Feb. 13 (UPI) — A federal safety regulator fined Mars Wrigley more than $14,500 for an incident last year when two workers fell into a vat of chocolate at the company’s factory in Pennsylvania.
On Sunday, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration, part of the Labor Department, charged Mars Wrigley with “serious” citations for an incident in June.
Among other things, OSHA said the workers — contracted from an outside employer — were not properly trained to use the equipment.
“The employer did not furnish employment and a place of employment which were free from recognized hazards that were causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees,” the regulator added.
The two workers were not seriously hurt, but trapped, in a vat of chocolate at the Mars Wrigley plant in Elizabethtown, Pa.
Mars Wrigley told local news outlet WHTM that it was working with OSHA to review the incident.
“The safety of our associates and outside contractors is a top priority for our business. As always, we appreciate OSHA’s collaborative approach to working with us to conduct the after-action review,” a company spokesperson said.
The company was fined more than $60,000 for safety-related issues involving highly hazardous chemicals at a Kansas plant in 2019.
