A newsletter of workplace safety and labor issues
It never stops. Two workers, Juan Baez-Sanchez, 42, and Victoriano Garcia-Perez, 56, both Mexican immigrants, died in the collapse of a 12 foot deep trench outside of Jackson Hole, Wyoming last week. The men, who worked for Mountain West Services, owned by developer Jamie Mackay, were working alone. The trench may have collapsed hours before…
Firefighter dies after propane tank explodes in Tilford Rapid City, SD — A local firefighter died Friday afternoon while fighting a structure fire and searching for an unaccounted for person during a blaze in the Tilford area. As the structure burned, the fire moved to a nearby propane tank, causing it to explode. A firefighter…
Another in a continuing, never-ending series on the tragedy of preventable trench collapses (and the journalism that accompanies them.) Anthony Smith was killed in a preventable trench collapse a on August 16 when a 15 foot deep trench caved in on top of him. OSHA, for those who don’t know, requires trenches more than 5…
2 firefighters killed as blaze rages in northern California REDDING, CALIF. —The National Park Service reports a second firefighter has died while battling the Ferguson Fire in Mariposa County. On Sunday morning, Capt. Brian Hughes of the Arrowhead Interagency Hotshots was killed. According to the National Park Service, 33-year-old Hughes was on the east side of…
I took a week off compiling this list. No change in the deadly work that American workers do, except that workers have fewer rights than they did two weeks ago — especially public employees. In other news, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed an appropriations bill requiring OSHA to start listing names of workers killed on their…
Genesee Power Station employee dies in workplace accident FLINT, MI – An employee died in an industrial accident at the Genesee Power Station last week. CMS Energy, which owns the facility, released a statement Monday confirming the worker’s death. The worker’s name and the circumstances leading to his death were not released. CMS is the parent…
Today is Memorial Day when we remember those who gave their lives defending this country and the freedoms we defend every day. Workers Memorial Day is passed, but remember that some of these workers are veterans, and others who defend the country internally, like NYPD Officer, Scott Blackshaw, who died of cancer related to his work…
Workers Memorial Day events were held around the world last weekend. Here are some articles about many of the US events. Others weren’t covered in the press. California “Worker’s Memorial Day” Celebrates California’s Fallen Providers Gov. Brown Declares April 28 as Workers Memorial Day Coming together for a safer Tesla on Workers’ Memorial Day Annette Brooks, Caltrans worker killed in…
Firefighter battling SoCal wildfire dies from ‘thermal injuries, smoke inhalation’ SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (AP) — A firefighter died Thursday while working a colossal wildfire burning in coastal mountains northwest of Los Angeles that has become the fourth largest in California history. Cory Iverson was an engineer with a state fire engine strike team based in…
At a Congressional hearing last month, Secretary of Labor Alex Acosta extolled the virtues of compliance assistance, cooperation over confrontation and the Voluntary Protection Program. But he also repeated several times that the agency’s compliance assistance program “has to be balanced by a vigorous enforcement program” and especially when the employer engages in repeated and willful…