THOMASVILLE, AL -- Thomasville Lumber Co. Inc., which specializes in the manufacture of yellow pine products, has been issued 24 alleged safety and record keeping violations by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Proposed penalties total $159,700.

The violations were discovered after OSHA began its inspection in December 2010 as part of its national emphasis program to prevent workplace amputations. 

Tomasville Lumber received citations for five willful violations, including one carrying a $70,000 maximum proposed fine for not requiring that lockout or tagout of equipment be performed only by authorized employees performing servicing or maintenance to prevent unintentional startup that can lead to injury or death. The other four willful violations relate to the company's failure to maintain complete and accurate entries in its OSHA log between 2007 and 2010. OSHA proposed a $10,000 penalty for each of the four years, totaling $40,000.

"Employers must provide their employees with safe workplaces and be committed to their safety," said Cindy Coe, OSHA regional director. "OSHA will not hesitate to impose significant penalties when it finds that workers are being endangered on the job, and when employers intentionally disregard their responsibility to completely and accurately maintain injury logs that can help them identify problem area."

Read more about the citations OSHA issued to Thomasville Lumber.

Posted by Rich Christianson