The subsidiary pleaded guilty to violating OSHA's standard
A United States-based subsidiary of a company in Halifax has been ordered to pay half a million dollars following a workplace incident that saw five workers dead and one severely burned because of molten slag. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in the U.S., the incident happened in 2017 at an electrical power plant in Apollo Beach, after a blockage inside a coal-fired furnace erupted.
The six workers, who were employed by the subsidiary and two contractors, received serious burns because of the incident, with five of them passing away because of it.
The investigation carried out by OSHA found that similar incidents had previously taken place at the power plant back in 1997 and 2011, which also led to worker injuries. While the subsidiary modified its slag tank water blasting procedures and required a job briefing for the procedure, OSHA learned that the company failed to train its employees or on-site contractors on the new procedures.
The subsidiary plead guilty for "wilfully violating the related OSHA standard by failing to ensure those briefings took place," according to OSHA's media release.
The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida then ordered the company to pay a $500,000 penalty and be subject to 36 months of probation. It also required the company to implement a safety compliance plan that will be audited by a third party.
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The subsidiary's president, in a statement quoted by CBC, said they hold themselves accountable for the strategy while reaffirming their commitment to worker safety.
"We reaffirm our commitment to hold ourselves accountable for this tragedy, and to ensure our people are safe as part of the world-class safety culture all of us at Tampa Electric are working together to build," said the president.
In its plea agreement, the subsidiary said it has reached private civil settlements with the victims' estates and other injured individuals.
Tremelle Howard, regional solicitor of labour in Atlanta, said that the workers at the electrical power plan "never should have died."
"The U.S. Department of Labour's enforcement action and the litigation that followed shows that employers who wilfully expose workers to the risks of serious injury or worse will be held accountable for failing in their legal responsibility to provide a safe and healthy workplace," added Howard in a statement.