This story was originally posted on WorkSafety 24/7, the newest Peerless Media publication. WorkSafety 24/7 is the premier online source for workplace and occupational safety news, with a focus on the construction, supply chain, warehousing, manufacturing, and service industries.

“They don’t care about their employees and don’t care about safety,” is what one employee said in an Indeed review of Virginia Transformer Corporation’s Pocatello, Idaho, manufacturing facility.

Last week, OSHA cited VTC nearly $1 million for repeatedly exposing workers to serious safety hazards.

In June 2025, OSHA inspectors conducting a follow-up inspection determined the company exposed employees to hazards similar to those identified during two inspections in April and June 2024 involving cranes used to handle heavy loads with faulty brakes and switches.

OSHA cited VTC for 53 serious and repeat violations, including failure to guard machinery, exposing workers to fall hazards, and failure to provide PPE. The company faces proposed penalties of $986,888.

VTC has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC).

At the time of publication, the 2025 case status was open and did not list individual violations. Those interested are encouraged to check the OSHA establishment search page periodically for any changes in the inspection or penalty status.

99 previous citations totaling over $600,000 at Pocatello

Since VTC acquired its Pocatello facility in 2003 through the end of 2024, OSHA recorded 99 citations – including 12 repeat violations – totaling $602,059, which was reduced to a total of $363,150.

Most citations were issued before 2010, and no citations were issued from 2011 to 2023. Emphasis in the earlier inspections included amputations, falls from height, struck-by hazards, and electrical hazards.

A total of 18 citations were issued following both 2024 inspections, totaling $228,834, and were later reduced to $171,625. These inspections emphasized crane and forklift hazards along with OSHA’s National Emphasis Program (NEP) on respirable crystalline silica. Both inspections responded to complaints.

Employees claim work environment “fear based” and “unprofessional”

Employee reviews of VTC’s Pocatello facility on Indeed raised concerns about lacking safety, training, communication from management, and work-life balance.

An Oct. 24 review from a material, purchasing, and shipping manager said the work environment and culture was “Very fast paced, sometimes skirting around quality. Plant management delegates and communicates poorly, and the environment is fear-based.”

An Oct. 31 review from a quality control inspector said the company is “Unprofessional and HR is a joke, has good pay but not worth it if you’re in school or have a family, you can try and explain your situation, and they’ll just laugh at you.”

A Dec. 2 review from a core stacker said, “The most stressful part of working there was the 12 hours sick shifts 7 days a week wondering if you would ever get a day off.”

An Oct. 23 review from a high-voltage assembler said, “They don’t care about their employees and don’t care about safety, the turnover rate is high for a reason. I’ve heard that other locations are far better. The Pocatello location is run horribly. They also don’t offer training because they don’t want to pay for training, knowing most people won’t even stay there.”

An Aug. 1 review from a maintenance supervisor titled “Do not work for this company” said, “The policies and different cultures running the plant creates an extremely toxic environment for anyone. Huge language barrier … creates a huge safety issue. … They invoke mandatory overtime and punish those who don’t live to work and put family first … Constant violation of human and civil rights from upper management.”

Safety violations at other VTC facilities

According to its website, VTC manufactures transformers at six North American locations. In addition to its Idaho plant, it operates a facility in Rincon, Georgia – which it acquired in 2015 – two in Chihuahua, Mexico – which began production in 1995 and 2022, respectively – and two in Virginia.

The company’s headquarters is located at its manufacturing plant in Roanoke, Virginia. In 2013, VTC relocated its Virginia tank fabrication, sandblasting, and painting to a facility in Troutville, Virginia, using a welding robot to deliver leak-free welds. In 2022, the facility began making end products for the EV charging market.

Between 2020 and 2025, OSHA conducted 21 inspections at the company’s Virginia facilities. These inspections found 29 violations.

Several cases are still open, with the most recent being opened Nov. 18 at Roanoke and June 12 at Troutville. Most responded to complaints and all were of partial scope.

Facility design and operations

According to its website, VTC’s Pocatello plant comprises five 25,000-square-foot bays, one of which contains the winding shop, and a tank shop isolated from the assembly shop.

Air pallets are used to move 100-ton transformers around the plant and overhead cranes are used to lift the 50-ton cores.

To keep dust out of the manufacturing process and improve operating lifespan of its transformers, assembly floors are sealed and the winding shop is kept under positive pressure. The plant routinely achieves less than 150 pico-coulombs partial discharge compared to the 500 allowed by ANSI.

Coils are hydrostatically pressed and dried in an oil-spray-drying oven under vacuum. A polyurethane paint system is used, and tank bottoms are coated with coal tar to protect against rust.

Notes on OSHA’s Establishment Search:

• Entries for VTC’s Pocatello, Idaho facility are listed under “Vtcu, Corp.” or “Vtcu Corporation.”
• Entries for VTC’s Roanoke and Troutville, Virginia facilities are listed under “Virginia Transformer Corp.” or “Virginia Transformer Corporation.”