The Salvation Army paid $120,000 in OSHA fines after a Florida worker’s death
Workplace safety violations that led to an Orlando employee crashing to his death through a skylight will cost The Salvation Army $120,817, the U.S. Department of Labor announced.
Labor’s workplace safety arm, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, originally proposed $172,596 in fines on five Serious violations, one Repeat-Serious violation and two Other-Than-Serious violations. The fine was reduced after an informal settlement conference.
The Salvation Army didn’t respond to a Miami Herald emailed request for comment.
As for the tragedy, OSHA’s website says, “At 8:47 a.m. on Nov. 7, 2024, Employee No. 1 was working on a roof attempting to locate and repair a leak. While on the roof, he fell through a skylight and landed on the concrete floor. The employee sustained fatal head trauma.”
Among the problems found by OSHA at The Salvation Army’s Adult Rehabilitation Center at 3955 W. Colonial Dr.:
▪ “Employees were exposed to an 18-foot, 6-inch fall hazard while fixing a roof leak and squeegeeing water off the edge of a high flat roof, in that, fall protection was not used.”
▪ In another part of facility, “employees were exposed to a 9-foot, 8-inch fall hazard while employees operated a vertical upstroke baler Economy Baling Press to create bales of clothing by loading clothing into the pit 9-foot, 8-inch deep, 6-feet long and 2-feet, 7-inch wide, in that, fall protection was not used.”
Coming five years after similar fall hazards fines for The Salvation Army of Mercer County in Princeton, West Virginia, OSHA proposed hitting The Salvation Army with an $82,750 fine for a Repeat-Serious violation. That was settled down to $57,373.
To file a workplace safety complaint, reach out to OSHA online or call 800-321-6742 (OSHA).
