skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Friday, March 29, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The latest on the Key Bridge collapse, New York puts forth legislation to get clean energy projects on the grid and Wisconsin and other states join a federal summer food program to help feed kids across the country.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Republicans float conspiracy theories on the collapse of Baltimore's Key Bridge, South Carolina's congressional elections will use a map ruled unconstitutional, and the Senate schedules an impeachment trial for Homeland Secretary Mayorkas.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Workers' Memorial Day: NC Workers Dying to Work

play audio
Play

Thursday, April 28, 2016   

RALEIGH, N.C. - According to the most recent data available, 137 workers died on the job in North Carolina in 2014. Today the North Carolina AFL-CIO is joining with labor groups across the state to recognize Workers' Memorial Day to raise awareness of workplace fatalities and the need for safety improvements.

MaryBe McMillan, secretary-treasurer with the North Carolina AFL-CIO said, "On Workers' Memorial Day, we remember working people who died on the job, and it's also a time for us to resolve to do better by our state's workers. We believe too many workers have died and too little has been done to prevent such deaths."

The AFL-CIO is asking Congress to pass the Protecting America's Workers Act to provide OSHA protection for the millions of workers without it, create stronger criminal and civil penalties for companies that violate job safety laws and improve anti-retaliation protections for workers who report concerns. This week the Bureau of Labor Statistics is expected to release the 2015 data for workplace injuries and fatalities. In 2014, 137 people died on the job in North Carolina, up from 109 the year before.

McMillan said part of the increase in fatalities could have something to do with a lessening of state penalties for safety violations put in place by North Carolina Commissioner of Labor Cherie Berry.

"We've seen since she's been labor commissioner, a real downplaying of the seriousness of violations, and a penalty system that allows for significant reductions in fines," McMillan added. "We believe that companies need more than a slap on the wrist, in order to get them to change their behavior and no longer endanger worker safety."

In a statement, Commissioner Berry said "higher penalties don't translate into a safer workplace," and that workplace injuries and illnesses are at an all-time low. Additionally, she pointed out that the AFL-CIO has endorsed her opponent in the upcoming election.

Workers are encouraged to contact OSHA or their labor union if they encounter a safety concern on the job.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments this week about the popular abortion pill Mifepristone and will weigh in on whether the U.S. Food and Drug Administration was correct in how it can be dosed and prescribed. (Ascannio/Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Missouri residents are worried about future access to birth control. The latest survey from The Right Time, an initiative based in Missouri…


Social Issues

play sound

Wisconsin children from low-income families are now on track to get nutritious foods over the summer. Federal officials have approved the Badger …

Social Issues

play sound

Almost 2,900 people are unsheltered on any given night in the Beehive State. Gov. Spencer Cox is celebrating signing nine bills he says are geared …


The U.S. teaching workforce remains primarily white while the percentage of Black teachers has declined. However, the percentage of Asian and Latinx teachers is rising.(WavebreakMediaMicro/Adobestock)

Social Issues

play sound

Education advocates are calling on lawmakers to increase funding for programs to combat the teacher shortage. Around 37% of schools nationwide …

Environment

play sound

New York's Legislature is considering a bill to get clean-energy projects connected to the grid faster. It's called the RAPID Act, for "Renewable …

Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021