Oklahoma Construction Contractor to Pay $370K Over Worker’s Fatal Fall

October 10, 2023

An Oklahoma construction contractor entered into a deferred prosecution agreement and agreed to pay $370,680 in criminal and civil penalties to avoid federal prosecution on one count of ignoring federal safety regulations that resulted in a worker fatality in St. Joseph in 2019.

The action follows an investigation by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration that found Skinner Tank Co. did not require employees to use fall protection while working on the roof of the 56-foot soybean storage tank, nor provide fall protection training. On Oct. 14, 2019, an employee on the roof died after falling more than 50 feet to the ground. OSHA’s inspection also revealed that the company provided inaccurate safety information to its employees by telling them that wearing fall protection actually presented a greater hazard than not wearing it.

After issuing civil citations, including willful violations for failing to require the use of fall protection and provide fall protection training, and proposing $415,204 in penalties, OSHA made a criminal referral to the U.S. Department of Justice under the criminal provision of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970.

Under the deferred prosecution agreement filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri on September 5, 2003, Skinner Tank Co., must pay a monetary penalty to the United States Treasury of $175,000 and an OSH penalty of $195,660.

Founded in 1982, Skinner Tank Co. is a family-operated company that builds welded steel storage tanks across the country. The company is based in Yale, Oklahoma.

Source: OSHA

Topics Contractors Construction Oklahoma

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