Here are a few articles and posts about Workers Memorial Day events. If you’ve got more, leave a link in the comments.
Las Vegas Sun: Safety advocates testified on Capitol Hill, while Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis attended the groundbreaking for a new National Workers Memorial and vowed that “The Department of Labor is back in the enforcement business.” (Plus, an article about victims’ families here.)
McClatchy Newspapers/San Luis Obispo Tribune: Witnesses at the House Education & Labor Committee hearing urged that OSHA penalties be strengthened in order to deter employers from allowing unsafe working conditions.
Boston Globe: Last year, 66 workers in Massachusetts died on the job or from job-related illnesses.
Charleston Gazette: Celeste Monforton was part of a team investigating the Sago mine disaster, and the experience prompted her to push for an increased role for victims’ family members in workplace fatality investigations.
The Telegraph (Illinois): The Greater Madison County Federation of Labor held a ceremony and candlelight vigil to remember workers killed on the job over the past year. These included Jerry R. Estes, 72, who died while working as a meter reader on a hot day; Jeffrey Thole “J.T.” Pace, 27, who was killed by falling nearly 60 feet through the roof of an Alton Steel building; and Vincent D. Lavite, 38, who died from injuries sustained in a fall from scaffolding while working for Safeway Construction Co. (more photos here)
Below the jump, pictures from the DC event – which you can read about here.Â
http://www.wpxi.com/news/19312686/detail.html This is a brief story done from the Pittsburgh event- due to the recent death of 3 police officers the media has began to pay slightly more attention but as you can tell from the video they’re struggling to get past that one incident.
http://anti-union.blogspot.com/2009/04/construction-workers-memorial-at-st.html This is a good recap of the NYC event- possibly the biggest one in the nation?
Great work Celeste and Tammy!
News release:
Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett and Councilmembers George Leventhal and Valerie Ervin today joined worker advocates to unveil a new County initiative that will help protect the health and safety of employees in Montgomery County. April 28 is National âWorkers Memorial Day,â when unions and community groups across the country remember working men and women who have died on the job and highlight the need for workersâ safety and health.
âEvery job in our community ought to be a safe job,â said Leggett. âDespite our serious budget challenges, there are ways we can use existing resources to help reduce the thousands of workplace injuries and illnesses that occur each year in the County. Our six-point Worker Health and Safety Initiative will be the first of its kind in Maryland to help create a safer work environment for all.
âMaryland Occupational Safety and Health (MOSH) does a great job, but it has so few staff that it would take MOSH 110 years to inspect every Maryland workplace once. We canât do MOSHâs job for them, but we can be the extra eyes and ears they need.â
The Initiative will provide additional training to building inspectors and other County staff to identify serious workplace dangers. In addition, the initiative will also promote greater awareness of successful approaches that reduce hazards on the job. The County would examine its private contracts and economic development tax credits to ensure adequate health and safety provisions. It also includes distribution of materials in English and Spanish to construction and landscaping firms doing business in the County and a website with useful health and safety information and links to state and federal agencies. …
Thanks for sharing the pictures. I am glad to see the people get involved.
Brett, thanks for those links. That’s a nice writeup of the NYC event – too bad it doesn’t appear to have gotten any newspaper coverage.