As the weather warms up, many homeowners are hiring companies to re-roof or work on their house. Often, consumers only look at the bottom line, but L&I is encouraging homeowners to do some homework by checking out a business’s safety record too. 

By using L&I’s Verify a Contractor tool, homeowners can make sure their roofer or construction contractor is licensed, bonded and insured. It also shows the company’s safety record including all violations. 

Hiring an unregistered contractor puts homeowners at financial risk if anything goes wrong on your project. 

Repeatedly ignoring safety rules
Legacy Roofing Northwest, which also does business as America 1^st Roofing & Builders Inc. has a recent history of fall protection and other safety violations. Earlier this year, L&I inspectors photographed a Legacy Roofing/America 1^st worker on a roof without fall protection while working above exposed rebar on the ground. That citation resulted in a $95,648.00 fine.

Then, on May 6, L&I issued another citation to the Mukilteo-based business, fining them $112,000 for willful violations including workers not wearing eye protection while using nail guns to install shingles. The business is appealing both cases.

L&I has inspected Legacy Roofing/America 1st nine times in the past three years resulting in more than a dozen willful violations—four for lack of fall protection.

Putting workers at risk by violating fall protection requirements
Other companies facing notable citations from L&I for fall protection violations over the last three months include:

• Sol Construction LLC (Olympia) — fined $128,400 for willful violations March 5 after inspectors photographed four workers on a two-story roof who were not wearing fall protection. This was Sol Construction’s 7th inspection since 2018. The company is appealing.
  
  
• Modern S Construction LLC (Edgewood) — fined $118,440 for willful violations March 17 after four workers were framing a 2-story house without a fall protection system more than 12 feet off the ground. The workers were exposed to unguarded openings and had not been trained. The company has been inspected 11 times in the past nine years and has refused to implement a basic safety program. Modern S Construction did not appeal the citation and fine.
  
  
• Second 2 None Exteriors LLC (Spanaway) — fined $127,400 for willful violations March 19 after L&I inspectors photographed two roofers working more than 12 feet above the ground without fall protection or guarding. The company has had three inspections over the past two years resulting in fall protection violations. They are appealing. 

“Not only did these companies knowingly put their workers at risk, they’ve all been caught breaking the same rules before,” said Craig Blackwood, assistant director of L&I’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health.

“If a company is getting cited this often, it means it’s purposefully ignoring the rules and risking workers’ lives—often to save time and make more money,” said Blackwood.

Preventing falls in construction
Employers bear the ultimate responsibility in making sure their workers are safe by ensuring they use fall protection or guardrail systems while working above four feet in height.

Information and training are key to preventing this type of workplace tragedy. L&I has a digital fall protection tool to help employers and workers learn fall protection rules and other ways to stay safe on the job. If you see roofers working without fall protection, you can report it anonymously online or call L&I at 1-800-423-7733.