STEARNS CONSTRUCTION COMPANY

According to U.S. Department of Labor enforcement records, STEARNS CONSTRUCTION COMPANY — a flooring contractors facility located at 1111 LINCOLN ROAD, MIAMI BEACH, FL 33139 — was the subject of a formal OSHA inspection that resulted in 17 citation(s) and cumulative proposed penalties of $24,688.00. The inspection case was opened on 2008-05-06.

The volume of citations issued during this inspection suggests systematic compliance deficiencies rather than isolated incidents. Facilities with 10 or more citations typically face comprehensive abatement requirements and may be subject to follow-up inspections.

BLS Injury Data: According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (2022), this industry sector has an occupational injury rate of 2.8 per 100 full-time workers — 4% above the national average of 2.7. The sector fatality rate is 9.6 per 100,000 workers.

Industry Benchmark: The total penalty of $24,688.00 is more than 6.8× the national average of $3,609.14 for facilities in the Construction sector (NAICS 238330). This sector encompasses 532,749 inspected facilities nationwide with aggregate penalties totaling $1,922.8M.

State Context: Within FL, this facility's penalty places it at the 99th percentile among 80,682 inspected facilities. The statewide average penalty is $2,815.86.

Citation Analysis: The inspection produced 17 citations spanning 8 distinct OSHA regulatory standards. The citation breakdown includes: 15 serious — A workplace hazard that could cause death or serious physical harm exists, and the employer knew or should have known about the condition.

Enforcement Timeline: Citations were issued beginning December 12, 2006 with the latest abatement deadline set for July 7, 2009. Of the 17 total citations, 5 (29%) have been marked as abated in DOL records, which may indicate ongoing compliance gaps requiring further regulatory attention.

Penalty Assessment: The cumulative penalty of $24,688.00 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 $1,452.24 falls within the standard penalty range.

Stearns Construction Company’s 2008 inspection revealed a pervasive breakdown in fundamental safety management, characterized by seventeen citations that spanned multiple high-risk disciplines including excavation, scaffolding, and electrical safety. The imposition of nearly $25,000 in penalties against a flooring contractor (NAICS 238330) is significantly higher than industry averages for this subsector, signaling that OSHA identified severe, multi-point exposure to life-threatening hazards. The gravity of the violations—particularly those associated with 1926.651 and 1926.652—indicated a catastrophic failure to implement trenching safeguards, such as adequate protection against cave-ins and falling loads. These standards are non-negotiable in construction because their neglect often results in fatalities. The concurrent violations regarding scaffolding (1926.451) and ladder safety (1926.1053) further established a pattern of non-compliance with fall protection protocols, while the 1926.416 citations evidenced a failure to protect workers from energized electrical circuits. Collectively, these data points suggest a systemic absence of a functional safety and health program rather than isolated technical errors. The specific citation of 1926.20(b)(1) is critical; it underscores that management failed to initiate or maintain a program for frequent inspections by competent persons. This enforcement record depicts a worksite where employees were routinely exposed to the "Focus Four" hazards—falls, caught-in, struck-by, and electrocution—without the administrative or engineering controls required by federal law.