Cabinet firm fined $167,000 after employee is killed on the job
Visionary Awards Needs More Judges

MARIETTA, Ga. - Georgia-based cabinetmaking firm FBS Manufacturing Corp. - which operates as Kitchen & Bath Solutions - has been fined $167,933 after a worker was killed on the job. 

OSHA says forklift operator Leonard Grier fell 15 feet onto a concrete floor while attempting to move cabinets from storage racks onto his forklift's pallet. The cabinets also fell, landing on top of him. Grier was soon discovered by co-workers and taken to a hospital.

He died the following day. 

OSHA says Grier was not wearing fall protection as required. OSHA fined Kitchen & Bath $167,933 in penalties.

“FBS Manufacturing Corp.’s failure to implement legally required safety procedures led to tragedy for a worker and his family,” said OSHA Area Office Director Jeffery Stawowy in Atlanta-West. “The fact that this incident was preventable only deepens their loss. This case should remind all employers that prioritizing production or profits over safety is never an acceptable choice.”

Company president Alex Liu called the investigation inadequate, telling The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that OSHA failed to interview supervisors. He said Grier was intoxicated at the time of the accident and that he had been warned repeatedly about wearing a harness.

Kitchen & Bath has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director, or contest the findings.

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Robert Dalheim

Robert Dalheim is an editor at the Woodworking Network. Along with publishing online news articles, he writes feature stories for the FDMC print publication. He can be reached at [email protected].