A Missouri plumbing contractor has again been cited for "willfully" exposing workers to dangerous work conditions, five years after an employee died in an accident in a similar situation, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced recently.
Arrow Plumbing of Blue Springs, Mo., and owner Rick Smith face $796,817 in penalties after a site inspection found multiple alleged violations, DOL reports in the April 6 announcement. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) inspectors reported 12 alleged safety violations after monitoring two Arrow Plumbing employees installing water pipes in a trench at a residential construction site on Oct. 14, 2021, according to the report.
"Nearly five years after an employee died in a trench collapse," the DOL states in the announcement, "a Missouri contractor exposed two workers to the life-threatening risk of being buried by thousands of pounds of soil as they worked in an unprotected trench weakened by water pooling in an excavation site."
OSHA reports Arrow Plumbing and Smith have been cited for four willful violations, one repeated violation and seven serious violations of federal regulations as a result of the October inspection. Infractions include willfully allowing workers to work in trenches without cave-in protection, walk under suspended loads, improperly use ladders, and be exposed to struck-by hazards. The company also failed to provide safety gear such as hardhats and to properly train workers. The company was also charged with allowing water to accumulate in the trenches, which threatened the strength of the trench walls; and for not maintaining soil piles at least two feet away from the edge of the excavation, the statement reports.
OSHA reports that Arrow Plumbing and owner Rick Smith have a "significant history of OSHA violations." In 2018, the company entered a settlement agreement with OSHA to resolve citations from the 2016 death investigation. The agreement required the company to hire a safety consultant to create a safety program and confirm employees took relevant OSHA safety and training courses, among other provisions.
"However, Arrow Plumbing did not hire a safety consultant until Feb. 1, 2021 – three years after it promised to do so," OSHA reports in the statement. "The agreement also called for the company to pay $225,000 in previous fines via five payments of $45,000 over four years. To date, Arrow has only made one payment."
Arrow Plumbing was cited again in August 2020 after an employee was found working in an unprotected trench in Grain Valley., Mo., according to the report.
“Even though Arrow Plumbing and owner Rick Smith agreed to implement a comprehensive trench safety program after a previous fatal trench collapse, employees were again found to be working in an unprotected trench,” OSHA Area Director Karena Lorek said in the announcement. “This conduct is unacceptable, and OSHA will do everything possible to hold Mr. Smith accountable for failing to protect his workers.”
