Owners of 4-Bros Dairy have scheduled a July 8 meeting with a federal agency in which they will argue against a proposed $2,500 citation for failing to maintain a safe work place.

The allegations from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration came in late June after a trucker was crushed March 7 under a collapsed silage stack.

"They can attempt to negotiate and hopefully try to reach an informal settlement," said David Kearns, OSHA assistant area director, who is based in Boise. "It's basically their opportunity to present their case."

Chad Charles Thompson, 30, died immediately when a portion of the truck he drove - hit by the shifting silage - struck him in the head while he was standing next to the vehicle, Lincoln County Sheriff K.C. McBride said. At about 10:15 a.m., Thompson parked the truck belonging to Hermiston, Ore.,-based Medelez Trucking Company next to a 50-foot tower of silage.

Andrew Fitzgerald, the dairy's secretary treasurer, said Thompson had been warned against parking too close to the tower of silage, which was expected to fall over.

Kearns said last week that OSHA investigators "considered" that warning given to the trucker but still felt "adequate steps were not taken to protect all of the workers at the site."

If the two sides fail to reach a settlement at the informal conference Tuesday, which will likely be held in Boise, the dairy's owners may take their case before an administrative law judge, Kearns said.