Wash. Contractor Cited for Fraud and Safety Violations

To combat fraud and protect workers from serious injury and death, the Washington Department of Labor and Industries has cited a Tacoma roofing contractor for workers’ compensation fraud and multiple safety violations.

An industrial insurance audit showed that Tacoma-based Armstrong Construction owed $3,642 in unpaid premiums for underreporting worker hours. The company had been audited twice before for the same problem, so was cited for a misrepresentation penalty of 10 times the amount owed, for an additional $36,420.

During the audit, L&I safety inspectors also were alerted to possible safety violations at the contractor’s job sites. Inspectors found ongoing problems, such as a supervisor and another employee working on a steep-pitched roof at heights of 12 and 30 feet without fall protection. Fall-protection equipment was available but was not being used.

The citations included $30,500 for two “willful,” one “repeat serious,” one “serious” and two “general” violations of safety regulations.

Serious violations are issued when failing to follow safety regulations is likely to result in death or serious injury. Willful is cited when an employer intentionally or knowingly violates rules or knows that a violation is occurring and is plainly indifferent to correcting it.

The company has 15 working days to appeal the safety citations.