Two years ago, the U.S. Department of Labor placed Kyoei Steel LTD on its severe violator program. Based in Osaka, Japan, Kyoei Steel operates Vinton Steel in Texas, with about 400 employees represented by United Steelworkers Local 9424. The company and its subsidiaries operate primarily in Japan, with additional operations in Canada and Vietnam.
In April 2022, OSHA issued citations for 19 serious violations by Vinton Steel and assessed $364,078 in proposed penalties. The company landed in the severe violator program because, in the past five years, the facility has experienced ten workplace safety incidents, five of which involved an employee’s amputation injury.
During a follow-up inspection at the Vinton steel fabrication and recycling facility, OSHA investigators once again found the company endangering workers.
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In January 2024, OSHA found the company failing to keep workers clear of loads lifted by slings, not keeping slings in good working order, improperly guarding machinery and exposing workers to moving parts, and a number of additional safety hazards, like failing to maintain fire extinguishers, failing to fit-test workplace respirators, and not completing medical evaluations to determine employees’ ability to use respirators.
In a statement, OSHA Area Director Diego Alvarado Jr. in El Paso, Texas, said, “The company must immediately stop endangering its workers and correct its safety failures before someone gets seriously injured or worse.” Alvarado Jr. reprimanded Vinton Steel for continuing to “show a callous disregard for the safety of its employees by exposing them to potentially deadly hazards.”
Vinton Steel was cited for five repeat and two serious violations and proposed $269,631 in penalties. The company has 15 business days to comply, request an informal conference, or contest the findings.
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