OSHA Cites Ohio Envelope Printing Facility After Three Workers Suffer Amputation Injuries
COLUMBIANA, Ohio—December 17, 2015—An envelope printer here faces more than $88,000 in fines following three incidents during the year in which employees lost all or parts of their fingers, according to a report on WorkersCompensation.com.
Envelope 1 was cited by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for three willful and four serious violations. The charges state that the employer failed to protect the workers from moving machine parts on 26 of Envelope 1's 27 production lines, the report said.
The OSHA citations, with proposed penalties of $88,200, can be viewed here.
The first incident occurred on June 19, when a 52-year-old man, who had been employed for only six months, had a finger amputated after it was caught in a pinch point of print rollers. The victim was reportedly wiping the roller at the time of the accident.
Two more amputations took place in September. On the 16th, a 29-year-old employee suffered a partial amputation of his left finger while clearing material from a scoring section of the envelope line, the report said. That machine was found to lack adequate safety guards.
On Sept. 28, a 73-year-old man lost part of his thumb while adjusting rollers during setup.
The company has 15 business days to respond to the charges.
