----- Original Message -----
Sent: Wednesday, April 28, 2010 3:54 PM
Subject: EdLabor Insider: Worker Safety Edition
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| | | | | | Welcome to the Worker Safety edition of the EdLabor Insider e-newsletter. In this issue: Twenty-First Anniversary of Workers Memorial Day In America, an average 14 workers still die on the job daily, a fact driven home by the recent tragedy at the Upper Big Branch mine where 29 miners were killed on the job. Today, on Workers Memorial Day, Chairman George Miller explains in a CNN op-ed how we can make our coal mines and workplaces safer: "Unfortunately, the workers who go into our nation's mines each day, who produce the coal that heats our homes and lights our offices, still face the same hazards that have already led to far too many tragic deaths. In large part, this is because of an industry that has staunchly opposed reforms and has lobbied hard to stymie any real efforts to hold companies accountable for the safety of their workers. "...Loopholes in our safety laws aren't exclusive to mining. Sadly, penalties for companies that violate health and safety laws are woefully outdated. Multimillion-dollar corporations often face little more than a slap on the wrist for potentially fatal violations.
"Without effective enforcement, it's easy for bad actors to become repeat offenders. And without adequate whistle-blower protections, workers who want to report hazards often live in fear of retribution. "...These tragedies call for immediate reforms that will make all workplaces safer."
Chairman Miller Releases List of Dangerous Mines Escaping Tighter Scrutiny On April 14, Chairman Miller released a list of 48 mines identified by federal mine safety officials in August 2009 for increased scrutiny, but were not targeted due to unresolved appeals filed by mine operators. The list includes the Upper Big Branch Mine in West Virginia where 29 miners lost their lives in an explosion on April 5. Under current law, the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration issues a letter to frequent violators warning them that they may be sanctioned under a so-called 'pattern of violation'. Once a mine is notified that they may be under a pattern of violation, the mine must take immediate actions to reduce future violations – approved by federal mine safety officials – or face drastic sanctions including mine closure for any future significant and substantial violation.
The list released by the committee are those 48 mines that would have received this notice of a potential pattern of violation sanctions in October 2009 but for contested citations that had not been resolved due to delays caused by the backlog of more than 16,000 operator appeals.
In February, the committee held a hearing on how this flood of mine owner appeals of violations were undermining efforts to protect miners by delaying tougher sanctions. Chairs Miller, Rahall, Woolsey Call for IG Investigation of MSHA Penalty Enforcement System Chairman Miller, Workforce Protections Subcommittee Chair Lynn Woolsey and Rep. Nick Rahall, chair of the House Natural Resources Committee, called on the U.S. Department of Labor Inspector General to investigate the disclosure that a computer error prevented the federal Mine Safety and Health Administration from issuing a letter to the Upper Big Branch mine in Montcoal, West Virginia warning them that the mine may be under a so-called 'pattern of violations.' The chairs also asked the Inspector General to look at how MSHA uses their 'pattern of violation' enforcement. Protecting America's Workers Act Will Protect Whistleblowers, Ensure Victims Rights, Witnesses Say Legislation is needed to modernize federal laws that protect workers who blow the whistle on unsafe working conditions and ensure victims of workplace accidents have a voice an investigation, witnesses told the Workforce Protections Subcommittee of the House Education and Labor Committee on Workers Memorial Day. The Protecting America's Workers Act (H.R. 2067) and proposed changes to the legislation, would update workplace whistleblower protections by mirroring other modern whistleblower statutes, such as the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act. The bill would also ensure that victims and their families are kept informed about investigations of fatalities and incidents involving serious injuries or illnesses. | | | | | Contacting the Committee
Committee on Education and Labor
Majority Staff
2181 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
202-225-3725
| Members of the committee can be contacted by visiting "Write Your Representative". A current list of the committee's members is listed here. The TDD/TYY number for the Majority staff is 202-226-3116. | | |
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