Hartford Business Journal

14 Hartford Business Journal • May 2, 2016 www.HartfordBusiness.com allowing OSHA to apply 26 years of inflation to its penalty caps. Fines for most OSHA violations have been capped at $7,000, while penalties for more seri- ous (and rarer) violations — classified as repeat or willful violations — have been capped at $70,000. An 80 percent hike would bring those caps to $12,600 and $127,000, respectively. Common OSHA violations include failures to protect workers from hazardous materials, falls and other accidents. "I think … there may be a bit of a rude awakening when the fines increase," said Jane Warren, a law partner at McCarter Eng- lish in Hartford, where she leads the firm's OSHA practice. "I think companies are going to be caught a little off guard." Warren said companies don't always pay attention to the threat of OSHA penalties as much as they should because it's considered a cost of doing business to some when fines are so low. Warren said she hasn't seen any signifi- cant scrambling by Connecticut companies in advance of the penalty increases. Some firms probably aren't aware of it, but she thinks compa- nies should update their compliance manuals and step up safety training, among other measures. "It's easy to find violations anywhere," she said. "It's not hard." Higher fines also likely means more com- panies will contest them, creating more work for attorneys like Warren. The U.S. Department of Labor, which houses OSHA, is required to publish an inter- im final rule outlining the new penalties by July 1, said Ted Fitzgerald, a DOL spokesman for the New England region. Chris Syrek, president of the Connecti- cut chapter of the Associated Builders and Contractors Inc. (CT ABC), which represents primarily non-union contractors, said his 200 members are cognizant of the fine increase. "OSHA fines haven't increased in over a quarter century, perhaps this will encourage companies to establish safety programs or improve upon existing ones," Syrek said. "There is nothing more important than making sure every employee has the opportunity to leave the jobsite every day and return to their fami- lies, and CT ABC will continue to put safety at the forefront of what we do as an association." CT ABC is one of several industry associ- ations in the state that has a formal training agreement with OSHA. The voluntary rela- tionship facilitates training and education about workplace safety. CT activity The number of OSHA inspections in Con- necticut has slightly declined over the past five years, according to data on its website. In 2015, the agency opened 652 cases in which violations were found, down from 775 in 2014, 815 in 2013, 821 in 2012 and 848 in 2011. OSHA has two Connecticut offices, Hart- ford and Bridgeport, which each cover a por- tion of the state. The average initial penalty issued by OSHA's Hartford office over the past year has been in the $6,000 range, according to an anal- ysis of OSHA data by the Hartford Business Journal. Those fines were ultimately reduced to an average of a p p r o x i m a t e l y $3,500, due to com- panies agreeing to conduct training and other remedies. The calculations don't include cases that remain open. Cases with larger penalties often stay open longer, as com- panies contest and/or seek to lower fines as much as possible. For example, OSHA proposed a $165,000 fine nearly a year ago on clothing retailer Forever 21, after an inspec- tion of its Farmington store found a blocked emergency exit and other violations that the company had been fined for at other stores. As of last week, the case technically remains open, as the retailer has agreed to a penalty payment plan, with the final penalty reduced to $100,000. OSHA typically issues press releases for its larger fines. So far this year, OSHA public- ly announced proposed fines totaling nearly $280,000 on six Connecticut employers. The largest is a $70,200 penalty against Lake Com- pounce amusement park. The second-largest, and most recent, was a $65,000 fine for cloth- ing retailer Guess? related to an inspection of its store located inside Foxwoods. From 2011 to 2015, OSHA opened more than 3,900 Connecticut cases in which viola- tions were discovered, according to federal data. That's more than two new cases per day. State OSHA fines unaffected The increase in federal OSHA fines against private employers isn't expected to impact fines levied by Connecticut's state OSHA office, which has jurisdiction over state and local gov- ernments and their related entities. More than half of states have a state OSHA plan, which is approved by the federal agency. Connecticut is one of six states where the state OSHA office has jurisdiction only over the public sector. State-level OSHA fines are capped at $1,000 per violation — much lower than the current federal fines. Conn-OSHA Director Kenneth Tucker said he doubts that will change. "We're very successful on getting correc- tive action and right now I don't think we need [an increase in the fines]," Tucker said. However, Tucker admits he has had mixed feelings about the relatively low fines his office can levy, particularly in rare instances when workers have died and an investigation deter- mines that violations contributed to the deaths. He said he vividly remembers meeting with the widow of a public-safety employee who had died on the job. "'My husband's life is only worth $2,500,'" he recalled her saying to him. "That's a hard one for me." Though its jurisdiction is in government, Conn-OSHA provides safety training and consults for many private companies, typi- cally with 250 or fewer workers. Some companies call after receiving a fine, while others are more proactive. The companies that seek out Conn-OSHA to walk through their facility to spot potential violations agree to fix whatever's found, Tuck- er said. If they don't follow through, Conn- OSHA reports them to the federal office. Despite federal OSHA's pending fine increase, Tucker said Conn-OSHA hasn't seen an increase in inspection requests from Con- necticut companies, but that could change. "I wouldn't be surprised to see it happen," Tucker said. n Heat Smart. Switch to Natural Gas. The secret to success? Find that competitive edge! And CT business owners are getting it with Natural Gas. Convenient. Dependable. Economical. Natural Gas is smart business. Find out more. Call 888.382.8664. AFUP26HB from page 1 Businesses brace for higher OSHA fines Average initial fines issued by Simpson's office in the past year have been in the $6,000 range. P H O T O | P A B L O R O B L E S Federal OSHA Inspections with Violations in CT S O U R C E : O C C U P A T I O N A L S A F E T Y A N D H E A L T H A D M I N I S T R A T I O N 0 200 400 600 800 1,000 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 764 855 820 899 920 848 821 815 775 652

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