City postal center faces $350K in fines from OSHA

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2010/08/21/4968333.htm

City postal center faces $350K in fines from OSHA: OSHA: Safety violations spur filing of 1st-ever enterprise-wide complaint

PORTSMOUTH, Aug 21, 2010 (Portsmouth Herald - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- A city postal facility faces $350,000 in fines for alleged safety violations involving electrical hazards at the plant.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the federal mail processing and distribution center at 345 Heritage Ave. was inspected following employee complaints.

OSHA officials alleged employees were "troubleshooting" and voltage testing on "near live electrical equipment and wiring that had not been first de-energized." The workers were also not provided with protective gear and were inadequately trained, OSHA alleged.

"These citations and the sizable fines proposed here reflect the U.S. Postal Service's ongoing knowledge of and failure to address conditions that exposed its workers to the severe and potentially deadly hazards of electric shock, arc flashes and arc blasts," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Dr. David Michaels.

The Postal Service has 15 business days to comply with safety laws, meet with the OSHA area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

FULL story at link.

[cloudbase]

1. What is "near live" equipment?

It's either energized or it's not. Sometimes you have to test a circuit while it's hot.