Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Facebook | Your Notes
Facebook | Your Notes
MY BROTHER DID NOT DIE IN VAIN
My brother, Gary, was killed on the job, at a plant called Meadville Redi-Mix.
His family, his friends, his future was robbed when he fell 25 feet to his death.
Sent to clean and shovel gravel in his final hour, all alone at the top of a concrete tower.
On a dangerous loft without being tied off, with no safety equipment or warning signs up.
And when the OSHA man came, the Company claimed, they didn’t send him up there, they weren’t to blame.
(Chorus) Two 9-11’s, 6,000 a year, so much injustice, so many tears;
Who will rise up and wipe away their fears, so my brother did not die in vain?
A steelworker’s son who knew right from wrong, he worked hard and lived in quiet dignity.
From the school of hard knocks at the bottom of Mckees Rocks, he took good care of his family.
He got a job close to home to look after his sons, he did it with love, whatever had to be done.
And though the job wasn’t safe and the pay wasn’t good, he wanted to help them out all that he could.
To always be there, for his family and wife; they were the light , the love of his life.
(Chorus)
From the time I was born, he took me under his arms, made me feel like we were a team.
He protected and taught me, through school he brought me; he was the ultimate little sister’s dream.
He bore his burden like a saint without any complaints; a finer father, a finer husband a finer brother there ain’t.
He was my knight in shining armour, my hero, my friend. A giant among workers, a good union man What I am, I owe it all to him; I owe everything I am to him.
(Chorus)
After OSHA inspected they blindly accepted that he wandered up there all on his own.
The game was the same, the victim’s to blame; the fix it was on once again.
And though this Company was fined on past numerous times, for safety violations of all serious kinds,
It’s just a ‘Class B’ misdemeanour, a travesty still, when a worker on the job gets injured or killed.
It’s negotiate with the devil to downgrade the level, the Company gets a voice, the victims family no choice.
And after the ‘Abatement’, OSHA issued their statement:
A six-thousand dollar fine for not posting a sign.
Another white-wash, another criminal gets off;
Another worker, another brother is lost.
(Chorus) Two 9-11’s, six-thousand a year, so much injustice, so many tears.
Well dry your weary eyes, wipe away your fears.
His body’s in the grave, his spirit’s still here.
I found my salvation, my mission is clear.
I’ll fight for the rights of those injured and maimed.
Their cause in my heart will remain – my brother did not die in vain.
My brother, Gary, did not die in vain.
Words & music by Mike Stout, March 2009
Mike is an artist, a community leader and activist and a true spokesman for the working class who justly deserves his title “the World’s grievance man’”. He has toured Europe and the US, and has produced many CD’s delivering his message of solidarity through his music.
MY BROTHER DID NOT DIE IN VAIN
My brother, Gary, was killed on the job, at a plant called Meadville Redi-Mix.
His family, his friends, his future was robbed when he fell 25 feet to his death.
Sent to clean and shovel gravel in his final hour, all alone at the top of a concrete tower.
On a dangerous loft without being tied off, with no safety equipment or warning signs up.
And when the OSHA man came, the Company claimed, they didn’t send him up there, they weren’t to blame.
(Chorus) Two 9-11’s, 6,000 a year, so much injustice, so many tears;
Who will rise up and wipe away their fears, so my brother did not die in vain?
A steelworker’s son who knew right from wrong, he worked hard and lived in quiet dignity.
From the school of hard knocks at the bottom of Mckees Rocks, he took good care of his family.
He got a job close to home to look after his sons, he did it with love, whatever had to be done.
And though the job wasn’t safe and the pay wasn’t good, he wanted to help them out all that he could.
To always be there, for his family and wife; they were the light , the love of his life.
(Chorus)
From the time I was born, he took me under his arms, made me feel like we were a team.
He protected and taught me, through school he brought me; he was the ultimate little sister’s dream.
He bore his burden like a saint without any complaints; a finer father, a finer husband a finer brother there ain’t.
He was my knight in shining armour, my hero, my friend. A giant among workers, a good union man What I am, I owe it all to him; I owe everything I am to him.
(Chorus)
After OSHA inspected they blindly accepted that he wandered up there all on his own.
The game was the same, the victim’s to blame; the fix it was on once again.
And though this Company was fined on past numerous times, for safety violations of all serious kinds,
It’s just a ‘Class B’ misdemeanour, a travesty still, when a worker on the job gets injured or killed.
It’s negotiate with the devil to downgrade the level, the Company gets a voice, the victims family no choice.
And after the ‘Abatement’, OSHA issued their statement:
A six-thousand dollar fine for not posting a sign.
Another white-wash, another criminal gets off;
Another worker, another brother is lost.
(Chorus) Two 9-11’s, six-thousand a year, so much injustice, so many tears.
Well dry your weary eyes, wipe away your fears.
His body’s in the grave, his spirit’s still here.
I found my salvation, my mission is clear.
I’ll fight for the rights of those injured and maimed.
Their cause in my heart will remain – my brother did not die in vain.
My brother, Gary, did not die in vain.
Words & music by Mike Stout, March 2009
Mike is an artist, a community leader and activist and a true spokesman for the working class who justly deserves his title “the World’s grievance man’”. He has toured Europe and the US, and has produced many CD’s delivering his message of solidarity through his music.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Good Jobs, Safe Jobs: Give Workers a Voice for Change
Good Jobs, Safe Jobs: Give Workers a Voice for Change
Good Jobs, Safe Jobs
Give Workers a Voice for Change
Workers Memorial Day 2009, a day to remember those who have suffered and died on the job and to renew the fight for safe workplaces, will be observed by the Allegheny County Labor Council, AFL-CIO, at 11:30 AM on Tuesday 4/28/2009 in Pittsburgh in Market Square. This ceremony will also commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Pressed Steel Car Strike, one of the bloodiest battles in American labor history with over 500 men injured and 13 killed.. The Pressed Steel Car Company located in McKees Rocks, manufactured rail cars and was one of the most dangerous, inhumane places to work in Allegheny County. In addition to the extremely dangerous working conditions, where serious accidents occurred daily, giving the plant the name “The Last Chance” , workers were subjected to low wages, extortion ( i.e. paying a bribe to get a job), forced to shop at company stores and live in overcrowded company housing( Presston). In July 1909, the International Workers of the World (IWW) lead 8000 unskilled and semi-skilled immigrant workers of many nationalities to strike. Over the ensuing months, the strikers suffered violence, vicious strike breaking by scabs with the assistance of the State Coal and Iron Police, and evictions from the company housing. The violent attempts to suppress the strike drew national and international attention, including the Austro-Hungarian Embassy which protested the treatment of the Hungarian citizen workers. Although the company was eventually forced to make some concessions, the “victory” for the workers was all too brief as the company reneged on its promises and did not bargain in good faith.
One hundred years later, in 2009, many workers still lack basic protections, major hazards remain unaddressed and the toll of workplace injuries, illnesses and death remain enormous. Each year around 5000 workers are killed on the job, around 50,000 die of occupational diseases and around 4 million are injured. The Union movement continues to work to make the promise of a safe workplace a reality. Vice President Joe Biden’s Task Force on Working Families has as one of its goals restoring labor standards, including workplace safety.
To meet this goal, there must be stronger criminal and civil penalties for violations. The average penalty for a serious violation of OSHA law remains insultingly low “slap on the wrist” fines —only around $960. The median penalty in enforcement cases involving a worker’s death was less than $4000. Criminal penalties under OSHA law are weaker than all other safety and health laws, limited to those cases where a willful violation results in the death of a worker and even then it’s a MISDEMEANOR, with a maximum sentence of 6 months in jail. OSHA uses the informal settlement process to slash fines for employers and then fails to even collect these paltry fines in growing numbers each year. These actions invite employers to cut cost, even if it means putting their employees’ lives at risk, with the assurance that the “watchdog won’t bite”. The OSH act must be amended to strengthen criminal penalties and to enable the Department of Justice to prosecute a FELONY when an employer willfully causes death or serious bodily injury to a worker
For too long, OSHA has erred on the side of corporations over public interest and has undermined the spirit of the OSH act. Public servants committed to the agency’s mission should lead OSHA and MSHA. Congress must fund both OSHA and MSHA at higher levels to assure that there are more inspectors to reach the most dangerous workplaces. Federal OSHA has fewer inspectors today than in 1980 and can inspect workplaces on average only once in 133 years. OSHA needs better and more strategic enforcement tools to deter noncompliance among employers who disregard worker protection in favor of production speed and profit. OSHA policies must be adapted to prevent employers from shirking their responsibilities by outsourcing work through subcontracting or misclassification of employees. Workers are being discouraged from reporting job injuries, often facing discipline or termination when they are injured. OSHA must take action to prohibit policies that discourage workers from reporting workplace injuries and step up enforcement on injury recording and reporting requirements.
Unlike corporations who routinely “negotiate” down fines with OSHA, family members of dead or injured workers have no such access. Workers and families should have the right to meet with Department of Labor investigators, have access to legal proceedings involving OSHA and MSHA, and be kept informed on the progress of the investigation.
OSHA protection must be extended to cover all workers including the 8 million state and local public employees, flight attendants and other workers lacking OSHA protection. Many hazard standards for toxic substances are out of date or nonexistent. New standards must be issued including rules on silica, beryllium, cranes and combustible dust.
One hundred years ago, the horrendous working conditions at the Pressed Steel Car Company and the savagery with which the company fought the workers attempts to have a safer more humane working environment shocked the community. The egregious policies of OSHA which favor corporate profit over workers safety should shock people of conscience today. Workers Memorial Day 2009 will celebrate the bravery and solidarity of the Pressed Steel Strikers, honor those who lost their lives while on the job in Western Pennsylvania and promote health and safety of all workers.
Donna Vincene Puleio, MD
Donna Vincene Puleio, MD was born in Presston and now practices oncology in Franklin PA. . Her brother, Gary Puleio, was killed after falling 25 feet from a concrete tower at Meadville Redi-Mix Concrete. The company, which had multiple serious violations issued only months before Gary was killed that were informally settled with reduced fines, paid a $6000 fine for REPEAT violations for not posting signs at a confined space.
Good Jobs, Safe Jobs
Give Workers a Voice for Change
Workers Memorial Day 2009, a day to remember those who have suffered and died on the job and to renew the fight for safe workplaces, will be observed by the Allegheny County Labor Council, AFL-CIO, at 11:30 AM on Tuesday 4/28/2009 in Pittsburgh in Market Square. This ceremony will also commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Pressed Steel Car Strike, one of the bloodiest battles in American labor history with over 500 men injured and 13 killed.. The Pressed Steel Car Company located in McKees Rocks, manufactured rail cars and was one of the most dangerous, inhumane places to work in Allegheny County. In addition to the extremely dangerous working conditions, where serious accidents occurred daily, giving the plant the name “The Last Chance” , workers were subjected to low wages, extortion ( i.e. paying a bribe to get a job), forced to shop at company stores and live in overcrowded company housing( Presston). In July 1909, the International Workers of the World (IWW) lead 8000 unskilled and semi-skilled immigrant workers of many nationalities to strike. Over the ensuing months, the strikers suffered violence, vicious strike breaking by scabs with the assistance of the State Coal and Iron Police, and evictions from the company housing. The violent attempts to suppress the strike drew national and international attention, including the Austro-Hungarian Embassy which protested the treatment of the Hungarian citizen workers. Although the company was eventually forced to make some concessions, the “victory” for the workers was all too brief as the company reneged on its promises and did not bargain in good faith.
One hundred years later, in 2009, many workers still lack basic protections, major hazards remain unaddressed and the toll of workplace injuries, illnesses and death remain enormous. Each year around 5000 workers are killed on the job, around 50,000 die of occupational diseases and around 4 million are injured. The Union movement continues to work to make the promise of a safe workplace a reality. Vice President Joe Biden’s Task Force on Working Families has as one of its goals restoring labor standards, including workplace safety.
To meet this goal, there must be stronger criminal and civil penalties for violations. The average penalty for a serious violation of OSHA law remains insultingly low “slap on the wrist” fines —only around $960. The median penalty in enforcement cases involving a worker’s death was less than $4000. Criminal penalties under OSHA law are weaker than all other safety and health laws, limited to those cases where a willful violation results in the death of a worker and even then it’s a MISDEMEANOR, with a maximum sentence of 6 months in jail. OSHA uses the informal settlement process to slash fines for employers and then fails to even collect these paltry fines in growing numbers each year. These actions invite employers to cut cost, even if it means putting their employees’ lives at risk, with the assurance that the “watchdog won’t bite”. The OSH act must be amended to strengthen criminal penalties and to enable the Department of Justice to prosecute a FELONY when an employer willfully causes death or serious bodily injury to a worker
For too long, OSHA has erred on the side of corporations over public interest and has undermined the spirit of the OSH act. Public servants committed to the agency’s mission should lead OSHA and MSHA. Congress must fund both OSHA and MSHA at higher levels to assure that there are more inspectors to reach the most dangerous workplaces. Federal OSHA has fewer inspectors today than in 1980 and can inspect workplaces on average only once in 133 years. OSHA needs better and more strategic enforcement tools to deter noncompliance among employers who disregard worker protection in favor of production speed and profit. OSHA policies must be adapted to prevent employers from shirking their responsibilities by outsourcing work through subcontracting or misclassification of employees. Workers are being discouraged from reporting job injuries, often facing discipline or termination when they are injured. OSHA must take action to prohibit policies that discourage workers from reporting workplace injuries and step up enforcement on injury recording and reporting requirements.
Unlike corporations who routinely “negotiate” down fines with OSHA, family members of dead or injured workers have no such access. Workers and families should have the right to meet with Department of Labor investigators, have access to legal proceedings involving OSHA and MSHA, and be kept informed on the progress of the investigation.
OSHA protection must be extended to cover all workers including the 8 million state and local public employees, flight attendants and other workers lacking OSHA protection. Many hazard standards for toxic substances are out of date or nonexistent. New standards must be issued including rules on silica, beryllium, cranes and combustible dust.
One hundred years ago, the horrendous working conditions at the Pressed Steel Car Company and the savagery with which the company fought the workers attempts to have a safer more humane working environment shocked the community. The egregious policies of OSHA which favor corporate profit over workers safety should shock people of conscience today. Workers Memorial Day 2009 will celebrate the bravery and solidarity of the Pressed Steel Strikers, honor those who lost their lives while on the job in Western Pennsylvania and promote health and safety of all workers.
Donna Vincene Puleio, MD
Donna Vincene Puleio, MD was born in Presston and now practices oncology in Franklin PA. . Her brother, Gary Puleio, was killed after falling 25 feet from a concrete tower at Meadville Redi-Mix Concrete. The company, which had multiple serious violations issued only months before Gary was killed that were informally settled with reduced fines, paid a $6000 fine for REPEAT violations for not posting signs at a confined space.
Friday, April 10, 2009
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
Labor IG Audit Finds Many Failures in Worker-Safety Initiative
Labor IG Audit Finds Many Failures in Worker-Safety Initiative
NEWS | POLITICS | OPINIONS | BUSINESS | LOCAL | SPORTS | ARTS & LIVING | GOING OUT GUIDE | JOBS | CARS | REAL ESTATE |SHOPPING
Initiative On Worker Safety Gets Poor Marks
IG's Report Links Weak Enforcement To Job Fatalities
By R. Jeffrey Smith
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, April 2, 2009; A06
A special government program to improve worker safety in hazardous industries rarely fulfilled its promise, a Labor Department audit concluded yesterday, and over the past six years, dozens of deaths occurred at firms that should have been subjected to much tighter federal safety enforcement.
The report was the first detailed appraisal of a highly touted Bush administration initiative that called for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to devote attention and resources to improving safety at companies with a troubled history of job-related fatalities. The study found that officials failed to gather needed data, conducted uneven inspections and enforcement, and sometimes failed to discern repeat fatalities because records misspelled the companies' names or failed to notice when two subsidiaries with the same owner were involved.
Last year, the administration also changed the program's rules, sharply reducing the number of companies eligible for special attention. Proper enforcement might have "deterred and abated workplace hazards at the worksites of 45 employers where 58 subsequent fatalities occurred," Assistant Inspector General Elliot P. Lewis wrote in the report.
As an example, the report said that two similar worker deaths had occurred at different facilities operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority and that the second one might have been prevented if the first one had prompted appropriate enforcement and special inspections. In all, the audit said, a little more than half of the 282 fatalities that should have been included in the Enhanced Enforcement Program were not properly logged, partly because of poor training at OSHA.
Other repeat fatalities at construction, pipe, drilling, tree-trimming, lighting, energy and boating firms did not trigger the inspections envisioned under the program, the study said. Even when settlements were reached to improve safety practices at a company involved in repeat fatalities, they often were not properly enforced.
The study shows that government officials were "suggesting to the public that you've got an enhanced enforcement program going for five years, and it's not enhanced at all," said Celeste Monforton, a former OSHA policy analyst who is an assistant research professor at George Washington University's School of Public Health and Health Services. "It's not getting to the bad actors, and you're giving the public a false sense of effectiveness."
Obama has not yet appointed a new director for OSHA, which is a part of the Labor Department. A spokeswoman for the agency did not return a phone call seeking comment on the report yesterday.
According to an internal OSHA memorandum obtained by The Washington Post, dated March 19 and written by Richard E. Fairfax, director of enforcement programs, the rules changes made in January 2008 caused the number of companies targeted by the Enhanced Enforcement Program to drop from a peak of 719 in fiscal 2007 to 475 in fiscal 2008.
The extra attention is now given mostly to companies responsible for "low and medium gravity serious repeated violations," Fairfax wrote to OSHA's acting director, Donald G. Shalhoub. OSHA is still "not targeting the 'bad actors' the program is intended for," he said.
Shalhoub, in his official response to the inspector general's report, said OSHA acknowledges "the program may not have been consistently accomplishing its purpose and intent." He also said "we do not fully accept the implication of the conclusion" that OSHA failed to pay enough attention to the program, and he called any suggestion that additional employees died as a result "misleading and unfair."
Shalhoub said, however, that he accepted the report's recommendation that the program's effectiveness should be improved by more carefully evaluating which firms should be targeted and following up with rigorous inspections.
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NEWS | POLITICS | OPINIONS | BUSINESS | LOCAL | SPORTS | ARTS & LIVING | GOING OUT GUIDE | JOBS | CARS | REAL ESTATE |SHOPPING
Initiative On Worker Safety Gets Poor Marks
IG's Report Links Weak Enforcement To Job Fatalities
By R. Jeffrey Smith
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, April 2, 2009; A06
A special government program to improve worker safety in hazardous industries rarely fulfilled its promise, a Labor Department audit concluded yesterday, and over the past six years, dozens of deaths occurred at firms that should have been subjected to much tighter federal safety enforcement.
The report was the first detailed appraisal of a highly touted Bush administration initiative that called for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to devote attention and resources to improving safety at companies with a troubled history of job-related fatalities. The study found that officials failed to gather needed data, conducted uneven inspections and enforcement, and sometimes failed to discern repeat fatalities because records misspelled the companies' names or failed to notice when two subsidiaries with the same owner were involved.
Last year, the administration also changed the program's rules, sharply reducing the number of companies eligible for special attention. Proper enforcement might have "deterred and abated workplace hazards at the worksites of 45 employers where 58 subsequent fatalities occurred," Assistant Inspector General Elliot P. Lewis wrote in the report.
As an example, the report said that two similar worker deaths had occurred at different facilities operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority and that the second one might have been prevented if the first one had prompted appropriate enforcement and special inspections. In all, the audit said, a little more than half of the 282 fatalities that should have been included in the Enhanced Enforcement Program were not properly logged, partly because of poor training at OSHA.
Other repeat fatalities at construction, pipe, drilling, tree-trimming, lighting, energy and boating firms did not trigger the inspections envisioned under the program, the study said. Even when settlements were reached to improve safety practices at a company involved in repeat fatalities, they often were not properly enforced.
The study shows that government officials were "suggesting to the public that you've got an enhanced enforcement program going for five years, and it's not enhanced at all," said Celeste Monforton, a former OSHA policy analyst who is an assistant research professor at George Washington University's School of Public Health and Health Services. "It's not getting to the bad actors, and you're giving the public a false sense of effectiveness."
Obama has not yet appointed a new director for OSHA, which is a part of the Labor Department. A spokeswoman for the agency did not return a phone call seeking comment on the report yesterday.
According to an internal OSHA memorandum obtained by The Washington Post, dated March 19 and written by Richard E. Fairfax, director of enforcement programs, the rules changes made in January 2008 caused the number of companies targeted by the Enhanced Enforcement Program to drop from a peak of 719 in fiscal 2007 to 475 in fiscal 2008.
The extra attention is now given mostly to companies responsible for "low and medium gravity serious repeated violations," Fairfax wrote to OSHA's acting director, Donald G. Shalhoub. OSHA is still "not targeting the 'bad actors' the program is intended for," he said.
Shalhoub, in his official response to the inspector general's report, said OSHA acknowledges "the program may not have been consistently accomplishing its purpose and intent." He also said "we do not fully accept the implication of the conclusion" that OSHA failed to pay enough attention to the program, and he called any suggestion that additional employees died as a result "misleading and unfair."
Shalhoub said, however, that he accepted the report's recommendation that the program's effectiveness should be improved by more carefully evaluating which firms should be targeted and following up with rigorous inspections.
View all comments that have been posted about this article.
Post a Comment
View all comments that have been posted about this article.
Report item as: (required) X Obscenity/vulgarity Hate speech Personal attack Advertising/Spam Copyright/Plagiarism Other Comment: (optional)
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© 2009 The Washington Post Company
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Emergency First Aid Kits
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www.airgas.com
Online First Aid Course
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Thursday, April 02, 2009
National Briefing - Washington - Report Faults OSHA - NYTimes.com
National Briefing - Washington - Report Faults OSHA - NYTimes.com
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration did not follow correct procedures in 97 percent of sampled cases in the Enhanced Enforcement Program....NO WONDER MY BROTHER IS DEAD and OSHA found NO WRONG DOING in his CASE
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration did not follow correct procedures in 97 percent of sampled cases in the Enhanced Enforcement Program....NO WONDER MY BROTHER IS DEAD and OSHA found NO WRONG DOING in his CASE
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