TOLLESON, AZ — A meat-processing plant in the West Valley has been fined for more worker safety violations.
An employee was doing maintenance on a machine in late December at JBS Tolleson when his hand got stuck in a chain and a finger was amputated, according to a report released this week by the Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health (ADOSH).
The state’s worker-safety agency cited the company $12,524 for serious worker-safety violations. ADOSH said the machine did not have proper safety guards, and the employee oiling the moving chain was wearing loose-fitting cotton gloves. The ADOSH report says the employee should have been wearing tight-fitting clothing, and that machines should be oiled when they are not in motion, whenever possible.
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The citations come one week after the company was fined for another incident involving a worker fatality. Eduardo Reyes Hernandez, 55, died of blunt-force injuries in November, according to the Maricopa County Medical Examiner.
The ADOSH report said the worker stepped off his forklift to load a feed hopper when another driver on a tractor with a front-end loader reversed. The worker was caught between the two vehicles.
JBS was fined $43,786 for failing to have a workplace free from hazards, according to the report.
ABC15 reached out to JBS for comment on both incidents but has not yet heard back. Companies cited and fined by the state can contest their citations if they disagree with them.
Email ABC15 Investigator Anne Ryman at anne.ryman@abc15.com, call her at 602-685-6345, or connect on X, formerly known as Twitter, and Facebook.
