Firms Renovating Old Chicago Post Office Hammered for Worker Safety
A federal agency has cited three Chicago-area companies for allegedly not properly protecting workers doing renovations on Chicago’s sprawling Old Post Office from lead and cadmium exposure. They face more than $200,000 in fines in all.
A Wednesday statement from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration says OSHA inspected the site in August after reports of elevated blood-lead levels for an employee who did sandblasting work at the more than 90-year-old building.
The companies have 15 days to pay the fines or contest the findings. The companies are Valor Technologies Inc., and Tecnica Environmental Services Inc., and American Demolition Corporation.
Valor’s owner told the Chicago Tribune it corrected issues that OSHA raised. It hadn’t decided if it would contest the fines. American Demolition and Tecnica couldn’t be reached for comment.