West Salem restaurant Cafe 22 West has been cited and fined by Oregon's Occupational Safety and Health Administration for failing to take sufficient measures to protect employees from COVID-19.
The citation resulted from worksite inspections following multiple complaints.
The inspections found the business willfully failing to implement health hazard control measures. These measured included the state's phased reopening requirements including face coverings for both employees and customers and physical distancing protocols for both workplace and employee-customer interactions.
The restaurant was issued a warning, but owners Clyde and Cynthia Aspinwall refused to comply. OSHA posted a Red Warning Notice at the business. Such a notice makes it clear a workplace is unsafe and should not continue operating until corrections are made. The business owners continued refusal to made adjustments.
OSHA issued the citation on August 18 and proposed a total fine of $13,900. The total reflects an $8,900 penalty for a willful violation of the requirement to provide these health hazard controls and a $5,000 penalty for failing to abide by a warning notice.
“In addressing complaints involving COVID-19 and the workplace, we have started with efforts to engage and educate the employers involved about what they needed to do. In most cases, we have been able to resolve any issues without an actual enforcement visit,” said Michael Wood, administrator for Oregon OSHA, “ We will continue to bring our enforcement tools to bear when employers choose to disregard requirements.”
Cafe 22 West is the second Salem business fined for violating requirements to protect workers. The first was Glamour Salon. Since March, Oregon OSHA has issued 18 citations to employers for violating requirements to protect workers from COVID-19. Penalties for non-willful violations ranged from $100 to $2,000, while penalties for willful violations ranged from $8,900 to $14,000.
Business owner Clyde Aspinwall declined to comment for this story.
Emily Teel is the Food & Drink Editor at the Statesman Journal. Contact her at eteel@statesmanjournal.com, Facebook, or Twitter. See what she's cooking and where she's eating this week on Instagram: @emily_teel
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September 17, 2020 at 01:11AM
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OSHA fines Cafe 22 West for failure to protect workers from COVID-19 - Statesman Journal
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