NOTE: a reduction in penalty can come about many different ways, so a reduction in penalty does not imply that the hazardous condition did not exist at the time of the inspection. Many reductions in penalties occur due to negotiations requiring abatement of the hazard and extra’s like training supervisors in OSHA 10-hr course.
Since the winds have shifted in D.C. with the new administration, there is a lot of debate in the safety community regarding OSHA’s “Shaming Campaign” where OSHA would issue press releases regarding inspections, even before the informal conference had taken place. The amount of money in the citations that would “make you famous” varied over the previous 8-years, but if a business was cited over $50,000 you can pretty well expect a “press release” from OSHA and a posting of the citations. Anyone who follows me knows I use these citations to show the types of items that OSHA was finding in regards to PSM, LOTO, PRCS, and Emergency Response; however, I always scrubbed the names and locations of the business from my postings (although I provided links to the citations which had names and addresses). So you can probably tell I was not a fan of the “Shaming Campaign” and here are two (2) good reasons why… it was NOT FAIR or as it turns out, NOT VERY ACCURATE. With all the dust up about the lack of press releases this year I thought I would go back and do a snapshot analysis to see just how accurate the press-releases were.
I went back to December 2016 and took the last ten (10) General Industry Cases and looked at the “Initial Citation” vs. the “Final Citation” amounts. As far as data goes , I merely started at the end of December 2016 Press Releases and worked my way back until I had 10 cases. No Hocus-Pocus, just a grab sample of data to see how accurate these press releases were. Here’s what I found:
CASE #1 – Cpe Feeds, Inc. ($83K down to $21K)
https://www.osha.gov/news/newsreleases/region6/12082016
| Violation Summary | ||||||
| Serious | Willful | Repeat | Other | Unclass | Total | |
| Initial Violations | 16 | 1 | 17 | |||
| Current Violations | 10 | 1 | 11 | |||
| Initial Penalty | $82,659 | $400 | $83,059 | |||
| Current Penalty | $21,378 | $400 | $21,778 | |||
Case #2 – Subfloor Systems (no change)
https://www.osha.gov/news/newsreleases/region6/12052016
| Violation Summary | ||||||
| Serious | Willful | Repeat | Other | Unclass | Total | |
| Initial Violations | 1 | 1 | ||||
| Current Violations | 1 | 1 | ||||
| Initial Penalty | $87,297 | $87,297 | ||||
| Current Penalty | $87,297 | $87,297 | ||||
| FTA Amount | ||||||
| Violation Items | |||||||||||
| # | ID | Type | Standard | Issuance | Abate | Curr$ | Init$ | Fta$ | Contest | LastEvent | |
| 1. | 01001 | Repeat | 19260501 B01 | 11/08/2016 | 04/03/2017 | $87,297 | $87,297 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
Case #3 – Nn Metal Stampings, Inc. ($77K down to $46K)
https://www.osha.gov/news/newsreleases/region5/12062016-0
| Violation Summary | ||||||
| Serious | Willful | Repeat | Other | Unclass | Total | |
| Initial Violations | 9 | 2 | 11 | |||
| Current Violations | 9 | 2 | 11 | |||
| Initial Penalty | $77,322 | $77,322 | ||||
| Current Penalty | $46,394 | $46,394 | ||||
| FTA Amount | ||||||
| Violation Items | |||||||||||
| # | ID | Type | Standard | Issuance | Abate | Curr$ | Init$ | Fta$ | Contest | LastEvent | |
| 1. | 01001 | Serious | 19100022 A02 | 12/02/2016 | 12/13/2016 | $4,490 | $7,482 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 2. | 01002 | Serious | 19100137 C02 VIII | 12/02/2016 | 12/28/2016 | $5,238 | $8,730 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 3. | 01003A | Serious | 19100147 C04 I | 12/02/2016 | 12/28/2016 | $5,238 | $8,730 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 4. | 01003B | Serious | 19100147 D | 12/02/2016 | 01/20/2017 | $0 | $0 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 5. | 01004 | Serious | 19100147 C06 I | 12/02/2016 | 12/28/2016 | $5,238 | $8,730 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 6. | 01005 | Serious | 19100147 C07 I A | 12/02/2016 | 12/28/2016 | $5,238 | $8,730 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 7. | 01006 | Serious | 19100217 B07 III | 12/02/2016 | 12/28/2016 | $5,238 | $8,730 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 8. | 01007 | Serious | 19100217 D09 I | 12/02/2016 | 01/20/2017 | $5,238 | $8,730 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 9. | 01008 | Serious | 19100217 F02 | 12/02/2016 | 12/28/2016 | $5,238 | $8,730 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 10. | 01009A | Serious | 19100333 A02 | 12/02/2016 | 06/29/2017 | $5,238 | $8,730 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 11. | 01009B | Serious | 19100335 A01 I | 12/02/2016 | 06/29/2017 | $0 | $0 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 12. | 02001 | Other | 19100178 L04 III | 12/02/2016 | 12/28/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 13. | 02002 | Other | 19100178 Q07 | 12/02/2016 | 12/13/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
Case #4 – Kerry Inc ($86K down to $30K)
https://www.osha.gov/news/newsreleases/region5/12082016-0
| Violation Summary | ||||||
| Serious | Willful | Repeat | Other | Unclass | Total | |
| Initial Violations | 2 | 1 | 3 | |||
| Current Violations | 3 | 3 | ||||
| Initial Penalty | $18,351 | $68,591 | $86,942 | |||
| Current Penalty | $30,000 | $30,000 | ||||
| FTA Amount | ||||||
| Violation Items | |||||||||||
| # | ID | Type | Standard | Issuance | Abate | Curr$ | Init$ | Fta$ | Contest | LastEvent | |
| 1. | 01001 | Serious | 19100147 C06 I | 12/05/2016 | 01/30/2017 | $5,058 | $5,880 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 2. | 01002 | Serious | 19100147 D | 12/05/2016 | 12/30/2016 | $12,471 | $12,471 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 3. | 02001 | Serious | 19100147 C04 I | 12/05/2016 | 01/30/2017 | $12,471 | $68,591 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
Case #5 – Alliance Laundry Systems ($124K down to $62K)
https://www.osha.gov/news/newsreleases/region5/12082016
| Violation Summary | ||||||
| Serious | Willful | Repeat | Other | Unclass | Total | |
| Initial Violations | 1 | 1 | ||||
| Current Violations | 1 | 1 | ||||
| Initial Penalty | $124,709 | $124,709 | ||||
| Current Penalty | $62,355 | $62,355 | ||||
| FTA Amount | ||||||
| Violation Items | |||||||||||
| # | ID | Type | Standard | Issuance | Abate | Curr$ | Init$ | Fta$ | Contest | LastEvent | |
| 1. | 01001 | Repeat | 19100212 A03 II | 12/06/2016 | 01/05/2017 | $62,355 | $124,709 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
Case #6 – Crystal Finishing Systems, Inc. ($185K down to $75K)
https://www.osha.gov/news/newsreleases/region5/12122016
| Violation Summary | ||||||
| Serious | Willful | Repeat | Other | Unclass | Total | |
| Initial Violations | 1 | 1 | ||||
| Current Violations | 1 | 1 | ||||
| Initial Penalty | $7,839 | $7,839 | ||||
| Current Penalty | $5,000 | $5,000 | ||||
| FTA Amount | ||||||
| Violation Summary | ||||||
| Serious | Willful | Repeat | Other | Unclass | Total | |
| Initial Violations | 4 | 3 | 3 | 10 | ||
| Current Violations | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 | ||
| Initial Penalty | $40,620 | $137,181 | $177,801 | |||
| Current Penalty | $32,781 | $33,719 | $3,500 | $70,000 | ||
| FTA Amount | ||||||
| Violation Items | |||||||||||
| # | ID | Type | Standard | Issuance | Abate | Curr$ | Init$ | Fta$ | Contest | LastEvent | |
| 1. | 01001A | Serious | 19100023 A07 | 12/06/2016 | 01/12/2017 | $7,839 | $7,839 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 2. | 01001B | Serious | 19100023 C03 | 12/06/2016 | 01/12/2017 | $0 | $0 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| Deleted | 3. | 01002A | Serious | 19100179 E06 I | 12/06/2016 | 01/12/2017 | $0 | $12,471 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | |
| 4. | 01003 | Other | 19100219 C02 I | 12/06/2016 | $3,500 | $7,839 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | |||
| 5. | 02001 | Repeat | 19100023 C01 | 12/06/2016 | 01/12/2017 | $33,719 | $48,994 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| Deleted | 6. | 02002 | Repeat | 19100212 A01 | 12/06/2016 | 01/12/2017 | $0 | $48,994 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | |
| 7. | 02003 | Serious | 19101200 F06 | 12/06/2016 | 12/28/2016 | $12,471 | $39,193 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 8. | 03001 | Other | 19100024 F | 12/06/2016 | 01/12/2017 | $0 | $0 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 9. | 03002 | Other | 19100027 B01 II | 12/06/2016 | 01/12/2017 | $0 | $0 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| Deleted | 10. | 03003 | Other | 19100212 A02 | 12/06/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 11. | 04001A | Serious | 19100179 E06 I | 01/20/2017 | 03/31/2017 | $12,471 | $12,471 | $0 | Z – Issued | ||
| 12. | 04001B | Serious | 19100179 I | 01/20/2017 | 03/31/2017 | $0 | $0 | $0 | Z – Issued | ||
Case #7 – Mountaire Farms, Inc. (no change)
https://www.osha.gov/news/newsreleases/region3/12122016
| Violation Summary | ||||||
| Serious | Willful | Repeat | Other | Unclass | Total | |
| Initial Violations | 3 | 3 | ||||
| Current Violations | 3 | 3 | ||||
| Initial Penalty | $30,823 | $30,823 | ||||
| Current Penalty | $30,823 | $30,823 | ||||
| FTA Amount | ||||||
| Violation Items | |||||||||||
| # | ID | Type | Standard | Issuance | Abate | Curr$ | Init$ | Fta$ | Contest | LastEvent | |
| 1. | 01001 | Serious | 5A0001 | 12/02/2016 | 01/23/2017 | $12,471 | $12,471 | $0 | 12/23/2016 | – | |
| 2. | 01002 | Serious | 19100303 B07 IV | 12/02/2016 | $5,881 | $5,881 | $0 | 12/23/2016 | – | ||
| 3. | 01003 | Serious | 19100147 C04 I | 12/02/2016 | 12/19/2016 | $12,471 | $12,471 | $0 | 12/23/2016 | – | |
SPECIAL NOTE: These last three (3) cases were a joint press release
Case #8 – Joon, Llc (no change)
https://www.osha.gov/news/newsreleases/region4/12142016
| Violation Summary | ||||||
| Serious | Willful | Repeat | Other | Unclass | Total | |
| Initial Violations | 2 | 20 | 1 | 23 | ||
| Current Violations | 2 | 20 | 1 | 23 | ||
| Initial Penalty | $21,557 | $2,494,180 | $2,515,737 | |||
| Current Penalty | $21,557 | $2,494,180 | $2,515,737 | |||
| FTA Amount | ||||||
| Violation Items | |||||||||||
| # | ID | Type | Standard | Issuance | Abate | Curr$ | Init$ | Fta$ | Contest | LastEvent | |
| 1. | 01001 | Serious | 19100132 A | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $11,758 | $11,758 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 2. | 01002 | Serious | 19100255 B05 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $9,799 | $9,799 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 3. | 02001A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 4. | 02001B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 5. | 02001C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 6. | 02002A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 7. | 02002B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 8. | 02002C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 9. | 02003A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 10. | 02003B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 11. | 02003C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 12. | 02004A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 13. | 02004B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 14. | 02004C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 15. | 02005A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 16. | 02005B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 17. | 02005C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 18. | 02006A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 19. | 02006B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 20. | 02006C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 21. | 02007A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 22. | 02007B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 23. | 02007C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 24. | 02008A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 25. | 02008B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 26. | 02008C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 27. | 02009A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 28. | 02009B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 29. | 02009C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 30. | 02010A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 31. | 02010B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 32. | 02010C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 33. | 02011A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 34. | 02011B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 35. | 02011C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 36. | 02012A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 37. | 02012B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 38. | 02012C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 39. | 02013A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 40. | 02013B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 41. | 02013C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 42. | 02014A | Willful | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 43. | 02014B | Willful | 19100147 D02 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 44. | 02014C | Willful | 19100147 D04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 45. | 02015 | Willful | 19100147 C05 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/20/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 46. | 02016 | Willful | 19100255 B04 | 12/12/2016 | 12/30/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 47. | 02017 | Willful | 19100255 B04 | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 48. | 02018 | Willful | 19100255 B04 | 12/12/2016 | 12/30/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 49. | 02019 | Willful | 19100255 B04 | 12/12/2016 | 12/30/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 50. | 02020 | Willful | 19100255 B04 | 12/12/2016 | 12/30/2016 | $124,709 | $124,709 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
| 51. | 03001 | Other | 19100147 C05 II B | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $0 | $0 | $0 | 01/05/2017 | – | |
Case #9 – Alliance Hr, Inc. ($24K down to $16K)
https://www.osha.gov/news/newsreleases/region4/12142016
| Violation Summary | ||||||
| Serious | Willful | Repeat | Other | Unclass | Total | |
| Initial Violations | 2 | 2 | ||||
| Current Violations | 2 | 2 | ||||
| Initial Penalty | $24,942 | $24,942 | ||||
| Current Penalty | $16,000 | $16,000 | ||||
| FTA Amount | ||||||
| Violation Items | |||||||||||
| # | ID | Type | Standard | Issuance | Abate | Curr$ | Init$ | Fta$ | Contest | LastEvent | |
| 1. | 01001 | Serious | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 02/03/2017 | $8,000 | $12,471 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 2. | 01002 | Serious | 19100147 C05 I | 12/12/2016 | 02/03/2017 | $8,000 | $12,471 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
Case #10 – Joynus Staffing, Corp. ($24K down to $17K)
https://www.osha.gov/news/newsreleases/region4/12142016
| Violation Summary | ||||||
| Serious | Willful | Repeat | Other | Unclass | Total | |
| Initial Violations | 2 | 2 | ||||
| Current Violations | 2 | 2 | ||||
| Initial Penalty | $24,942 | $24,942 | ||||
| Current Penalty | $17,500 | $17,500 | ||||
| FTA Amount | ||||||
| Violation Items | |||||||||||
| # | ID | Type | Standard | Issuance | Abate | Curr$ | Init$ | Fta$ | Contest | LastEvent | |
| 1. | 01001 | Serious | 19100147 C04 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $8,750 | $12,471 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||
| 2. | 01002 | Serious | 19100147 C05 I | 12/12/2016 | 12/22/2016 | $8,750 | $12,471 | $0 | I – Informal Settlement | ||