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Global industrial leader fails to prevent workers’ injuries

A company with its head office in another state was recently cited by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The company is known as a global leader in the manufacturing of control and motion technologies, yet it allegedly failed to install protective devices in machines at its Missouri plant that would protect employees from severe workers’ injuries. OSHA launched an investigation after an amputation injury last December.

An incident report indicates that a 52-year-old woman started working with the company as a machine operator only nine days before she suffered a catastrophic injury. Reportedly, she operated a machine that sized and cut hoses, but the required safety guards were not installed. The woman’s arm was caught in the operating parts of the powerful piece of equipment and caused cuts so severe that her arm had to be amputated.

During the investigation, OSHA inspectors identified several other machines that also lacked safeguarding. What makes this unacceptable is the fact that OSHA provided safety intervention training at the same facility after similar violations in 2013 caused a previous amputation injury. Further safety violations identified at the plant included several unguarded floor openings that posed trip-and-fall hazards.

The woman whose arm was amputated at this Missouri facility will likely be unable to return to the same job because of her physical limitations caused by the unguarded machine. Along with benefits to cover medical expenses and lost income after incidents of workers’ injuries, the workers’ compensation insurance program may provide further assistance. In a case in which a worker is rendered disabled in a workplace accident, vocational training may be offered to equip the victim with new skills to enable him or her the opportunity to continue earning an income and caring for a family.

Source: reliableplant.com, “OSHA Cites Parker Hannifin After Worker’s Arm Severed“, Accessed on April 29, 2016