Oregon OSHA has fined Seaside-based contractor Synergy Construction Group more than $15,000 for violating job safety standards during a residential roofing project. All three violations were repeat offenses, including one that exposed workers to potential falls that could seriously injure or kill them.

The citation stems from an inspection the division launched in response to a complaint about a lack of fall protection for employees at a multi-story house in Seaside.

The inspection found two employees working on the roof with no protection against potential falls to the ground of up to 22 feet. It was a violation of a basic fall protection rule requiring employers to implement protective systems – such as a personal fall restraint system – when employees are exposed to a hazard of falling six feet or more to a lower level. This is the fourth time Synergy Construction Group has violated the standard since February 2020, according to a news release from the Oregon Department of Consumer & Business Services.

“Repeatedly violating workplace safety standards – standards that are proven to protect workers against fall hazards – serves only one purpose: to increase the risk to employees of serious harm or death,” said Julie Love, interim administrator for Oregon OSHA, in the release. “And there is absolutely no excuse for it.”

Oregon OSHA cited Synergy Construction Group for the following violations and proposed penalties totaling $15,850: Failure to provide fall protection systems where workers were exposed to a hazard of falling six feet or more to a lower level, with a total proposed penalty of $15,000; failure to provide documentation of fall protection training for the employees doing the roofing job, carrying a proposed penalty of $500; and failure to document, make available, and maintain for three years a written record of safety meetings addressing such issues as hazards related to tools, equipment, the work environment, and unsafe work practices, carrying a proposed penalty of $350.

Under Oregon OSHA’s rules, penalties multiply when employers commit repeat offenses. The citation issued against Synergy Construction Group included a standard penalty reduction based on the small size of the company. Synergy has appealed the citation.

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