OSHA Citation Reduction Win

Andrews Myers successfully resolved an OSHA enforcement action by negotiating a comprehensive settlement that dramatically reduced both the characterization of the citation and the associated penalty. OSHA issued the original willful citation as the result of the partial roof collapse following the removal of a load bearing wall on a demolition project. OSHA issued the willful violation due to its mistaken belief that the load bearing wall was removed notwithstanding that plans proved to the contractor showed that the wall was load bearing. OSAH also sought a $156,259 penalty.

Through focused advocacy Andrews Myers was able to convince the DOL solicitor that the plans supplied to the contractor indicated that the removed wall was not load bearing and there was nothing in the actual job site that should have alerted the contractor to the load-bearing nature of the wall. Andrews Myers obtained a reduced penalty to $32,262—representing nearly an 80% reduction from the initial assessment. More importantly OSHA agreed to reduce the level of the citation to "other than serious."