EL MILAGRO OF TEXAS, INC.
According to U.S. Department of Labor enforcement records, EL MILAGRO OF TEXAS, INC. — a manufacturing facility located at 400 BARNES DRIVE, SAN MARCOS, TX 78666 — was the subject of a formal OSHA inspection that resulted in 18 citation(s) and cumulative proposed penalties of $128,613.80. The inspection case was opened on 2018-06-06.
Cumulative penalties significantly exceed the national median for OSHA enforcement actions. The penalty amount suggests multiple high-gravity citations, indicating conditions that presented a substantial probability of death or serious physical harm to employees.
Industry Benchmark: The total penalty of $128,613.80 is more than 15.1× the national average of $8,527.19 for facilities in the Manufacturing sector (NAICS 311830). This sector encompasses 24,420 inspected facilities nationwide with aggregate penalties totaling $208.2M.
State Context: Within TX, this facility's penalty places it at the 100th percentile among 119,485 inspected facilities. The statewide average penalty is $3,783.80.
Citation Analysis: The inspection produced 18 citations spanning 6 distinct OSHA regulatory standards. The citation breakdown includes: 13 serious — A workplace hazard that could cause death or serious physical harm exists, and the employer knew or should have known about the condition. 1 repeat — A substantially similar violation was found during a previous inspection and the original citation has become a final order. 1 other-than-serious — The violation has a direct relationship to job safety and health but is unlikely to cause death or serious physical harm.
Enforcement Timeline: Citations were issued beginning March 6, 2015 with the latest abatement deadline set for July 27, 2021. Of the 18 total citations, 0 (0%) have been marked as abated in DOL records, which may indicate ongoing compliance gaps requiring further regulatory attention.
Penalty Assessment: The cumulative penalty of $128,613.80 reflects OSHA's gravity-based penalty calculation methodology, which considers the severity of potential injury, the probability of occurrence, the employer's size, good faith, and violation history. The per-citation average of $7,145.21 falls within the standard penalty range.
The 2018 enforcement action against El Milagro of Texas, Inc. revealed a high-risk operational environment characterized by systemic failures in hazardous energy control and machine guarding. The concentration of citations under 29 CFR 1910.147 (Lockout/Tagout) and 1910.212 (General Machine Guarding) indicates a fundamental breakdown in protecting employees from the "big three" bakery hazards: caught-in, crushed-by, and amputation risks. With eighteen violations and penalties exceeding $128,000, this enforcement profile far surpasses industry averages for NAICS 311830, signaling that OSHA inspectors identified chronic rather than isolated safety gaps. Specifically, the recurring failures in energy isolation procedures (1910.147(d)(4)(i)) and training (1910.147(c)(7)(i)(A)) suggest a culture where production speed likely superseded maintenance safety protocols. The presence of a repeat violation regarding respiratory protection (1910.134) further underscores a lack of effective abatement following prior warnings. For workers, these deficiencies meant daily exposure to unguarded moving parts and the potential for unexpected machine re-energization during cleaning or jams. From a liability standpoint, the gravity-five ratings across multiple standards reflect a high probability of permanent, life-altering injuries, placing the facility under heightened regulatory scrutiny and suggesting a critical need for a comprehensive safety management system overhaul to mitigate significant legal and physical risks.