This past week, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a total of $185,150 in fines relating to asbestos exposure programs for employees of five companies. The companies had been working together to renovate a building called One Eleven Park Avenue in San Antonio at the time that they committed the infraction.
The five companies cited were One Eighty Construction Inc, Varco Builders of Texas, Roscoe Properties Inc, Colors Unlimited, and One Eleven Park itself. Varco Builders of Texas received both safety and health citations, whereas all other companies received only one kind. Each company was given one willful violation for failing to properly notify employees of location, presence and quantity of asbestos in the building they were renovating, thereby exposing those employees to dangerous chemicals without proper training or notice.
“Exposure to asbestos can have devastating outcomes, including lung disease and cancer,” said Alejandro Porter, OSHA’s area director in the San Antonio office. “It’s imperative that employers take action to keep workers from harm by informing and protecting them when asbestos hazards exist in the workplace.”
One Eighty Construction and Roscoe Properties Inc had previously been issued willful violations for the same issue in 2015 at a hotel called The Beverly.
“This commercial building renovator is responsible for protecting workers from asbestos hazards and failed to do so, despite previous citations for asbestos exposure. There is simply no excuse for continuing to expose workers to this danger,” Porter said at the time. “Exposure to asbestos can lead to lung disease and cancer years after initial exposure.”
Not only are these companies now facing serious fines, they’ve put their employees in danger and possibly caused irreparable damage. Health and safety programs are intended to help keep people safe, not just help companies conform to regulatory standards. By following OSHA rules, these companies could have avoided the health hazards they inflicted on their workers.
