Latest news with #CaliforniaDivisionofOccupationalSafetyandHealth
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Yahoo
Family of San Francisco Recology worked killed on the job in 'complete shock'
The Brief The 61-year-old was a longtime mechanic who had worked in the garbage industry for more than 40 years. Romero is survived by three children and four grandchildren. SAN FRANCISCO - The family of a longtime Recology worker who died on the job says the company has provided little information about the circumstances of his death. What we know Alfredo Romero Jr., 61, of Fremont, was working Friday morning at the 501 Tunnel Ave. recycling facility, located on the border of San Francisco and Brisbane, when he died in a workplace accident, according to a statement from his family. Romero was a longtime mechanic who had worked in the garbage industry for more than 40 years. Recology confirmed the fatality that day but did not release details about how the accident happened, saying only that the incident remains under investigation. The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, or Cal/OSHA, has opened an investigation and has six months to issue any citations if violations are found. What they're saying "It was a complete shock when I got the call from Recology telling me that my dad was in an accident at work and that he passed away," said Michelle Romero, the victim's daughter. "I couldn't imagine what kind of accident could have resulted in his death and the company wouldn't tell us. They would only say that it was being investigated." Michelle Romero said her father came from a long line of men in the garbage industry. "Garbage workers are our family and family friends. He should have never died at work that day," she said. "It is our sincere hope that all the lessons this horror can teach are actually learned, so that it never happens to anyone else. We are truly devastated." Romero is survived by three children and four grandchildren. A GoFundMe page has been launched to help cover funeral expenses. The Source The family of Alfredo Romero Jr., previous KTVU reporting.
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Yahoo
Delano man found dead on Peterson Road: coroner
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — The Kern County Coroner's Office has identified a Delano man who was found dead in McFarland on Tuesday. Jose Luis Garcia, 55, was found dead in the 3000 block of Peterson Road in McFarland on Tuesday, March 18. Sheriff's deputies say Garcia was located at about 9:46 a.m., and he was pronounced dead at the scene. Californians can receive up to $137 off their April utility bills. Here's how The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health is investigating the death. The cause of death is unknown at this time, according to the coroner's office. If you have any information, call Cal/OSHA at PHONE: 661-588-640. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Tesla fined for 'serious' heat violation at California plant
Tesla has been fined for violating California's workplace heat protection rules at its Fremont plant. Although the $13,500 penalty is a pittance for the electric car maker that boasts a market cap of more than $1 trillion, state regulators categorized the company's violation as "serious," meaning it could result in injury, illness or death. The findings stem from Tesla's failure to provide employees working outdoors with adequate cooldown breaks in shaded areas, according to a citation issued by the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, known as Cal/OSHA, in December. Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Cal/OSHA did not provide specifics on the conditions workers experienced at the Fremont plant. The citation references a section of California's heat safety rules that mandate that employees be allowed and encouraged to take cooldown rests in the shade when they feel the need to do so to prevent themselves from overheating. Any employee who takes this type of preemptive break is supposed to be monitored for symptoms of heat illness by a supervisor and should not be asked to return to work until symptoms have subsided. Co-founder and CEO of Tesla Elon Musk has had a hostile relationship with the state in recent years, accusing California of 'overregulation, overlitigation, overtaxation.' And the new regulatory scrutiny comes at a time when Musk is leading an aggressive effort to scale back or entirely dismantle swaths of the federal government on behalf of the Trump administration. The car maker has previously tussled with California workplace safety regulators over conditions at the Fremont plant. An investigation by The Center for Investigative Reporting in 2018 found that Tesla has failed to report some serious workplace injuries, skewing the company's injury statistics. Tesla rebutted the findings, but Cal/OSHA cited the company the next year for omitting hundreds of injuries listed in logs at its factory from annual summary data that the company sends each year to government regulators. Tesla also constructed an open-air structure outside its main Fremont vehicle facilities in an effort to speed up assembly and production of its Model 3 sedan, but in 2019 was hit with fines from Cal/OSHA for safety violations, including a failure to obtain a permit to the build the open-air facility, failure to protect workers from exposed metal rods and rebar that posed risks and failure to properly train employees to prevent heat illness. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, Musk restarted production at the plant in defiance of a county-wide stay-at-home order, although the company eventually reached an agreement with Alameda County to resume operations. Hundreds of infections were reported in the aftermath of the reopening. And Cal/OSHA in 2023 slapped Tesla with four safety violations after an employee at the Fremont plant was seriously injured when she got stuck in a Model Y. Tesla had allegedly failed to ensure power was cut to a conveyor belt while workers were performing quality inspections, leading to the worker becoming trapped in the car. Sign up for our Wide Shot newsletter to get the latest entertainment business news, analysis and insights. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
11-02-2025
- Automotive
- Los Angeles Times
Tesla fined for ‘serious' heat violation at California plant
Tesla has been fined for violating California's workplace heat protection rules at its Fremont plant. Although the $13,500 penalty is a pittance for the electric car maker that boasts a market cap of more than $1 trillion, state regulators categorized the company's violation as 'serious,' meaning it could result in injury, illness or death. The findings stem from Tesla's failure to provide employees working outdoors with adequate cooldown breaks in shaded areas, according to a citation issued by the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, known as Cal/OSHA, in December. Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Cal/OSHA did not provide specifics on the conditions workers experienced at the Fremont plant. The citation references a section of California's heat safety rules that mandate that employees be allowed and encouraged to take cooldown rests in the shade when they feel the need to do so to prevent themselves from overheating. Any employee who takes this type of preemptive break is supposed to be monitored for symptoms of heat illness by a supervisor and should not be asked to return to work until symptoms have subsided. Co-founder and CEO of Tesla Elon Musk has had a hostile relationship with the state in recent years, accusing California of 'overregulation, overlitigation, overtaxation.' And the new regulatory scrutiny comes at a time when Musk is leading an aggressive effort to scale back or entirely dismantle swaths of the federal government on behalf of the Trump administration. The car maker has previously tussled with California workplace safety regulators over conditions at the Fremont plant. An investigation by The Center for Investigative Reporting in 2018 found that Tesla has failed to report some serious workplace injuries, skewing the company's injury statistics. Tesla rebutted the findings, but Cal/OSHA cited the company the next year for omitting hundreds of injuries listed in logs at its factory from annual summary data that the company sends each year to government regulators. Tesla also constructed an open-air structure outside its main Fremont vehicle facilities in an effort to speed up assembly and production of its Model 3 sedan, but in 2019 was hit with fines from Cal/OSHA for safety violations, including a failure to obtain a permit to the build the open-air facility, failure to protect workers from exposed metal rods and rebar that posed risks and failure to properly train employees to prevent heat illness. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, Musk restarted production at the plant in defiance of a county-wide stay-at-home order, although the company eventually reached an agreement with Alameda County to resume operations. Hundreds of infections were reported in the aftermath of the reopening. And Cal/OSHA in 2023 slapped Tesla with four safety violations after an employee at the Fremont plant was seriously injured when she got stuck in a Model Y. Tesla had allegedly failed to ensure power was cut to a conveyor belt while workers were performing quality inspections, leading to the worker becoming trapped in the car.
