Out of an abundance of caution due to the recent uptick in COVID-19 cases, most Workers’ Memorial Day events have been cancelled across the nation, for a second straight year.
Workers’ Memorial Day is normally celebrated on April 28 to commemorate the passage of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, which created OSHA.
Before OSHA was created, there were over 13,000 workplace fatalities each year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Thanks to the work of OSHA, workplace fatalities began to decline. In 2018, the most recent year statistics are available, there were 5,250 workplace deaths.
While the number of deaths has decreased, the general belief is that one workplace fatality is one too many.
Additionally, tens of thousands of Americans are seriously injured on the job each year or become seriously ill due to their work environment.
This year, on the 50th anniversary of OSHA’s founding, the AFL-CIO is asking union members throughout the country to fight for the promise of safe jobs for all workers by encouraging U.S. senators to vote in favor of the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act.
The AFL-CIO is spearheading a “National Week of Action” from April 26 through May 1 to garner support for the PRO Act. Some of this weeks’ events will fall on April 28, and include themes related to Workers’ Memorial Day.
According to the AFL-CIO’s website, the organization is focused on the need to renew the promise of safe jobs for all of America’s workers, and it will continue this push forward by promoting strong unions and strong labor laws.
In addition to writing or calling U.S. senators at the end of the month, workers are also asked to pause on April 28 and remember the victims of workplace injury and illness.
The Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council supports the following of strict safety guidelines in order to assure their affiliated members return home to their families upon the completion of every shift. On April 28, we ask our members to take a moment and remember the men and women who lost their lives or were severely injured while at work.