$172K in Fines for Morris Businesses With Safety Hazards

Temporary workers staffed by an agency to work at a distribution center in Wharton were exposed to excessive noise and safety hazards, leading to hefty fines for three separate companies, the U.S. Department of Labor announced Tuesday.

The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) began a safety inspection on Dec. 1, 2014 in response to a formal complaint against Customized Distribution Services, Inc., a general warehousing and storage contractor hired by Whitlock Packaging Corp. to run its Wharton facility.

During that initial inspection, OSHA observed high noise levels, which prompted an additional health inspection to be conducted on Dec. 22, 2014, officials said.

Employees at the location were placed by Action Group Staffing, located in Dover, including forklift operators and production line employees.

The follow-up investigation found Whitlock Packaging failed to obtain a valid baseline audiogram as required by law, which resulted in a willful violation, OSHA said. The manufacturer was also cited for one repeat, six serious, and one “other-than-serious” violations. One repeat and one serious violation against Customized Distribution Services was also lodged, and one more against Action Group Staffing, OSHA said.

Whitlock Packaging was fined $140,500; Customized Distribution Services was fined $26,400; and Action Group Staffing fined $5,000.

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