An electric vehicle battery manufacturer was cited by OSHA for exposing its employees to unsafe levels of nickel and other metals at a plant in Georgia.
Inspectors found that the company exposed workers to respiratory hazards from nickel, cobalt and manganese by failing to perform a hazard assessment, provide employees with clean respirators and properly store respirators to protect them from contamination.
The agency also determined that workers handling bags of nickel powder were vulnerable to respiratory hazards due to a lack of administrative or engineering controls to reduce exposure levels.
Fine: $75,449
Company: SK Battery America Inc., Commerce, Georgia
Business: Primary battery manufacturing
Reasons for fine:
Nine serious violations for failing to:
- provide medical evaluations to determine an employee’s ability to use a respirator before they were fit tested or required to use a respirator in the workplace
- store respirators to protect them from damage, contamination, dust, sunlight extreme temperatures, excessive moisture and damaging chemicals
- provide suitable facilities for flushing of the eyes and body to employees exposed to injurious corrosive materials
- prevent employees from being exposed to excessive levels of nickel, cobalt and manganese dust
- use feasible administrative or engineering controls to prevent respiratory hazards caused by nickel dust
- ensure that all workplace hazards were assessed to determine if employees were required to use respirators
- provide employees with training on hazardous chemicals in their work area
- develop a monitoring program in areas where employees were exposed to high levels of noise
- develop an audiometric testing program for employees exposed to high levels of noise
One other-than serious violation for failing to:
- provide employees with basic advisory information on respirators
