Tootsie Roll Industries LLC
Outcome
OSHA proposed $136,532 in penalties after a 48-year-old worker suffered a partial finger amputation when a bag-sealing machine's safety locks had been deliberately bypassed, allowing the machine to run in bypass mode during a routine debris-clearing task.
Details
Tootsie Roll Industries LLC — Machine Guarding Bypass / Amputation Injury (2021)
Outcome: OSHA proposed $136,532 in penalties after a 48-year-old worker at Tootsie Roll Industries' Chicago manufacturing plant suffered a partial finger amputation on April 19, 2021, when the bag-sealing machine's safety locks had been deliberately bypassed to allow operation in bypass mode, removing the protection intended to prevent exactly this type of injury.
On April 19, 2021, a 48-year-old production worker at Tootsie Roll Industries LLC's manufacturing plant in Chicago, Illinois reached inside a Robert's C-1500 Form, Fill and Seal Machine to clear paper debris that had accumulated inside the equipment. The machine's safety interlocks — access door locks designed to prevent the equipment from operating when a person could reach the dangerous closing jaws — had been bypassed by the company, allowing the machine to run in bypass mode. While the worker cleared the debris, the jaws of the bag sealer closed on the employee's finger, partially amputating it.
OSHA investigated and issued one willful violation for inadequate machine guarding. The willful classification reflected OSHA's determination that Tootsie Roll Industries was aware of the requirement to have functional guarding in place and deliberately allowed the safety locks to be defeated. OSHA proposed $136,532 in penalties. Tootsie Roll issued a statement disagreeing with the proposed fine and indicated it would enter dialogue with OSHA to seek a resolution.
The case is illustrative of a broader pattern OSHA has identified across food manufacturing: the deliberate bypassing of safety interlocks during production to avoid machine downtime, creating acute amputation hazards for workers performing maintenance and debris-clearing tasks. OSHA has a dedicated National Emphasis Program on Amputations in Manufacturing Industries that targets exactly this category of violation.
Primary Source: US Department of Labor proposes $136K in fines after worker at Tootsie Roll manufacturing plant suffers amputation injury
How Crucible Prevents This
A machine guarding bypass audit — checking whether safety interlocks have been physically defeated — is a direct preventive Crucible control. A lockout/tagout compliance training verification tracker, confirming employees have been trained before performing maintenance tasks, would have caught the knowledge gap. A maintenance task pre-authorization checklist requiring lockout verification before clearing jams or debris is a Crucible workflow control directly applicable here.
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