Federal Government Fines Waste Management Company for Violating New Jersey Labor Law

Newark, NJThe federal government recently fined Solid Waste Transfer and Recycling (SWTR) for what it describes as willful safety and health violations under New Jersey labor law.

span itemprop="image" itemscope itemtype="https://schema.org/ImageObject" style="display:block">In an attempt to target industries with high injury and illness rates, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Association (OSHA) recently toured the company's Newark location, where it issued a total of 10 violations resulting in more than $200,000 in fines.

Most of the fines were related to insufficient lockout procedures and machine safety guards, blocked exits, inadequate energy control procedures and a failure to properly label and correct dangerous equipment within the facility, which OHSA deemed to be willfully indifferent towards employee safety.

"It is imperative that the company correct the identified hazards to protect the safety and health of its workers," says OHSA's area director, Phil Peist, in a statement to the RP wire service.

SWTR has 15 business days to correct or contest the violations before facing further fines and legal action.