OSHA cites Mississippi plastic manufacturer after severe worker injuries
Agency says two employees suffered debilitating hand injuries
Employer name: Mississippi Polymers Inc.
Inspection site: 2733 South Harper Road, Corinth, Mississippi
Citations issued: The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued citations to the employer on Jan. 14 for 11 serious safety violations.
Inspection findings: OSHA initiated two inspections after learning of two serious injuries that occurred in the fall of 2015. On Sept. 28, a 41-year-old print tender suffered severe injury when his hand entangled in a print roller and was crushed. Six days later on Oct. 4, a 59-year-old mill operator caught her hand in a print roller; the machine crushed her pinky finger so badly that a portion of the finger, up to the first joint, had to be amputated. Both workers were attempting to clean the machinery when the incidents happened.
OSHA cited Mississippi Polymers for exposing workers to unguarded rollers, rotating shafts and gears; failing to train workers on the specific procedures to prevent machinery from starting up during maintenance and servicing and not providing safety rails on stairs.
Quote: “This employer cannot continue to expose its employees to unguarded machinery and other serious safety hazards,” said Eugene Stewart, OSHA’s area director in Jackson. “Two workers were severely injured when protective guarding was available and could have prevented such incidents.”
Mississippi Polymers manufactures functional and decorative films used in many products such as banners and billboards. The company employs more than 160 workers in Corinth. The employer has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and proposed penalties to comply, request a conference with OSHA’s area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
To ask questions; obtain compliance assistance; file a complaint; or report amputations, eye loss, workplace hospitalizations, fatalities or situations posing imminent danger to workers, the public should call OSHA’s toll-free hotline at 800-321-OSHA (6742) or the agency’s Jackson Area Office at 601-965-4606.
Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA’s role is to ensure these conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit https://www.osha.gov.
