Harpers Pays $9,500 To Settle Workplace Safety Violations Osha Inspectors Cite Furniture Maker For Five ‘Serious’ Violations
Office furniture maker Harpers Inc. has paid $9,500 in fines to the Occupation Safety and Health Administration for workplace violations.
But that amount is about half of what OSHA originally planned to fine Harpers. The two sides negotiated a lower settlement this week, and Harpers sent the check off Friday, according to general manager Greg Davis.
After receiving complaints from workers about some of the working conditions, OSHA sent investigators to the Post Falls plant in March. Davis said Harpers staff cooperated fully.
The agency cited Harpers June 12, proposing to fine the company $18,250. The five violations coded “serious” in the report include:
Absence of protections against falls from wooden plank walkways positioned above spray booths.
Lack of permitting for a methyl amyl ketone still, which separates solvents from paint so that the solvent can be used again.
Lack of written instructions for workers working around the solvent still.
Lack of training for employees working around the solvent still.
Lack of procedures for handling hazardous materials around the solvent still.
The five violations ranged in penalty from $3,500 to $3,750. OSHA typically levies fines of between $1,000 and $7,000 for each serious citation.
The most recent North Idaho OSHA fine was levied against construction firms involved in an accident at Templin’s Resort in Post Falls.
Three workers died in an accident when the roof blew off an addition at Templins. OSHA fined both firms $10,000.
The Harpers complaint contains nine other citations that do not carry fines.
OSHA agents met with Harpers officials Wednesday to informally discuss a settlement, Jerrold Hockett, OSHA assistant area director, said.
Instead of contesting the citations, a company can use such conferences to discuss the report with OSHA and agree on modified citations.
“In most cases, the settlement involves lowering some or all of the fines,” Hockett said. “We use an informal conference to allow a easier exchange between the parties. In some cases the company will feel that there has just been some misunderstanding on some of the citations.”
All of the serious safety problems have been fixed, Davis said. Some of the nine other citations will take slightly longer to correct, mostly because some specialized equipment needs to be obtained, he said.
Davis said the OSHA investigation has been a cooperative effort between the manufacturer and the government. “They’re here basically to make us better.”
The OSHA fines are not the only trouble Harpers faces. Some workers have tried to unionize the shop floor.
Spokane-based Teamsters Local No. 582 has been trying to get enough employees to sign union cards so that the National Labor Relations Board will hold an election to see if workers want a union. The union must obtain cards from 30 percent for an election to be called.
Teamster representative Larry Kenck of Post Falls says the drive is continuing well. He could not name a target date for holding the election.
The union in May filed a charge against Harpers alleging unfair labor practices.
The case involves an employee who was fired May 1 for telling a co-worker to slow down production, according to the NLRB documents.
On Thursday, the Teamsters amended the original complaint to add charges of interrogating employees about the status of the union drive.
The Teamsters say Harpers management tried to coerce employees to reject the union, according to the document on file with the NLRB.
NLRB officials in Seattle said they are still investigating the charge and will soon decide if the union has a legitimate complaint, said Terry Jensen of the NLRB.
Harpers’ position on having union representation for its nearly 500 workers has been that the union wouldn’t help the company reach its goals, Davis said.
, DataTimes