PENNSAUKEN, N.J. — J&J Snack Foods Corp. has agreed to improve workplace safety and health at its eight food manufacturing and warehouse facilities in New Jersey and New York as part of a settlement with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Also as part of the settlement, J&J Snack Foods has agreed to pay a penalty of $152,934.

The OSHA violations stem from an inspection conducted last fall that determined J&J Snack Foods had exposed employees to serious machine hazards. OSHA issued willful and repeat citations for failing to train employees and utilize procedures to control hazardous energy when they perform servicing and maintenance work on machinery.

“This settlement shows the Department’s enforcement efforts leading to positive changes on important safety issues,” said Jeffrey S. Rogoff, regional solicitor in New York. “A repeat violator with a history of safety problems related to machine hazards took responsibility and is improving those conditions across the region, beyond the violations identified by a single inspection at a single facility.”

In addition to the penalty, J&J Snack Foods has agreed to hire a full-time corporate safety director. The director will be responsible for managing and coordinating safety and health across all the company’s facilities. The company also has agreed to hire a full-time site-safety manager who will be responsible for coordinating safety and health onsite at each facility, as well as a qualified safety and health professional who will conduct two comprehensive safety and health inspections per year and implement a written safety and health program consistent with OSHA’s best practices guidelines.

J&J Snack Foods has agreed to ramp up its employee safety training and will establish a safety and health committee comprised of employees, union representatives and managers to recommend further safety and health improvements.

The company is committed to the safety and health of all its employees, J&J Snack Foods said.

“We strive to provide all employees with the safest possible work environment and the knowledge necessary for each employee to safely complete their job responsibilities,” said Gerard G. Law, senior vice-president.