Workers Deserve a Safe Workplace, Real Enforcement

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thursday, April 27, 2007

CONTACT: Chris Ortman
(202) 721-6041
chris.ortman@changetowin.org

The following is a statement by Greg Tarpinian, Executive Director of Change to Win, on Workers' Memorial Day and the Protecting America's Workers Act:

"The Occupational Safety and Health Act was enacted to assure a safe and healthy workplace, but nearly four decades later, we're far from fulfilling that promise for America's workers. The Protecting America's Workers Act introduced today on the eve of Workers' Memorial Day by Sens. Edward Kennedy and Patty Murray and Rep. Lynn Woolsey, is an important first step towards truly guaranteeing workers' safety on the job.

Current law provides too little incentive for employers to follow the rules, and offers too many excuses for abiding by them -- and a majority of workers agree. In a recent poll conducted by Change to Win, eight out of 10 workers believe that corporations are too focused on short-term profits, treat their workforce as disposable, and have become so powerful they can disregard labor laws.

Workers' anger is rising and the numbers prove it: In 2005 alone, more than 5,700 workers were killed in the workplace, and 4.2 million private sector workers suffered injuries. Worksites in the key industries that make up the new American economy -- including construction, trucking, health care, hotel, retail and food service -- have always been dangerous, and these jobs are exposing workers to new hazards each day.

For too long, workers' health and safety have suffered under one-sided public policies, government indifference, and corporate misbehavior. Working America needs strong and modern laws to protect more workers, improve safety standards, and enforce mandates to reduce preventable injuries and fatalities, and they need it now.

It is promising that leaders in the new Congress have recognized the need to place at the center of health and safety policy. And we are further encouraged that some responsible, large employers like Kaiser Permanente are adopting innovative and cost-effective models to drastically reduce the risk of injury on the job.

But unless we do more, American workers will continue to lose their lives in tragedies that could have been prevented. The legislation introduced today represents a vital step to ensure that the jobs of the 21st century are safe jobs for today's workers and generations to come."