The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited American Made Tires in July of 2013 for 12 hazards at their Elmira Heights, NY facility in response to an inspection earlier that year. In May, OSHA came back to do a follow up inspection and found that the company failed to correct these hazards. As a result of this inaction, OSHA has proposed an additional $160,280 in fines to the company.

“The company’s inaction exposed employees to ongoing hazards of fire, falls, chemicals and to being caught in or crushed by unguarded or unexpectedly activated machinery,” said Christopher Adams, OSHA’s area director in Syracuse. “The sizable penalties proposed reflect the severity of these conditions and the employer’s failure to follow through on its obligation and commitment to correct hazards that never should have existed.”

As you can see, OSHA does not go easy on repeat offenders. If your company has recently been through an OSHA audit, it is imperative that you correct the issues which OSHA uncovered, even if you do not agree with their assessment. Otherwise, when they come back, they will hit you with heavy fines and penalties. Instead, it is well worth consulting a third party occupational safety and health auditing firm that can perform a full third party review to help you determine the best strategy to correct the findings.

If you have any questions about OSHA follow up audits and how to prepare for them, please contact us and we can help you through the process. If you have anything to add about OSHA follow up audits or about this case, please leave a comment.