Two employees of Ned Stevens Gutter Cleaning and General Contracting of Massachusetts were doing their job atop a roof at 19 Columbus St. in Newton on Nov. 29, 2015, when one of them fell. He initially a hit a lower roof 11 feet below then fell another 15 feet to the ground and was injured.
An inspection by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration found that his fall was preventable if his employer ensured the use of proper and effective safeguards.
“Fall hazards are a persistent and common violation, one we encounter almost daily. Falls are a leading cause of death, particularly among workers in construction. What’s frustrating is that falls are among the most easily preventable of hazards, but only if employers provide and ensure the use of fall protection every day at every workplace,” said Anthony Covello, OSHA’s area director for Middlesex and Essex counties.
In the Newton case, Ned Stevens Gutter Cleaning failed to ensure the use of protective equipment when the workers went atop the roof and also failed to guard two skylights through which the workers could also have fallen. OSHA had also previously cited the company in 2014 for lack of protective equipment at a Leonia, New Jersey jobsite.
As a result of these conditions, OSHA cited Ned Stevens Gutter Cleaning on April 25for one repeated and one serious violation of workplace safety standards. Proposed fines total $45,500.
Headquartered in Fairfield, New Jersey, Ned Stevens provides gutter cleaning, repair and installation and other services in 11 states, most on the Eastern seaboard as well as in Illinois and Texas. Ned Stevens Gutter Cleaning was provided 15 business days from receipt of its citations and proposed penalties to comply, meet with OSHA’s area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
Falls continue to be the leading cause of death in construction work.
Two workers in Middlesex County died in work-related falls between October 2014 and October 2015.
OSHA has an ongoing fall prevention campaign to educate and encourage employers to prevent falls by planning ahead to do the job safely, provide workers with the proper protective equipment and train workers to use the equipment safely.
Author Kori Shafer-Stack, Editor, Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. is an expert in post-injury response procedures and part of the Amaxx team helping companies reduce their workers compensation costs by 20% to 50%. www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com. Contact: kstack@reduceyourworkerscomp.com.
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