WOW… just WOW! I feel like I am in the twilight zone after reading this decision. I am not a big fan of government shutdowns, but right now, I wish the OSHRC would get shut down. It is rare, but it does happen when I take serious issues with decisions of the OSHRC, and this one has to be one of the worst ever. Imagine this scenario…
An Electrified Monorail System (EMS) is within a large warehouse/distribution center. (CLICK HERE to see a video of an EMS in operation) This monorail system is surrounded by fencing (e.g., guarding, as most of us would say), and at the openings in the fencing where conveyors pass through, there are light curtains (e.g., safety devices, as most of us would say) in place. Both the facility and contractor employees entered the fenced area by muting out the light curtains rather than following the manufacturer’s procedure via the interlocked access doors. A contractor is severely injured when he is struck by a trolley while inside the fencing. He heard the trolley engage but could not get out of the way in time. The trolley “bumper” failed to stop it when it hit the worker. The trolleys were not in jog mode as required by the manufacturer of the EMS. And the kicker… the facility had added extra reset buttons so the system could be reset more timely. Some of these reset buttons were located where the person resetting the EMS zone could not see the zone. The EMS was also equipped with access doors designed to be opened with a key. Once the key was turned, a light on the door would turn green, and the trolleys in the associated loop would slow to access speed (e.g., what many of us would call “jog speed”). On the day of the accident, a facility employee reset a zone that the contractor had entered to clear a fault on a trolley. The trolley started up and struck the contractor causing serious injuries.
Sit down… the ALJ claimed that the fencing was not guarding, the light curtains were not a safety device, and LOTO did not apply as the contractor employee and facility employees knew the trolleys would start up, so there was no “unexpected start-up.”
Folks, this is PURE LOTO INSANITY!!! It does not get worse than this. This case is a picture-perfect example of why businesses and safety professionals take such issues with the current system. I do hope that OSHA will fight this! If this case stands, we have lost all hope in establishing fundamental LOTO principles!