Human life not always valued

Example #1:

OSHA reports that they're going to seek a $2.78 million penalty against a dry-cleaning company that was apparently indifferent to the possible danger of the conveyor belt carrying heavy, wet clothing from the washer to the industrial-sized dryer. The clothing jammed. The worker who was asked to clear the jam was killed when he fell into the dryer.

Four employees at the plant are responsible for clearing jams on the conveyor belt. Apparently none of them received any safety training for how to do the job. Lockout-tagout standards were repeatedly ignored, and the company had been cited for 42 instances of willful violation of these rules. Read about it.

Example #2

Behind a high metal fence surrounding a pipe foundry in Texas, a man climbs into a deep pit to shut off heavy equipment, as ordered, while it is running. His mangled body is found the next day. The national company that employed him has been cited for more safety violations than their six major competitors combined. In court, executives for the firm admitted that they don’t worry about safety until an injury or death occurs. Company profits matter more.

Example #3

He was just 22 years old and a plumber’s apprentice when he was ordered into a trench ten feet deep to work on a sewer line. No safety provisions were made, such as a large metal box placed in the trench to provide a safe area to work. Thousands of pounds of mud and sludge collapsed on the man. He died struggling, and his body was pulled from the trench hours later. The worker had reported numerous safety violations to authorities, and the company had been cited recently for unsafe trenches, but nothing had been done to correct the condition.

Do reports like this trouble you?