Posted: | January 25, 2017 01:29 PM |
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From: | Senator Christine M. Tartaglione |
To: | All Senate members |
Subject: | Co-sponsorship of Legislation to Protect Workplace Safety |
In the near future, I plan to introduce companion legislation to Rep. Harkins’s former HB 1082 that would establish the Pennsylvania Occupational Safety and Health Review Board within the Department of Labor and Industry. Currently, Pennsylvania workers at state and local government agencies do not have Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) protection. This means that workers of state and local governments are powerless to change their work environment if they feel unsafe at any time. This legislation would extend OSHA safety rules to public employers (to include the Commonwealth), all legal political subdivisions, public schools, public transit systems, and non-profit organizations. Rep. Harkin introduced this legislation in memory of Erie resident Jake Schwab, a mechanic for Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority, whose life was tragically cut short due to a workplace incident in November of 2014. The US Department of Labor reported that in 2014, there were 175 fatal work injuries in Pennsylvania. It is time that we ensure that all workers in Pennsylvania have a safe place to work to reduce fatal work injuries to zero. Please join me in co-sponsoring this important legislation. |
Introduced as SB580