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R. Williams Construction Co. V. Oshrc

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What was the legal issue in this case? In the case of R. Williams Construction CO. v. OSHRC, the legal issue is employees of R. Williams Construction CO. were not properly trained to do their job and death as well as serious injuries occurred in the results. On September 19, 2002, a trench collapse at a sewer-construction project at the Chumash Casino Project in California seriously injuring Adam Palomar and killed Jose Aguiniga. Both Adam Palomar and Jose Aguiniga were employees of R. Williams Construction Company working on the construction project. Palomar and Aguiniga were responsible for cleaning the pumps throughout any given workday without getting specific instructions. The day of the accident, both Palomar and Aguiniga entered the unshored trench to clean the pumps for approximately fifteen minutes. As they began to exit the trench, a wall collapsed and almost buried Adam Palomar and completely buried Jose Aguiniga in which he died. The day before the accident, the hydraulic jack shoring system was removed. The hydraulic jack shoring system supported the trench wall that collapsed.
Explain what the employer did or failed to do that violated the OSH Act. The R. Williams Construction Company failed to properly train their employees. The Company did not instruct its employees in the recognition and avoidance of unsafe conditions and in the regulations applicable to their work environment. The Company failed to ensure that no worker would have to travel more than 25 feet to reach a safe point egress. The R. Williams Construction Company also failed to ensure that a person with specific training in soil analysis and protective systems and capable of identifying dangerous conditions performed daily inspections of excavations for evidence of hazardous conditions. In addition to these violations, the Company also failed to ensure that the walls of the

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