With the increase in trench related preventable injuries, OSHA has revised its Trenching poster with three ways to prevent dangerous trench collapses. The English version is available here, and the Spanish version is here. Additionally, the U.S. Secretary of Labor R. Alexander Acosta recorded Public Service Announcements to address this issue. Listen to the English version here and the Spanish version here. For more information, click here for OSHA’s trenching and excavation website.
Recently, an Ohio excavation contractor was penalized for employees working without adequate cave-in protection, due to fatal injuries sustained in a trench collapse. The business has been cited and proposed penalties of $202,201 and placed them in the Severe Violator Enforcement Program. This means mandatory follow-up inspections, increased company/corporate awareness of OSHA enforcement, corporate-wide agreements, where appropriate, enhanced settlement provisions, and federal court enforcement under Section 11(b) of the OSH Act. To read more about this story, click here.
