Contractors Face $81,400 Fine for Unsafe Trench Work

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration proposed fines of $81,400 after an inspection found Reconstruction Experts Inc. and a framing subcontractor it hired, Chivas Contractors, exposed workers to potential trench cave-ins at a work site in Colorado.Reconstruction Experts hired Chivas Contractors to locate a damaged water pipe in an Aurora apartment complex being renovated. Employees dug and worked in an 11-foot trench lacking cave-in protection systems, OSHA said.OSHA proposed total fines of $73,800 against Reconstruction Experts. It alleges the contra...