OSHA fined Sarasota, Fla.-based Crown Roofing for exposing employees to fall hazards at a residential jobsite in Tamarac, Fla. OSHA has initiated 18 inspections against Crown Roofing in the past six years, ultimately fining the company 12 times for repeat violations of the fall protection standard. For its most recent violation, Crown Roofing faces penalties of $134,937.
OSHA initiated its most recent inspection in November 2019 as part of its Regional Emphasis Program for Falls in Construction and observed employees working on roofs without fall protection. The roofing company was cited for exposing employees to fall hazards.
“This employer’s repeated failure in complying with fall protection requirements puts worker’s lives at risk,” OSHA Fort Lauderdale, Fla., area director Condell Eastmond said in a prepared statement.
Crown Roofing was fined $265,196 for exposing workers to fall hazards at two separate worksites in February 2019 and was cited again in May 2019 for failing to provide fall protection, for the improper use of a ladder, and for exposing employees to struck-by hazards from falling construction debris.
In June 2019, Crown Roofing joined several Florida construction companies arguing against OSHA's operation methods. At the time, Aleksey Mendez, corporate safety director at Crown Roofing, said the company trains workers on safety programs and provides necessary safety equipment. Mendez said large fines should not be levied against the company for the actions of individual employees.
"At some point in time, employees need to be held accountable," Mendez told local station NBC-2 in June. "The agency is never going to fine an employee, perhaps that needs to be looked at. What's going to happen is that we won't be able to be in business anymore and those employees are going to work for someone that—guess what—is not going to be as safety conscientious as we are."
Crown Roofing has 15 business days from the receipt of its most recent citation and proposed penalties to comply, request an informal conference with their OSHA area director, or contest the findings.
