tagged w/ OSHA
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If organized labor were to list the three worst things that could happen to it, one of them would surely be having the NLRB (National Labor Relations Board, established in 1935) close up shop. While the NLRB hasn't always performed to labor's satisfaction (indeed, its reluctance to act has been the source of consternation and heartburn), it has, nonetheless, proven itself indispensable.
When companies purposely sabotage union elections, or when they refuse to recognize a legal vote to join or form a union, or when they fail to enter into the collective bargaining process in good faith, or when they violate federal labor law by firing employees engaged in union membership drives, it's the Labor Board who hears the complaint. Without the NLRB, none of these ULPs (Unfair Labor Practices) can be addressed.
Yet, as critically important as the NLRB is, there's a chance it will be put out of business come the first of the year. Due to a 2010 ruling by the Supreme Court, unless the 5-member NLRB has a quorum (i.e., a minimum of three members), it is illegal for it to hand down decisions. In other words, unless there are at least three members present, the NLRB has no power to stop management from violating federal labor law. They can violate it with impunity. Without the NLRB, employees could vote overwhelmingly to join a union, and the company could simply ignore them. Who's to stop them?
Here's how it stands. Republicans have not only steadfastly refused to confirm President Obama's appointees (leaving the Board without a quorum), but they have threatened to strip the Board of its operating budget, basically wiping it out. No money, no NLRB. Incredibly, with the whole country watching from the sidelines -- with unemployment still high and the gap between rich and poor continuing to widen -- the Republican Party has audaciously and fearlessly declared war on America's working class.
As gutless as President Obama has been in regard to labor (e.g., backing away from the EFCA, abandoning striker replacement legislation, failing to respond to attacks on the teachers' union, et al), he's been caught in the middle of this NLRB deal. On the one hand, by nominating solidly pro-union people to the Board he has appeased organized labor, but on the other hand, he has mobilized Republican opposition.
In truth, that's a bit of a false dichotomy. It is Obama's job to behave like a traditional, pro-labor Democrat, and, if anything, he has been woefully derelict in that regard. Also, despite the Republican's hysterical smear campaign, we shouldn't pretend that the people Obama has nominated are "radicals." In the 1960s and 1970s these same folks would have been considered "enlightened centrists," plain and simple. In the 1940s, they would've been considered "pro-business."
Unfortunately, some nominal "pro-labor" activists have publicly criticized Obama for not being more accommodating, for not being more pragmatic, more practical. They've criticized him for failing to appoint Board members who would automatically appeal to the Republicans, as if it were Obama's job to abandon America's working class in order to please John Boehner and his corporate sponsors.
But let's be honest. If the Republican Party had its way, there would be no NLRB, no OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration), and, very likely, no Department of Labor. What prevented the elimination of those agencies was America's political landscape. But the contour of that landscape has changed dramatically.
In the 1970s the Republican Party wouldn't have dared suggest, not in its wildest dreams, that the NLRB and OSHA be dismantled. After all, it was a Republican administration that created OSHA. Considering the country's mood at the time, organized labor's influence, and, arguably, the respect working people still enjoyed, eliminating the Labor Board would have been considered, among other things, "unpatriotic." How things have changed.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-macaray/republicans-declare-war-o_1_b_1158394.html?view=print&comm_ref=falseIf organized labor were to list the three worst things that could happen to it, one of... more
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Press release here: http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/osha/OSHA20111259.htm
OSHA News Release: [08/25/2011]:
OMAHA, Neb. — The U.S. Department of Labor has ordered Union Pacific Railroad Co., headquartered in Omaha, to pay a total of $400,000 in punitive damages, $90,315 in compensatory damages, $34,900 in attorney fees and more than $90,000 in back wages to three employees. Separate investigations by the Kansas City, Mo., and San Francisco, Calif., offices of the department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration determined that the company violated the whistleblower protection provisions of the Federal Railroad Safety Act by terminating two employees and suspending one in retaliation for reporting workplace safety concerns and a work-related injury.
"Workers have the right to report work-related injuries and safety concerns without fear of retaliation," said Assistant Secretary for OSHA Dr. David Michaels. "Union Pacific Railroad has created a climate of fear instead of a climate of safety. The company must take immediate steps to change this unacceptable pattern of retaliation."
A Kansas City, Mo.-based Union Pacific Railroad conductor was terminated from employment in September 2010 after making repeated complaints to the company's hotline about safety concerns, such as fall and trip hazards, missing and obstructed roadway signs, and various right-of-way issues, and for noting that a supervisor violated safety procedures during a field test. The railroad also cited the conductor for having a tattoo that it deemed as creating a hostile work environment. The conductor received the tattoo, which commemorates his military service, prior to beginning his employment with the company in 2004.
OSHA ordered that the conductor be reinstated to his position and receive punitive damages of $150,000, attorney fees of $11,925, compensatory damages of $10,258.51 and biweekly back wages in the amount of $3,437.10 covering Sept. 15, 2010, through Jan. 1, 2011, as well as biweekly payments of $3,527.02 retroactive to Jan. 1, 2011, and continuing until a bona fide order of reinstatement is made by Union Pacific Railroad.
A second Kansas City, Mo.-based conductor was suspended without pay from his job for five days in November 2010 after making several complaints to the company's hotline regarding rough spots on the track. OSHA has ordered that the conductor receive punitive damages of $100,000, attorney fees of $10,725, compensatory damages of $5,056.50 and back wages in the amount of $2,170.79, representing loss of pay from a one-day investigative hearing and the five-day suspension.
The third Union Pacific Railroad employee, a locomotive engineer based in Tucson, Ariz., was terminated after reporting a workplace injury in August 2009. OSHA has ordered that the 32-year company employee receive $150,000 in punitive damages, $75,000 in compensatory damages and $12,250 in attorney fees.
In addition to requiring payments be made to the affected employees, the department has ordered Union Pacific Railroad to provide training on whistleblower rights to its managers, supervisors and employees, and to notify employees of their rights to be able to file complaints without fear of retaliation under the FRSA.
This action follows two other orders issued by OSHA to Union Pacific Railroad in 2010 and 2011, which found that the company had similarly retaliated against other workers for reporting work-related injuries. The railroad operates in 23 states and employs more than 40,000 workers.
OSHA conducted the latest investigations under the whistleblower provisions of the FRSA, as amended by the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007. Railroad carriers are subject to the provisions of the FRSA, which protects employees who report violations of any federal law, rule or regulation relating to railroad safety or security, or who engage in other protected activities.
OSHA enforces the whistleblower provisions of the FRSA and 20 other statutes protecting employees who report violations of various airline, commercial motor carrier, consumer product, environmental, financial reform, food safety, health care reform, nuclear, pipeline, public transportation agency, railroad, maritime and securities laws. Under these laws enacted by Congress, employers are prohibited from retaliating against employees who raise various protected concerns or provide protected information to the employer or to the government. Employees who believe that they have been retaliated against for engaging in protected conduct may file a complaint with the secretary of labor to request an investigation by OSHA's Whistleblower Protection Program. Detailed information on employee whistleblower rights, including fact sheets, is available at http://www.whistleblowers.gov.
Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to ensure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.
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Amazing. The good guys won one. Of course, they have a pretty strong and vital union too.
Workers who report hazards not only serve all their co-workers' best interests, they serve the public interest. I know the company is ALWAYS walking a thin line re harassment of rail workers who point out problems. That they are also trying to punish employees who suffer injuries on the job should come as no surprise. Just more corporate abuse of the very workers who make everything possible.
I will raise a glass and toast to the union members who stand together against this crap. Glad you guys won one today! Keeping the rails safe is in everybody's interest. Keeping companies from intimidating workers, especially workers who get injured on the job, also in everybody's interests. Corporations think they are people and people are just machine parts, to be discarded when not in service. That HAS to change!Press release here: http://www.dol.gov/opa/media/press/osha/OSHA20111259.htm
OSHA... more
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In a new study, nearly a year in the making, former SeaWorld trainers Jeffrey Ventre, MD and John Jett, Ph.D, take us deep behind the scenes of Marine parks and their ability to provide environments adequate for keeping killer whales alive in captivity.
And is captivity causing Orca whales to lash out and/or mistakenly kill trainers? There are so many questions about captivity, what it does to animals, does it generate bizarre behavior, lessening quality of life, etc.?
Dr.'s Ventre and Jett take a hard look at captivity and Orca health and behavior in this important study.
The practice of keeping killer whales in captivity has proven to be detrimental to the health and safety of animals and trainers alike. On Christmas Eve, 2009, trainer Alexis Martinez was killed by a male captive bred orca named Keto, who was on loan from Sea World to a facility called Loro Parque, in the Canary Islands, Spain. Two months later, on 24 February 2010, trainer Dawn Brancheau was killed by Tilikum, an animal involved with two previous human fatalities. Medical Examiner (ME) reports described massive trauma to both Dawn and Alexis. Neither death was accidental.
Log onto The Orca Project to read the entire article, print out the report and make comments.In a new study, nearly a year in the making, former SeaWorld trainers Jeffrey Ventre,... more
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by Lindsay Beyerstein, Media Consortium blogger
Crisis Pregnancy Centers (CPCs) in New York City may soon have to level with the public about their real agenda. At the Ms. Blog, Michelle Chen has an update on proposed legislation which would force CPCs in New York to disclose that they aren’t reproductive health centers.
CPCs are anti-choice ministries that masquerade as full-service reproductive health clinics. They typically set up shop near real clinics to trick unwary clients. Real clinics dispense medical advice from doctors, nurses, and other licensed health care professionals. They are required to tell clients about the risks and benefits of all their treatment options. They don’t push clients towards abortion or adoption. CPCs are typically staffed by volunteers. Instead of medical advice, they hand out over-the-counter pregnancy tests and medically inaccurate information about the risks of abortion. They use pseudoscience and high pressure sales tactics to derail as many women seeking abortions as they can.
Chen reports that if the bill becomes law, New York CPCs will have to post signs disclosing that “they do not provide abortion services or contraceptive devices, or make referrals to organizations that do.” If the facility lacks licensed on-site medical professionals, the center would have to inform prospective clients of this fact. This is an excellent piece of consumer protection legislation. If CPCs are honest about who they are and what they do, they should have no problem with the law.
Christine O’Donnell: not (just) a joke
In an essay for the Women’s Media Center, organizer Shelby Knox explains why Delaware’s Republican Senate candidate Christine O’Donnell represents more than an anti-masturbation punchline:
Not ironically, O’Donnell is a loyal disciple to the religious agenda that equates sexuality, especially female sexuality, with evil and the decline of humanity. [...] To most mainstream Americans, O’Donnell’s concerted battle against solo sexual pleasure in particular is so fringe, so bizarre, it’s laughable. Yet, those of us deeply familiar with the ideology of the extremist right wing have long understood the condemnation of sex and sexual pleasure for anything other than the purpose of conception within marriage to be the underpinning of public policies that invite (Christian) God and (big, big) government into our bedrooms.
Knox notes that the same underlying suspicion of human sexuality finds expression in more mainstream areas of American politics, like federally-funded abstinence-only education, which substitutes religious homilies and gender stereotypes for science-based sex ed. (I would add federal funding for some of the nation’s aforementioned “crisis pregnancy centers” to Knox’s list of examples of anti-sex religious ideology replacing science-based health services.)
This week, O’Donnell drew audible gasps from a crowd when she claimed that the separation of church and state isn’t part of the U.S. Constitution, as Monica Potts reports for TAPPED.
O’Donnell may seem bizarre to the average voter, but Knox reminds us that she’s pretty typical of a rising tide of anti-sex, anti-science conservatism that we ignore at our peril:
But more accurately she’s the poster girl for more than 78 candidates running this election season who share her anti-sex, anti-woman views. These candidates believe abortion should be illegal in all cases, without exception for rape and incest. Some have promised a GOP majority would signal a return to funding failed abstinence-only policies. Ken Buck, the GOP Senate candidate in Colorado, even went so far as to refuse to prosecute a rape because the accuser had “buyer’s remorse” over an abortion he alleged she’d had a year before the assault.
Condoms and porn
A porn actor in California became the latest performer to test positive for HIV last week. His diagnosis sent shockwaves through the San Fernando Valley’s porn industry because the actor was reportedly a star who worked with a lot of big names in an industry where condoms are the exception rather than the rule.
The case has reignited controversy over the fact that straight porn companies aggressively flout California law that mandates condoms on porn sets. The industry maintains that it doesn’t need condoms because it has a rigorous testing program for talent. As I report in Working In These Times the industry is being allowed to investigate the HIV outbreak on its own, which is a little like asking BP to monitor oil spills. The same industry-allied non-profit that administers the tests, and does PR about how great the testing program is, also investigates cases of HIV in the industry. Does anyone else see a potential problem?
Concussions in the NFL
Football season is in full swing, but for Dave Zirin of The Nation and many other football fans, it’s getting harder and harder to reconcile their love of the game with our growing awareness of the toll that it takes on players:
In August, to much fanfare, NFL owners finally acknowledged that football-related concussions cause depression, dementia, memory loss and the early onset of Alzheimer’s disease. Now that they’ve opened the door, this concussion discussion is starting to shape how we understand what were previously seen as the NFL’s typical helping of off-field controversy and tragedy.
Zirin appends a list of over 30 players who have sustained concussions since the pre-season. Peter King of Sports Illustrated is calling for the NFL to start kicking excessively violent players out of the game, but Zirin says that’s not enough to stem the tide of concussions. Devastating brain injuries can come from routine, legal hits. A lot of the cumulative brain trauma leaves players demented in their fifties is actually sustained during practice.
The carnage is built into the game. Concussions are unavoidable given anatomy of the human brain and the physics of huge guys crashing into each other. Helmets only help so much because they can’t prevent the brain from smashing against the cranium. Zirin thinks football fans need to do a lot of soul searching. He argues that every fan should think hard about whether it’s really that much fun to watch guys get their brains pulped in the name of sport. Zirin’s not ready to give up football yet, but he thinks the gnawing guilt may eventually outweigh his love of the game.
This update brought to you by the Media Consortium, and the letter C.
This post features links to the best independent, progressive reporting about health care by members of The Media Consortium. It is free to reprint. Visit the Pulse for a complete list of articles on health care reform, or follow us on Twitter. And for the best progressive reporting on critical economy, environment, health care and immigration issues, check out The Audit, The Mulch, and The Diaspora. This is a project of The Media Consortium, a network of leading independent media outlets.by Lindsay Beyerstein, Media Consortium blogger
Crisis Pregnancy Centers (CPCs) in... more
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Thousands of People Along the Gulf Coast Suffer ‘BP Crud’
September 7th, 2010
The Untold Story of Human Health Effects From BP’s Oil Disaster
Editor’s Note: The Washington Post was given an opportunity for first, exclusive rights to publish this story today, but took a pass “because of the complicated nature of this story and our concerns that it’s too early to judge the real health effects.” Due to the time sensitive nature of this story, and because of tonight’s community health meeting in Orange Beach, we cannot hold it any longer for traditional news outlets. A special thanks to Spot.us for partial funding to cover travel expenses for reporting on this story.
Robin_Young1b.jpg
Glynn Wilson
Robin Young of Orange Beach talks about the health problems she suffered from BP’s Gulf oil disaster (see video).
by Glynn Wilson
PART ONE...
ORANGE BEACH, Ala. — Wherever disaster strikes, there’s always an associated crud.
There was the Exxon Valdez Crud. The Nine Eleven Crud. The Katrina Cough, and then the TVA coal ash cough.
Now, along the entire coast of the Gulf of Mexico, there is the BP Crud, afflicting workers and the general population from Louisiana to Florida.
When the Deepwater Horizon oil rig blew up in the Gulf of Mexico on April 20, Robin Young, a 47-year-old director of guest services for a property management company in Orange Beach, Alabama, was gearing up for what promised to be the best tourist season on the coast in years. From the city of New Orleans to the Florida panhandle, communities were finally starting to feel like they were recovering from the devastation left in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Ivan.
Since suffering a debilitating bout of what locals are calling the “BP Crud,” however, like thousands of other people along the coast due to their exposure to the oil and chemical dispersants, she is now part of a growing community of activists along the coast who are worried about their health.
Just a few days after BP’s oil made landfall along the Alabama Gulf Coast in June, Ms. Young’s symptoms started with “a fiery, burning sore throat,” she said. Then came the horrible, constant cough, followed by an achy feeling much like a severe flu virus — and a lethargy that kept her in bed for two weeks solid. Her memory started playing tricks on her, and her motor skills and even hand-to-eye coordination went south.
She started communicating with other sick folks over the Internet, and attending local meetings with corporate and government officials. At one meeting early on, she asked for a show of hands in a room of maybe 400 people to see how many had suffered symptoms similar to hers.
“Half the people in the room raised their hands,” she said in an interview at her cottage right next to the Intercoastal Waterway, which was polluted with oil and chemicals at the height of the disaster. Clearly, this was not some isolated event unrelated to the oil rig blowout.
Her new friends, who soon started a nonprofit group called Guardians of the Gulf, tried to find a local doctor to help them. After having no luck, they eventually found an out of state toxicologist and a doctor who knew enough about a new area of occupational and environmental health to order blood tests.
They found Dr. Michael R. Harbut, a clinical professor of Internal Medicine and director of the Environmental Cancer Program at Wayne State University’s Karmanos Cancer Institute, board certified in Occupational and Environmental Medicine. And they found Metametrix, a lab to test their blood.
What they found in the blood tests was a stew of toxic chemicals directly associated with oil and gas production and the chemical dispersant Corexit, including ethylbenzene, xylenehigh and high levels of hexane, a hydrocarbon chiefly obtained by the refining of crude oil.
The long-term toxicity of hexane in humans is extensive peripheral nervous system failure. The initial symptoms are tingling and cramps in the arms and legs, followed by general muscular weakness. In severe cases, skeletal muscles atrophy and those exposed suffer a loss of coordination and vision problems, the very symptoms Ms. Young reported.
Town officials and even local doctors have tried to silence her and others who raise the health issue, worried that if news got out, it could hurt the local economy even more. But a group of local pharmacists started keeping diaries of people coming in with similar symptoms.
“There’s a core group of them that finally said, ‘Holy Cow,’ something’s going on,” she said. “They started listening to what we were saying. But we still couldn’t get a lot of help. We couldn’t get help from the local doctors because they didn’t know what to do.”
Early on, Ms. Young invited a crew from Bio-Cascade, air-pollution specialists out of New Jersey and Boston, to come down and test the air. She put them up in a house right on the beach.
On the third day John Vallier of Bio-Cascade woke up with a sore throat. He put the air monitoring machine on the deck and within 15 minutes it showed 110 parts per million of Volatile Organic Compounds in the air. The crew quickly packed and said they would help from outside the vicinity of the bad air coming off the Gulf. It was striking how scared they were and how fast they got out of town, Ms. Young said, while EPA was downplaying the threat coming from its own air monitoring stations.
Another member of her group who suffered similar symptoms but does not want to be identified by name called the local schools and confirmed that there were an unusual number of children out sick with what was diagnosed as “strep throat” and a “stomach virus,” at the end of summer and long before flu season is supposed to start.
Another woman, Robyn Hill of Foley, actually passed out while working for a BP contractor cleaning up the beach. When she was taken to the hospital by ambulance, the doctor tried to make her sign a form saying she suffered a heat stroke. She refused, and has now joined the cause to save the Gulf.
“It really fired us up,” Ms Young said.
CONTINUED...Thousands of People Along the Gulf Coast Suffer ‘BP Crud’
September... more
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by Lindsay Beyerstein, Media Consortium blogger
Tainted egg shell game
The Iowa chapter of the Sierra Club is pushing state regulators to investigate two factory farms and a feed mill linked to this summer’s massive recall of salmonella-tainted eggs, Lynda Waddington reports in the Iowa Independent. The Sierra Club sent a strongly-worded letter to Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller urging him to investigate Wright County Egg, Hillandale Farms and the Quality Egg LLC feed mill. All three firms were linked to the salmonella outbreak that sickened an estimated 1200 people; and all three firms are linked to agro-baron Austin “Jack” DeCoster.
Tom Philpott of Grist calls DeCoster a “habitual” environmental offender and “one of the most reviled names in industrial agriculture.” In 1996, the Department of Labor fined DeCoster Eggs $3.6 million for what the then-Secretary of Labor described as “running an agricultural sweatshop” and “treating its employees like animals.” Over the years, DeCoster enterprises racked up additional fines in other states. A previous Attorney General of Iowa dubbed DeCoster a habitual offender for water pollution. In 2002, five female employees at the DeCoster’s Wright County egg operation alleged that their supervisors had raped them and threatened to kill them if they reported the crime. The company paid $1.5 million to settle the lawsuit.
Drowsy doctors
A coalition of public health activists is pushing the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to regulate the work hours of doctors in training. New proposed guidelines would limit the shifts of first-year residents to 16 hours, but more senior trainees could be forced to work shifts up to 28 hours. The group, which includes the Committee of Interns and Residents/SEIU Healthcare, the American Medical Student Association, and Public Citizen, says that’s not good enough to protect doctors or the public. As I explain in Working In These Times, research shows that sleep deprivation is a major preventable cause of medical errors, which is why the coalition wants to see shifts for all residents capped at 16 hours.
Insurance premiums soar
A new report from the Kaiser Foundation Family shows that health insurance premiums continued to climb with employers shifting an ever-greater share of the burden onto employees. A family health insurance policy costs about $14,000 a year, with employees shouldering 30% of that cost. Michelle Chen reports in ColorLines that families that manage to hang onto their health insurance can’t expect relief through health care reform any time soon. The major reforms don’t go into effect until 2014 and the biggest early beneficiaries will be those who are currently uninsured rather than those who are already paying through the nose for lousy coverage. The ultimate goal of comprehensive health care reform is to reshape the health care and health insurance systems to bring costs down across the board, but that’s small consolation to workers who are struggling to stay on top of their premiums right now.by Lindsay Beyerstein, Media Consortium blogger
Tainted egg shell game
The Iowa... more
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Killer whale dies at San Diego SeaWorld
By the CNN Wire Staff
September 7, 2010 7:46 p.m. EDT
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
* Killer whale dies at SeaWorld in San Diego, California
* Sumar was lethargic Monday; cause of death won't be known until necropsy is complete
* Sumar was able to exhibit about 100 "behaviors"
(CNN) -- A 12-year-old male killer whale, who showed signs of being ill only the day before, died Tuesday afternoon at SeaWorld in San Diego, California, the park announced.
The cause of death for Sumar won't be known until a necropsy is complete, SeaWorld said. Results may not be known for several weeks.
"It's a very sad day," spokesman Dave Koontz told CNN. "He was a great young killer whale. He was sharp."
Sumar, who weighed about 5,000 pounds, had been at SeaWorld San Diego since 2001, coming from an Ohio park. He was one of seven killer whales at SeaWorld and was able to exhibit about 100 "behaviors," Koontz said.
The killer whale had no medical history or problems with behavior, the spokesman said, adding that there was no evidence of communicable disease. "He had a great disposition."
"Trainers had noticed that Sumar was acting lethargic yesterday (Monday) afternoon. Park veterinarians began a regimen of antibiotics to help try to stabilize his condition while they attempted to determine the cause of his illness," a SeaWorld statement said.
"His condition worsened today and a decision was made to cancel the 12:30 p.m. Shamu show, so that trainers and veterinarians could continue to devote their full attention to Sumar. Despite these efforts, Sumar did not survive."
Sumar's trainers and support staff were devastated by the sudden loss and are sharing stories, Koontz said. "The loss of any animal is difficult, but that was even more so."
Orlando, Florida-based SeaWorld was recently fined $75,000 by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for three safety violations, including one classified as willful, after an animal trainer was killed by a whale in Orlando in February. SeaWorld, which also has a location in San Antonio, Texas, said it would contest the violations.
The last killer whale to die at the San Diego venue was Splash, who was sickly when SeaWorld adopted him. He was nursed back to health and lived 15 years until 2005.
No public memorial for Sumar is planned, although fans will be able to comment on the park's Facebook page, Koontz said.
SeaWorld said its shows would resume on schedule Wednesday.Killer whale dies at San Diego SeaWorld
By the CNN Wire Staff
September 7, 2010 7:46... more
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A 12,000-pound killer whale at the Orlando, Florida, SeaWorld pulled trainer Dawn Brancheau, 40, underwater and killed her as horrified park visitors watched.
http://www.cnn.com/2010/US/08/23/seaworld.fine/?hpt=T2A 12,000-pound killer whale at the Orlando, Florida, SeaWorld pulled trainer Dawn... more
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SeaWorld has been fined $75,000 by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for three safety violations, including one classified as willful, after an animal trainer was killed in February.
In a statement Monday, Cindy Coe, OSHA's regional administrator, said that SeaWorld knew of the inherent risks of allowing trainers to interact with dangerous animals.
"Nonetheless, it required its employees to work within the pool walls, on ledges and on shelves where they were subject to dangerous behavior by the animals," Coe said in the statement.
SeaWorld denied what it called "unfounded" allegations by the U.S. Department of Labor agency and said it would contest the citations.
"OSHA's allegations in this citation are unsupported by any evidence or precedent and reflect a fundamental lack of understanding of the safety requirements associated with marine mammal care penalties," a SeaWorld statement said Monday.
In February, a 12,000-pound killer whale at the Orlando, Florida, SeaWorld pulled trainer Dawn Brancheau, 40, underwater and killed her as horrified park visitors watched. An autopsy report showed Brancheau died from drowning and traumatic injuries to her body, including her spine, ribs and head.
The OSHA statement said the whale involved was one of three also involved in the death of an animal trainer in 1991 at a Vancouver, British Columbia, water park.
The agency's investigation "revealed that SeaWorld trainers had an extensive history of unexpected and potentially dangerous incidents involving killer whales at its various facilities, including its location in Orlando," the OSHA statement said. "Despite this record, management failed to make meaningful changes to improve the safety of the work environment for its employees."
OSHA issued one "willful" citation -- defined as a violation committed with plain indifference or intentional disregard for employee safety health -- for "exposing its employees to hazards when interacting with killer whales," the statement said.
A second citation classified as "serious" was issued for failing to install a stairway railing system on one side of a stadium stage, the OSHA statement said, adding that such a violation is when "death or serious physical harm is likely to result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known."
A third citation considered less serious involved a failure to put weatherproof enclosures over outdoor electrical receptacles, the statement said.
In response, the SeaWorld statement said its internal review reached a different conclusion. Without providing details, the statement said the conclusions were "drawn from decades of experience caring for marine mammals."
"The safety of SeaWorld's killer whale program was already a model for marine zoological facilities around the world and the changes we are now undertaking in personal safety, facility design and communication will make the display of killer whales at SeaWorld parks safer still," the SeaWorld statement said.
It noted that killer whales at SeaWorld "are displayed under valid federal permits and under the supervision of two government agencies with directly applicable expertise: The U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and the U.S. Department of Commerce National Marine Fisheries Service."
The SeaWorld statement also said its trainers were "among the most skilled, trained and committed zoological professionals in the world today."
"The fact that there have been so few incidents over more than 2 million separate interactions with killer whales is evidence not just of SeaWorld's commitment to safety, but to the success of that training and the skill and professionalism of our staff," the SeaWorld statement said.SeaWorld has been fined $75,000 by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration... more
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Federal investigators on Monday blasted SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment for allowing its animal trainers to work with killer whales without adequate protection, following a six-month investigation into the violent drowning of a trainer at SeaWorld Orlando.
Investigators with U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration recommended that SeaWorld trainers never again have direct contact with Tilikum, the six-ton killer whale who drowned trainer Dawn Brancheau on Feb. 24. But they also recommended that trainers not be permitted to continue swimming or working in close contact with the company's smaller killer whales — unless SeaWorld implements new safeguards.
The agency proposed fines totaling $75,000 for SeaWorld, which generated approximately $1.4 billion in revenue last year.
"SeaWorld recognized the inherent risk of allowing trainers to interact with potentially dangerous animals," Cindy Coe, the OSHA administrator in charge of the Southeast U.S., said in a prepared statement. "Nonetheless, it required its employees to work within the pool walls, on ledges and on shelves where they were subject to dangerous behavior by the animals."
SeaWorld immediately said it would challenge the findings from the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The closely watched federal investigation, sparked by the worst tragedy in SeaWorld's 46-year history, ultimately concluded with OSHA citing SeaWorld with one "willful" workplace-safety violation.
As part of that citation, the agency singled out interactions with Tilikum, an animal investigators said had "known aggressive tendencies" because he was one of three killer whales who drowned another trainer at a aquarium nearly 20 years ago. Though SeaWorld has barred trainers from swimming with Tilikum since acquiring shortly after the 1991 tragedy, OSHA cited the company for still allowing "unprotected contact" by permitting trainers to work with the animal from the tank edges and shallow underwater ledges.
Dawn Brancheau was laying face-to-face with Tilikum on one of those underwater ledges when the killer whale grabbed her by her long ponytail and pulled her underwater. OSHA recommended that trainers not be permitted to work Tilikum again without a physical barrier between them.
OSHA also said trainers exposed to similar risks from the rest of SeaWorld's killer whales. In its statement, OSHA said its probe "revealed that SeaWorld trainers had an extensive history of unexpected and potentially dangerous incidents involving killer whales at its various facilities….Despite this record, management failed to make meaningful changes to improve the safety of the work environment for its employees."
Still, the agency's recommendation for work with the remaining orcas was less strict than with Tilikum: OSHA said trainers not be allowed to swim with the remaining orcas unless they are protected by a physical barrier or "through the use of decking systems, oxygen supply systems or other engineering or administrative controls that provide the same or greater level of protection for the trainer."
The recommendation appears to leave an opening for SeaWorld to allow its trainers to re-enter the water with the company's killer whales once the company completes its own safety review and implements procedural or equipment changes.
SeaWorld said OSHA's conclusions stand in "stark contrast" the findings of its from own internal prove, which the company said has been reviewed by a panel of outside experts from other marine parks and aquariums.Federal investigators on Monday blasted SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment for... more
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OSHA was in the final hours of it's 6 month investigation when Alan Grayson intervened on behalf of SeaWorld, which is located in his district.
Apparently, SeaWorld is applying pressure on OSHA to go easy on them, just as they did in 2007 in a report related to trainer injuries at SeaWorld San Diego. In that report, OSHA stated "swimming with captive orcas is inherently dangerous and if someone hasn't been killed already it is only a matter of time beforeit does happen." However, SeaWorld pressured OSHA into removing that statement from the final report. It looks like SeaWorld is trying the same thing here:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/business/os-seaworld-osha-grayson-20100819,0,293357.storyOSHA was in the final hours of it's 6 month investigation when Alan Grayson... more
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er~y2010m4d29-The-working-class-in-this-country-should-not-be-sent-to-die
“The working class in this country should not be sent to die”
Edward Yankovich, International Vice President of the United Mine Workers union, spoke those words yesterday as about 200 people gathered in Pittsburgh's Mellon Square to observe the 22nd annual Workers Memorial Day. The event commemorates those who were injured and killed at their jobs. Considering three major industrial accidents with multiple fatalities just this month, the event's speakers unanimously urged vigorous enforcement of our occupational safety and health laws. The most touching moment came at the ringing of the memorial bell to honor those who died since last year's service.
CONTINUE READING . . . . http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-14931-Pittsburgh-Public-Policy-Examiner~y2010m4d29-The-working-class-in-this-country-should-not-be-sent-to-die
Richard Trumka to speak at Workers’ Memorial Day service in Pittsburgher~y2010m4d29-The-working-class-in-this-country-should-not-be-sent-to-die... more
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The U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration has ordered the evacuation of miners from parts of the Upper Big Branch coal mine 64 times since the beginning of 2009 because of safety violations.The U.S. Mine Safety and Health Administration has ordered the evacuation of miners... more
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The federal investigators probing into the massive explosion that killed 29 West Virginia coal miners last week might take note: According to a review of federal records by The Washington Independent, the dozens of other active tunnel mines owned by the same energy company have run up thousands of safety violations this year alone. Hundreds of those citations target the same problems with ventilation and methane buildup that many suspect sparked the West Virginia disaster.The federal investigators probing into the massive explosion that killed 29 West... more
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Elephant kicks, kills trainer at Pennsylvania circus
by Associated Press
Posted on April 9, 2010 at 9:50 PM
WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — Police say an elephant at a northeastern Pennsylvania circus startled and kicked its animal trainer, killing him.
It happened at around 5 p.m. Friday at the Irem Shrine Circus in Wilkes-Barre. The circus wasn’t open at the time.
Circus Elephant Go’s Beserk, Stomps & Kills Its Trainer in Pa…Photos-Video...http://ctpatriot1970.wordpress.com/2010/04/10/circus-elephant-gos-beserk-stomps-kills-its-trainer-in-pa-photos-video/Elephant kicks, kills trainer at Pennsylvania circus
by Associated Press
Posted on... more
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Six months after construction workers Wilson Joel Irias Cerritos, Raudel Ramirez Camacho and Jesus Angel Lopez Perez fell 11 stories to their deaths while working on 21Rio apartments complex, their co-workers will hold a candlelight vigil in their memory.
The vigil will draw attention to the abysmal working conditions on the 21Rio site, that left three workers dead, and left nearly 2 dozen other co-workers grossly underpaid for their hard work on the site. These workers were denied overtime pay and not paid at all for their final weeks of work at the 21 Rio worksite, after their three co-workers were killed in an accident that is being investigated as a negligent homicide. In all, workers estimate that they are owed over $55,000.00 in back wages on the 21Rio site.
When the subcontractor they worked for disappeared after the accident, German Zaravia and his co-workers advised contractors about the issue but no action was taken to make payment. Since then, Workers Defense Project has attempted to negotiate a fair settlement with contractors and owners of the building.
We did our work, we even risked our lives out there on that worksite. No one should have to die for their job and no one should have to fight just to be paid, says German Zaravia, who is owed $7,000 in back wages and was working on the site the day of the accident. We are holding this vigil because when they died we were too afraid to come forward, but now we want all of Austin to know what we construction workers and our families are suffering.
A recent study by Workers Defense Project and the University of Texas found that Texas leads the nation in construction deaths, with a worker dying every 2.5 days in the state and that construction workers have a one in five chance of not being paid their wages.
Weve seen that employers who are willing to cut corners on safety are also likely to show a complete disregard for workers rights, explains Emily Timm of the Workers Defense Project, a local organization dedicated to improving working conditions for low-wage workers in construction and other industries. Its not a coincidence that wage theft would take place on a worksite that had gross safety violations.
The accident and concurrent employment abuses highlight the need for greater oversight on construction worksites in Austin. In October, the City of Austin passed a resolution requiring city staff to present recommendations for a construction safety program by January 22nd.
On June 10, Wilson Joel Irias Cerritos, Raudel Ramirez Camacho and Jesus Angel Lopez Perez fell 11 stories to their deaths when a mast climber scaffolding they were working on failed and broke apart.
OSHA is investigating and is required to release its determination this month. The accident is being investigated by APD as a negligent homicide.Six months after construction workers Wilson Joel Irias Cerritos, Raudel Ramirez... more
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Six months after construction workers Wilson Joel Irias Cerritos, Raudel Ramirez Camacho and Jesus Angel Lopez Perez fell 11 stories to their deaths while working on 21Rio apartments complex, their co-workers will hold a candlelight vigil in their memory.
The vigil will draw attention to the abysmal working conditions on the 21Rio site, that left three workers dead, and left nearly 2 dozen other co-workers grossly underpaid for their hard work on the site. These workers were denied overtime pay and not paid at all for their final weeks of work at the 21 Rio worksite, after their three co-workers were killed in an accident that is being investigated as a negligent homicide. In all, workers estimate that they are owed over $55,000.00 in back wages on the 21Rio site.
When the subcontractor they worked for disappeared after the accident, German Zaravia and his co-workers advised contractors about the issue but no action was taken to make payment. Since then, Workers Defense Project has attempted to negotiate a fair settlement with contractors and owners of the building.
We did our work, we even risked our lives out there on that worksite. No one should have to die for their job and no one should have to fight just to be paid, says German Zaravia, who is owed $7,000 in back wages and was working on the site the day of the accident. We are holding this vigil because when they died we were too afraid to come forward, but now we want all of Austin to know what we construction workers and our families are suffering.
A recent study by Workers Defense Project and the University of Texas found that Texas leads the nation in construction deaths, with a worker dying every 2.5 days in the state and that construction workers have a one in five chance of not being paid their wages.
Weve seen that employers who are willing to cut corners on safety are also likely to show a complete disregard for workers rights, explains Emily Timm of the Workers Defense Project, a local organization dedicated to improving working conditions for low-wage workers in construction and other industries. Its not a coincidence that wage theft would take place on a worksite that had gross safety violations.
The accident and concurrent employment abuses highlight the need for greater oversight on construction worksites in Austin. In October, the City of Austin passed a resolution requiring city staff to present recommendations for a construction safety program by January 22nd.
On June 10, Wilson Joel Irias Cerritos, Raudel Ramirez Camacho and Jesus Angel Lopez Perez fell 11 stories to their deaths when a mast climber scaffolding they were working on failed and broke apart.
OSHA is investigating and is required to release its determination this month. The accident is being investigated by APD as a negligent homicide.Six months after construction workers Wilson Joel Irias Cerritos, Raudel Ramirez... more
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You won't believe this -- Sixteen workers are killed a day in the United States because of reckless negligence on the part of their employers. Under existing laws, these employers get a slap on the wrist, or walk away scot-free. Meanwhile, workers who blow the whistle face threats and retaliation at the workplace.
Learn more and sign the petition: http://16deathsperday.comYou won't believe this -- Sixteen workers are killed a day in the United States... more
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From Commondreams:
"With rabid wingnuts having successfully felled Van Jones, they have set their sights on the next victim: Dr. David Michaels, Obama's eminently qualified choice to head the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. To Red State, Michaels is "a radical...who makes Van Jones look tame" and who had the audacity to "smear BPA, an innovative chemical used to make plastics stronger." To sane people, Michaels is a progressive, knowledgeable, award-winning occupational epidemiologist who wrote the highly regarded book, "Doubt is Their Product: How Industry's Assault on Science Threatens Your Health." Ergo: When the time comes, people, let's speak up."From Commondreams:
"With rabid wingnuts having successfully felled Van Jones,... more
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