The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has fined the Walt Disney Co. (NYSE:DIS) $12,431 after an employee broke both arms in a laundry facility in Kissimmee, Florida.
What Happened: Florida Politics reported the accident occurred on Oct. 27 when the employee was assisting co-workers in fixing a piled-up jam of laundry on a conveyance belt. According to the OSHA investigation, the workers were using their hands to unjam the belt.
Because the rollers are more than 7-feet tall, one of the workers climbed on top of a tool cabinet to move the belt. But when the belt abruptly started moving, the worker began screaming for help, with OSHA noting that his “arms were pulled between the tension roller and the belt all the way up to his elbows.” The machine was shut down with an emergency stop button and sought to aid the worker, who suffered broken arms.
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What Happened Next: OSHA’s investigation determined the jammed-up conveyor belt was still energized and its tension roller guards “had been missing for some time.” Disney had no specific procedures for clearing jams on the belt, and the workers’ use of their hands to fix the problem contributed to the injury.
OSHA initially proposed more than $22,000 in penalties after the incident, but Disney negotiated the fine down to $12,431, which was settled in a May 6 agreement. The OSHA report did not identify the worker, nor did it offer an update on his condition.
Photo: Denis Adriana Macias & Jrobertiko / Wikimedia Commons
