NC Dept. of Labor investigates Para USA
WCNC reports ...
North Carolina investigators with the Department of Labor visited the plant last week and have been talking to current and former employees.
Before the guns are shipped out, they must be test fired. Sources say employees have complained about injuries. Also, there are complaints that the range is poorly ventilated.
A lot of gun companies seem to have had visits from Feds in recent months ...
UPDATE: It is the NC Dept. of Labour, not the US Dept of Labor.
[ Many thanks to John for emailing me the link. ]
Bill, thanks. I’ll check with my pharmacy or doctor.
Nah, I just had one of those idiotic moments coupled with a bad mood….so in essence, I acted before I thought about what I was saying.
In other words, I was being quite the idiot
Carl,
Testing is by drawing a blood sample.
Zach I can’t fathom how you presumed they were complaining about ventilation in an outdoor range. Why are you so hasty to judge these workers, particularly out of ignorance?
in reply to Bill:
yeah I mistook the type of range. I am rather wary about going to indoor ranges for those reasons mind you; but for some odd reason I started to wonder why would they talk about poor ventilation in an outdoor range, hence the OH NOES! part.
I work directly around the corner from them in pineville, nc (maybe 100yds as the crow flies). I can tell you as I have been by the unmarked building that it is an indoor range for sure. They are located in a generic commercial small brick building business park (offices up front with warehouse space in back). I can say that there is NOT any sort of exhaust fan system sticking out of roof , nor does the building look as if it was modified on the outside from it’s condition with the previous tenant.
How do you go about testing your lead levels?
REAL Paras are made in Ontario…
Zach,
Don’t be so quick to poo-poo poor range ventilation. It’s not a good idea for the casual shooter let alone an employee who is there 40+ hours a week. Back in the 1990′s I knew the manager of a state-of-the art indoor range just south of Pittsburgh, PA. I was working in a nearby business at the time and we ran into each other on a regular basis. Within a few years this guy began to develop neurological symptoms that were clearly associated with his super elevated lead levels. His desire for a family was also dashed after his sperm count went into the range that meant he was essentially sterile. All this from working less than five years in a facility that was billed as among the best and safest in America.
First line of the article – ‘Experts agree that Para USA makes some of the best guns on the market.’ – See, now I’m already suspicious.
gunslinger is correct, if the range isn’t ventilated properly then inhaling lead and other dangerously toxic particles on a daily basis will definitely mess you up – even worse then licking the paint off your kid’s Made in China toys.
Sounds to me (based on the anecdotal evidence) that this is yet another company trying to save a few bucks by putting their employees lives in danger.
In other news Todd Jarrett’s new Company is Strike Force MFG
At leat its not the ATF again.
The EPA went after developers in NC and couldn’t ‘pin’ anything on them. However, they did convince the NC DENR to use a state law to get them. While seperate jurisdictions, it may be early to say what is pushing this… For all we know, Para may need to increase training and ventilation.
Ventilation is a big deal!
Up in Illinois we shoot indoors beginning on October and lead levels for a lot of folks get pretty high if they RO, help setup/tear down. OSHA has specific lead level guidelines, so it wouldn’t surprise me if there is something to do with that…
Steve,
You bet. I enjoy your blog. Keep up the good work!
Lets not forget about the very real possibility of lead poisoning from a poorly ventilated range. Your health is not something to trivialize.
hmm…It seems I mistook the type of range they were walking about, indoor range, yes poor ventilation is a reasonable and justifiable concern; an outdoor range on the other hand… well let’s just not go there.
i won’t be quick to judge this as an “attack on gun manufacturers”
i do question the “injuries” at the range, they don’t go into detail so who’s to say what’s going on?
however the poor ventilation IS a health concern. while, yes when you fire a gun, the smoke/fumes/chemicals released is no different than an open range. but the issue is in an open range, those will dissipate within the atmosphere, whereas it seems reasonable they will remain in an unventilated area.
I say those sources are fake….or at least incredibelly dumb to say they got injured from test firing; of course you’re going to get somewhat calloused from firing so much, or if said injuries are from firing incorrectly, then it’s just pure lack of user judgement
Poor ventilation? OH NOES!
In this case, according to the article, it is the North Carolina Department of Labor, not the feds, conducting the investigation.
Savage, thanks. i mis read the article.