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OSHA cites manufacturer after thumb amputation

Posted On: Mar. 13, 2018 1:24 PM CST

OSHA cites manufacturer after thumb amputation

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited an Ashland, Ohio-based plastic bag manufacturer for serious and repeated violations of machine safety procedures, with proposed penalties totaling $155,208.

Last November, after an employee clearing a jam on a bag sealing machine suffered a partial amputation of his thumb, OSHA initiated an investigation of Liqui-Box Corp, the agency said Monday in a statement. The plastic bag manufacturer was cited for failing to adequately train employees on lockout/tagout procedures and failing to complete required annual audits of the company’s safety processes, according to the statement.

“Hundreds of workers are injured every year in manufacturing facilities because employers fail to follow machine safety procedures,” Kim Nelson, OSHA area office director in Toledo, Ohio, said in the statement. “This company exposed an employee to serious injury by failing to take the necessary and well-known safety precautions.”

A representative for Liqui-Box was not available for comment.