Construction firm fined $92,000 for multiple safety citations
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The Washington Department of Labor & Industries levied a $92,000 fine against a construction company with a history of safety problems, the department announced in a statement Tuesday.
Cloise & Mike Construction Inc., formerly known as Choice & Mike Construction, was cited for failing to enforce the use of fall protection while roofing a home under construction in Hoquiam, Washington.
The company has been cited more than two dozen times for serious and repeat safety violations since 2001 and has been inspected 26 times; seven of those inspections occurred in the past three years and resulted in more than $200,000 in fines.
At the most recent inspection, investigators for the Washington Division of Occupational Safety and Health found that workers on the construction site were not only working at heights without fall protection, but employees were not wearing masks or practicing social distancing, the department said.
In total, Cloise & Mike Construction was issued citations for a lack of fall protection when working at heights of four feet or greater, no fall protection work plan, failure to comply with COVID-19 protections, a lack of training programs in practice, no hard hats worn while working under roofers, failure to properly descend ladders, improper extension of ladders above landings and lack of a walk-around safety inspection.
The company has 15 days to appeal the citations. Money collected from the citations goes toward Washington’s workers compensation supplemental pension fund.
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