An Ashland, Ala., cabinet manufacturer could have avoided the electrocution of a maintenance employee according to a federal workplace safety assessment by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
OSHA investigators found the 33-year-old Wellborn Cabinet Inc. employee came into contact with a 277-volt circuit March 16 while changing a light bulb in a paint booth, according to a Sept. 27 news release.
“A worker’s family, friends and co-workers now grieve a terrible loss which might have been prevented had Wellborn Cabinet followed federal safety requirements,” OSHA Area Director in Birmingham Ramona Morris said, according to the release.
In addition to failing to use energy isolating devices for hazardous energy, OSHA cited Wellborn Cabinet for eight significant violations for failing to confirm those circuit elements and equipment parts were de-energized before permitting an employee to install light fixtures. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said 126 people died in 2020 as a result of exposure to electricity while at work, the release reported.
Morris said every employer is legally responsible to provide a safe and healthful workplace, which every worker has a right to have, Morris said, according to the release. She said OSHA encourages employers to contact them with questions about how to keep their employees safe.
