The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Berlin Builders – a New Jersey company – with multiple safety violations at four different project sites throughout the northeast. The citations have resulted in fines of $385,836.
Why is this so important? Because at Block O’Toole & Murphy, we are often asked what it will take to make the construction industry safer. The answer lies in getting serial offenders such as Berlin Builders out of the industry. They clearly do not value the safety of their workers enough to take the necessary precautions to protect them on their job sites.
How can these serial violators be held accountable, other than agencies like OSHA levying fines?
Workers have a role to play by reporting injuries as soon as they happen and pointing out safety hazards whenever they seem them.
At Block O’Toole & Murphy, we view our role as advocates for construction workers, fighting to create a safer industry by holding negligent employers accountable.
We do this by taking legal action when construction workers are hurt, seeking the full compensation they are entitled to for pain and suffering, medical bills, lost wages and other damages. In short, we use the civil justice system to show employers what will happen if they fail to look out for the interests of their workers.
There are many good construction companies that have positive safety records, and we commend them for their work. But when offenders like Berlin leave the safety of construction workers at risk, we will do everything in our power to make things right for New York construction workers.