OSHA Fines Brickmaker $496,528 Over Silica Hazards

The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration fined a brickmaker in Pennsylvania nearly half a million dollars for allegedly knowingly exposing its workers to unsafe levels of respirable silica dust. OSHA said it cited General Shale Brick Inc. for three "willful" violations, four "serious" violations and one repeat violation, and proposed penalties of $496,528. The agency said General Shale Brick knew workers at its plant, where molded bricks are made, breathed in silica dust above safe limits but failed to fix the problem or require them to wear r...