b'GARYS CORNERterm YAHOOYou Always Have Other Options.more than six feet above the level below them Remember,ifyousettleanyOSHAcitationsare protected from falls in compliance with the you have received just to get a lower penaltyOSHA Fall Protection Standards, Subpart M. The (and this may be all you can get from the areaconcern I have for you is that if you admitted to Director) the citations you accept by settling willa violation of any fall protection standard within be on your OSHA record and may well becomethe five years before any inspection, for whatever the basis of a future repeat citation. Anotherreason, and if OSHA gets on your site under difficult discussion I have (more frequently thanthe NEP and observes even one employee in I like) is with a company representative whoviolation of substantially the same standard, you has received a repeat violation with a five or sixwill be cited as a repeat offender with a maximum figure penalty. Then they advise me that theypenalty of up to $156,259.never really committed the underlying violationGoing forward this exposure to a repeat violation three years before, but they admitted to it to getdemonstrateswhyyoushouldconsultwith a lower penalty and to save potential legal costs.counsel to at least discuss your alternatives any This brings to mind an old expression from mytime you receive an OSHA citation. Remember younger dayspenny wise and pound foolish.that you get a telephone call or email exchange In addition to this, in construction your OSHAwith me or any attorney at Auman Mahan & Furry citation history, especially of serious violations,for up to 30 minutes each month as a member of may adversely affect your ability to qualify to bidthe MRCA. A few minutes of your time may help on new projects or, if you get to bid, to comparemake you aware of all alternatives available to you unfavorably against other bidders. you following an OSHA citation.I will cover this topic in more detail in one of my presentations at the fall convention. But,Remember,yourAssociationhasaLegal between now and then, if you have the misfortuneService Plan with Auman, Mahan and Furry, to be cited by OSHAPLEASE DO NOT ACTwhich allows members of the Association to PRECIPTIOUSLY and take advantage of all ofcontact Auman, Mahan and Furry once a month the tools available to you to consider all of yourat no charge.So contact Gary under the Legal options.Services Plan if you have further questions on WARNING this topic.Forthoseofyouwhotookadvantageofa settlementofferfromOSHAwhichinvolved acceptingoneormorecitationsandsafety violations for alleged fall protection violations, whether you felt you actually were in violation or not, PLEASE BE CAREFUL going forward. In a bulletin prepared by my office a few weeks ago we explained the new OSHA National Emphasis Program (NEP) for fall protection and the fact that it will provide OSHA probable cause to perform a site inspection. The NEP provides that OSHA will be able to perform a site inspection of any construction site at which they observe anyone working six feet or more above the ground or the level below them, even if the person observed is wearing fall protection. So, the NEP will get OSHA on the site, you need to be sure that all employees on the site working www.mrca.orgMidwest Roofer 23MRCA Qtr Page Vert.indd 2 12/20/2021 10:37:43 AM'