SNAILSVILLE, PA – On a Tuesday afternoon in the summer of August 2022, federal occupational safety inspectors were responding to a police report that a 17-year-old worker suffered fatal injuries after being pulled into a wood chipper at a construction site near Allentown.
An investigation by the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration found that the teenager’s employer — a Lehigh Valley tree care business owned and operated by Adam Atiyeh — could have prevented the incident by complying with required state safety standards.
OSHA learned that the young worker was partially pulled into a wood chipper while feeding entangled material into the machine at a Schnecksville site on August 9, 2022, and later succumbed to his injuries. Investigators were told the company had allowed three underage workers to operate the wood chipper, a hazardous occupation prohibited under federal child labor laws.
Agency investigators found that the employer, who operates both Adam’s Tree Service and Adam’s Tree Removal and Trimming, failed to:
- Provide employees with personal protective equipment such as safety shoes, goggles, gloves and hard hats and ensure that they use them.
- Train your workers to operate a wood chipper safely.
- Have personnel with first aid training available on the job.
- Have portable fire extinguishers available in the workplace.
The agency issued subpoenas against the company and Atiyeh for 10 serious security violations and proposed a total fine of $136,613.
“The dangers of felling trees and operating a wood chipper are obvious and well known, yet this employer has put a teenager at risk of death.” Now his family, friends and colleagues must mourn,” said Jean Kulp, director of the OSHA area office in Allentown . “The willingness of this company and its owner, Adam Atiyeh, to expose workers to such hazardous work without proper safety equipment and training is difficult to understand. It is unacceptable to employ minors for this work.”
OSHA has referred the alleged child labor violations to the department’s Wage and Hours Division for further investigation.
Based in Schnecksville, Atiyeh and his company provide services to real estate owners in Bethlehem, Schnecksville and throughout Lehigh County.
The employer has 15 business days from receipt of the subpoena and penalties to comply, request an informal meeting with the OSHA area director, or contest the findings before the Independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
Learn more about OSHA’s safety standards for the tree care industry.
www.dol.gov
https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/osha/osha20230213