AFSCME’s Saunders: Workers Memorial Day highlights why we must organize for health and safety

“Today, we join countless Americans in mourning loved ones who have lost their lives on the job, often due to entirely preventable tragedies. Every person should be able to earn a living in a workplace that’s free of violence, health hazards and other threats, so they can safely return home to their families each day. This is a fundamental freedom that the world’s largest economy is more than capable of guaranteeing. We should never be satisfied with a status quo that prioritizes profits over workers’ health and safety.

 

“The sad truth is that even as workplace injuries rise across the country, we have a White House hell-bent on dismantling the very institutions meant to safeguard workers — all to hand tax breaks to billionaires who want to trample their rights. They are shuttering OSHA field offices, firing federal employees who investigate workplace incidents, and making it easier for employers to silence those who speak out about feeling unsafe.

 

“We won’t allow this billionaire-run administration to put our lives in jeopardy just to enrich themselves. This week, we are working with our congressional allies to introduce legislation that would expand OSHA protections to public service workers nationwide. We’re also getting organized on the ground, calling members of Congress, joining town halls – or forming our own when elected officials refuse to show up – and demanding they defend our communities from those who see our lives as expandable. We won’t back down.”