Forbes has reported that out of the top 10 auto plants in the U.S., Tesla has been issued the most OSHA violations between 2014 and 2018. In fact, a total of 54 is an astounding three times the combined number of violations that the other competitors received. Georgia residents may want to know what the factors are in this news.
Tesla happens to hire the most individuals and contractors with a total of 15,000 employees. Only BMW remotely approaches this with 11,000 employees. At the same time, Tesla’s production facilities are not located in rural areas as with the other nine auto plants; the company operates out of Fremont, California. The Tesla CEO has claimed that OSHA’s California branch is the most stringent in the nation, which may have influenced the trend.
To increase production of its premium sedan, the Model S, Tesla had to cut costs. Twelve OSHA violations, plus around six others that have not been listed in the OSHA database, date from 2018 alone. Another 22 OSHA violations arose from 9 accidents, and 18 violations were the result of 7 complaints.
The 54 total violations resulted in fines amounting to $236,730. Nissan was second with five violations amounting to $33,700 in fines. Of the top 10, BMW, Honda, Hyundai, Subaru and GM did not receive any violations.
All employers must meet OSHA standards for their industry. Neglecting that will compromise workplace safety and raise the risk for accidents. Workers, for their part, might be reimbursed for some of their losses in the event of an injury. All they have to do is file for workers’ compensation benefits. However, these benefits can be denied if employers show that victims were to blame for their own injuries. This is why anyone considering filing may want to see a lawyer first.
