'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Mars Wrigley - the maker of popular chocolates and confectionaries like M&M's and Snickers - is being fined by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The federal occupational safety agency is fining the company an amount of more than $14,500 for a 2021 incident where two workers fell into a chocolate vat at a Pennsylvania factory.
Mars Wrigley, a multi-billion dollar company, is not new to such incidents. The company has faced legal roadblocks multiple times in the last few years as it has experienced similar incidents.
Mars Wrigley is being fined for a 2021 incident that left two workers injured
The incident, which took place in June 2021, involved at least two contract workers who were neither authorized to work in the tanks nor had received adequate training on the safety procedures for the concerned equipment. Both workers fell into a partially filled vat of chocolate while doing maintenance work.
They were saved by emergency personnel who managed to get them out by cutting a hole in the bottom of the tank. One of the workers was in critical condition and had to be transported to the hospital via helicopter, whereas the other was transported via road.
Mars Wrigley broke its silence on the matter with a brief statement to the press, through a representative of the company, quoting:
"As always, we appreciate OSHA’s collaborative approach to working with us to conduct the after-action review."
The company is no stranger to such incidents
While the workers who fell into the chocolate vat during the June 2021 incident were miraculously saved by first responders, another contract worker involved in a 2016 incident was not as fortunate.
In the 2016 incident, a contract worker from a Cleveland-based M&M Mars Candy plant reportedly lost his life. Though Tennesse's OSHA branch investigated the death of the contract worker, not much was disclosed about the reasons behind the casualty.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, several warehouse workers from Joleit, Chicago, began protesting over safety concerns. They claimed that their protest was met with retaliation from the company and/or the contract firms they were employed under.
They signed a petition requesting the company to provide hazard pay, quarantine pay, and personal protective equipment in order to make working conditions safe for employees. Multiple individuals who signed the petition later claimed that they were either fired by their subcontracting agencies or placed on the "do not return" list.
Mars Incorporated, the corporate group that owns Mars Wrigley, is an American multinational manufacturer of multiple confectioneries, pet food, and other products. The corporate group had over U.S. $45 billion in annual sales in 2022. Ranked as the fourth-largest privately-held U.S. company by Forbes, Mars employs over 130,000 people (reported in 2020).
