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Federal investigators found a wire manufacturer could have prevented an employee’s death by following workplace safety standards, and issued two willful citations and proposed almost $300,000 in penalties.
Classified by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) as “serious” violations, the sanctions stem from the death of a worker at the company’s San Antonio facility in February.
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WMC San Antonio LLC, now based in The Woodlands, allowed the employee to ride on top of an “unsecured, site-made forklift attachment” that was moving wire mesh bundles to a flatbed trailer. The attachment slid off the forks and the employee fell, suffering fatal injuries.
The company had tasked workers with moving material from the plant to another WMC location as the company prepared to close the San Antonio facility, according to a news release from OSHA.
“WMC San Antonio ignored the well-documented dangers of using unauthorized forklift attachments and an employee’s family, friends and co-workers are left to grieve their loss,” stated Alex Porter, who serves as OSHA’s area director in San Antonio. “This company publicly claims that employee safety and well-being is a priority but then unnecessarily exposed workers to serious dangers.”
After opening an investigation into the death, OSHA issued WMC one willful citation for “failing to provide fall protection for employees working at heights up to 13 feet” and a second for “exposing workers to fall and struck-by hazards by allowing them to ride on improper and unsecured forklift attachments.”
The agency has proposed $299,339 in penalties for its violations. According to the notification letter to WMC, the company has a total of eight violations it must correct. It must act within 15 days to contact OSHA and either pay the fine and correct the violations or contest them. A call to WMC was not immediately returned Monday afternoon.
According to its website, WMC is a “family-owned company” that offers “custom steel wire solutions” and “values the safety and well-being of all team members as our number one priority.”
WMC is part of the Turia Group, according to the website, which “leads and innovates the steel industry with a global vision.”
The U.S. Department of Labor release described WMC, which appears to stand for Wire Mesh Company, as being founded in 2003 in Jacksonville, Florida, with mill facilities in Texas, California, Illinois, Pennsylvania and South Carolina. The company lists a West Commerce Street address on its website.
Steel Iron Wire Mesh Tracy Idell Hamilton covers business, labor and the economy for the San Antonio Report. More by Tracy Idell Hamilton