ConDig (26-Mar-18).  The owner of a Marietta, Georgia-based independent roofing contractor has been fined by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for fall violations on a site in Birmingham, Alabama.

Jose A. Serrato, who has been cited seven times in the past five years, faces $133,604 in proposed penalties.

The fine comes after OSHA conducted a site investigation and said it found Serrato exposing employees to fall hazards of about 28 feet and failed to re-train employees who did not demonstrate the skills necessary to recognize fall hazards.

“Employers are responsible for ensuring their worksites are free of recognized hazards,” said Ramona Morris, OSHA Birmingham area office director.

“This employer has continually exposed employees to fall hazards by disregarding federal safety requirements.”

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

OSHA conducted the investigation under the Agency’s Regional Emphasis Program for Falls in Construction.

In February, an Illinois-based roofing contractor was fined $281,286 after exposing workers to fall hazards on six Chicago-area residential roofing projects.

A 2016 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released in December showed that the rate of fatal injuries in the construction industry increased 6% in 2016 to 991 worker deaths compared with 937 in 2015.

BLS figures showed that falls, struck by objects, electrocutions and caught-in/between accounted for 63.7% of all construction worker deaths in last year. There was a rise in total construction worker deaths for each of the “Fatal Four” in 2016.