Company owners in Missouri have an enormous responsibility to their employees. They have a duty to provide safe workplace surroundings and to take all the necessary steps to avoid the occurrence of a work accident. However, it is not uncommon for company owners to disregard some of the safety regulations that are prescribed by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
Whenever a worker has to perform maintenance or any tasks on equipment powered by electricity, the employer should ensure that the power to the object is disconnected. In order to avoid circumstances where another person unknowingly reconnects the electricity, the employer should tag the connection point, indicating that a worker is busy working on that object. Neglecting to do this may have caused the death of an employee in a refrigeration factory in Bridgeton on a recent Monday.
Although the OSHA investigation is still underway, a spokesman stated that preliminary evidence indicates that the electricity to the object was not disconnected before work on it commenced. A subsequent electrical shock was reported to have caused the death of the worker. The disconcerting fact is that this type of workplace accident is entirely avoidable.
The family of the Missouri worker who died in this work accident may be experiencing anxiety over the high costs of a funeral and burial while there will no longer be an income after their loved one’s death. They may find comfort knowing that the workers’ compensation insurance fund aims to provide financial aid to the surviving spouse and dependents of the victim of a fatal workplace accident. The surviving family members may choose to obtain the services of an experienced professional to guide them through the claims process.
Source: fox2now.com, “Worker dies at Bridgeton refrigeration factory“, , Sept. 9, 2014