Grocery workers have become some of the most essential workers of the coronavirus crisis—making clear that we’ve relied on them all along. But it’s also a dangerous job, exposing workers to hundreds of customers a day, often without adequate protective gear. The terrible, predictable result is that grocery workers are starting to die of the …
The AFL-CIO today released its 28th annual Death on the Job: The Toll of Neglect report. Each April, we examine the state of worker safety in America. This year’s report shows that 5,147 working people were killed on the job in 2017. Additionally, an estimated 95,000 died from occupational diseases. AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka (UMWA) …
12 Things You Need to Know About Death on the Job Read More »
A couple of months ago, I wrote a post about how “freak accidents” are neither “freak,” nor “accidental.” As I explained then: First, the phrase implies that this type of incident hardly ever happens and there is, therefore, not much you can do about it. In fact, the phrase “freak accident” is a double-whammy. Not only does …
I read a lot of articles about workers getting killed on the job in preventable incidents. They’re always upsetting. But one of the things that infuriates me most is the all-too-common statement from a company spokesperson that “Safety is our top priority” after a preventable fatality. Now, I’m not doubting that losing an employee is …
In an alarming development in the world of workplace safety, the latest statistics reveal that the number of accidental deaths on the job in America is on the rise, reversing the longer-term trend toward fewer fatal incidents. The number of deaths hit a total of 5,190 in 2016, up from 4,836 in 2015, according to …
Workplace Deaths Are Rising. Trump-Era Budget Cuts Could Make It Worse. Read More »
On March 25, 1911, a fire broke out on the top floors of the Triangle Shirtwaist factory. Firefighters arrived at the scene, but their ladders weren’t tall enough to reach the impacted area. Trapped inside because the owners had locked the fire escape exit doors, workers jumped to their deaths. Thirty minutes later, the fire was …
The Lessons of the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire Are Still Relevant 107 Years Later Read More »
Every 12 days, a member of my union, the United Steelworkers (USW), or one of their non-union co-workers, is killed on the job. Every 12 days. And it’s been that way for years. These are horrible deaths. Workers are crushed by massive machinery. They drown in vats of chemicals. They’re poisoned by toxic gas, burned …
The Price for Killing Workers Must be Prison for CEOs Read More »
Madeline Messa is a 3L at Syracuse University College of Law. She graduated from Penn State with a degree in journalism. With her legal research and writing for Workplace Fairness, she strives to equip people with the information they need to be their own best advocate.
