The Occupational Health and Safety Administration says construction workers at a new home construction site were subjected to a number of safety hazards. OSHA inspectors found as many as a dozen violations, many of which involved alleged unsafe scaffolding at the construction site. Inspectors converged on the site in Fort Lee, New Jersey on June 28.

The inspectors say bricklayers, who were performing masonry work in the new home, were climbing the cross braces of a work platform 24 feet above the ground, subjecting the workers a dangerous risk of a construction site accident. Other employees at the construction site reportedly were seen working on an unstable scaffold 18 feet above the ground. The inherent risks associated with potential scaffolding accidents brought several OSHA citations for the Paterson, New Jersey construction company.

In addition to the scaffolding hazards, inspectors say workers at the site did not have proper fall protections in place. The construction company received other citations for issues related to issues surrounding a respiratory protection plan, protections for employees from falling materials at the site and failure to provide safe landing surface at the work site.

"A careless approach to worker safety and health, evidenced by these violations, places [the] employees at risk of serious injury and possible death," Lisa Levy, director of OSHA's Hasbrouck Heights office, wrote in a press release.

The company still has an opportunity to respond to the citations, or must bring the construction site into compliance with OSHA safety hazards within 15 days from receiving the citations. In all, the company faces penalties as high as $65,340, for the alleged construction site hazards.

Source: NorthJersey.com, "Paterson company accused of putting workers at risk in Fort Lee," Kathleen Lynn, Sept. 26, 2011