Weaver has not responded to the citations, provided abatement or paid penalties. OSHA has referred his unpaid penalties to debt collection. In December 2019, Weaver changed his company name to Grand Valley Carpentry.
