Any time one works around heavy machinery, there is a danger of suffering a serious work accident, even though most companies have safeguards in place to protect employees. When an accident does occur, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is likely to conduct an investigation to determine what went wrong. In Missouri and elsewhere, workers are still injured on the job through no fault of their own.
Unfortunately, one worker in another state was killed recently when he was attempting to help move a piece of machinery. According to the initial reports, the man was crushed when the 26-ton machine part somehow slid off of a forklift. The man was apparently under the machine at the time.
OSHA has opened an investigation concerning the company where the accident occurred as well as the subcontracting company for whom the victim worked. According to OSHA’s records, the business where the fatality occurred was cited for numerous safety violations in 2010. Of those violations, several were classified as serious and concerned the manner in which employees interacted with the heavy machinery.
The investigation will likely focus on determining the exact cause of the accident and whether either company violated any safety regulations. In the meantime, the victim’s survivors retain the right to apply for death benefits through the workers’ compensation program in the deceased worker’s state. Missouri workers also have access to work comp benefits, which provide monetary assistance to those who are injured on the job, or to the surviving dependents of those killed in an on-the-job accident.
Source: journal-news.com, “Lebanon man killed in accident at Franklin business”, Rick McCrabb, Aug. 23, 2017