A Huntsville aluminum foil manufacturer has been cited for multiple "serious" safety and health hazards by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
Doing business as ATI Foil, the company on 2615 Memorial Parkway S.W., was issued citations this month following a nearly six-month investigation that began Aug. 6, 2014, after the agency received a complaint.
The company, which is facing $57,600 in proposed fines, was cited for not providing personal protective equipment to workers exposed to corrosive liquids, not providing emergency showers or eyewash stations near workers handling corrosive liquids, not establishing a hazard communication plan and not ensuring a machine could not accidentally start up during maintenance and servicing.
Other violations were issued for failing to provide lockers for employees to avoid contamination of their street clothes and not properly cleaning up asbestos spillage. OSHA said a serious violation is cited "when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known."
Ramona Morris, director of OSHA's Birmingham office, said "employers must ensure a safe and healthful workplace."
"Employees at ATI Foil shouldn't have to risk their health or their lives just to earn a day's pay," she said in a statement. "ATI exposed its workers to hazards such as amputations, chemical burns and even blindness."
You can read the citations here. Department of Labor spokesman Lindsay Williams said ATI Foil has no previous OSHA inspection/citation history.
OSHA has given ATI Foil 15 business days from receipt of the citations to comply, request a conference or contest the findings before an independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. Williams said ATI Foil has not yet contacted OSHA to inform them of their decision since receiving the citations Wednesday.
ATI Foil Vice President Robert "Bobby" Glenn issued a statement about the OSHA findings Friday afternoon.
"ATI Foil has received the citations and is in the process of reviewing them," he said. "The company cooperated with OSHA in its investigation and looks forward to discussing the allegations further with OSHA to see how the matter can be resolved."
Employees and their representatives can file a complaint and request a workplace inspection through OSHA if they observe a serious hazard at work or feel their employer isn't meeting OSHA standards, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970.
Updated at 2:28 p.m. with a statement from ATI Foil.