Cyrus Dugger
Bill to Promote Workplace Health & Safety Introduced in City Council: Action Lauded by NYCOSH, DC 37, UFT, and CWA Local 1180
Bill to Promote Workplace Health & Safety Introduced in City Council: Action Lauded by NYCOSH, DC 37, UFT, and CWA Local 1180NYCOSH Press Release
For Immediate Release
Contact Jonathan Bennett, New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health
212-227-6440 x 14City Hall – Today, New York City Councilmembers James Gennaro (D - Fresh Meadows) and Joseph Addabbo (D - Howard Beach) introduced legislation that would require New York City to improve its methods of documenting and analyzing information on the costs and numbers of on-the-job illnesses and injuries sustained by the City workforce and publish an annual report based on that data. The move was applauded by the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health, District Council 37, the United Federation of Teachers and Communications Workers of America Local 1180.
The bill (Intro. 507) amends Local Law 41 of 2004 – the “Workplace Safety and Protection Act” — which required that the City regularly and uniformly monitor, document, and make publicly available statistical data on employee injuries and illnesses. Local Law 41 was intended to create a compilation of information that would enable the City to take necessary precautions leading to a reduction in the number and severity of workplace injuries and illnesses, as well as more effectively administering and managing workers’ compensation claims.
“Unfortunately, the ‘Workplace Safety and Protection Act’ passed in 2004 has not provided the City and the unions with the information necessary to pinpoint hazardous jobs and thus, design effective programs to improve workplace safety and health for city employees,” said Councilmember Gennaro, lead sponsor of this legislation. “The law we introduce today improves those sections of the law that need it, so that in the future we’ll receive better reports on hazardous jobs, the types and frequencies of injuries, and the sources of unsafe conditions in the workplaces. This legislation will help to dramatically reduce the suffering and economic hardship that workplace injuries and illnesses cause among the City’s workforce,” he added.
“For hundreds of thousands of workers citywide, workplace safety is an issue of utmost importance,” said Civil Service and Labor Committee Chairman Joseph Addabbo. “This legislation will provide the city with the data and the means for agencies to learn how to better protect their employees, which in turn would help save money and increase productivity with fewer days missed due to injury or illness,” he added.
“All municipal employees have a right to expect the city to provide safe and healthful work environments,” said Randi Weingarten, president of the United Federation of Teachers and chair of New York City’s Municipal Labor Committee. “This bill should help the city focus its efforts to develop preventive safety measures and programs to eliminate workplace hazards.”
“This bill will give the city and its unions the tools to make a major improvement in workplace safety and health,” said Lee Clarke, Safety and Health Director of the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees District Council 37, which represents some 121,000 city workers. “This is the kind of reporting that almost all large employers do routinely, and for good reason,” she continued. “It helps to make work safe.”
“On-the-job injuries are preventable, but preventing them often requires paying close attention to the circumstances of past injuries,” said Bill Henning, vice president of CWA Local 1180, which represents some 9,000 city workers. “This law will make it possible for the first time for the city to have an in-depth understanding of how workers get hurt,” Henning continues. “It will also give the unions and individual workers access to the same information, so we, too, will be able to protect the municipal workforce.”
“Right now, the City is paying out at least $140 million annually in direct costs for workers’ compensation, and probably two to three times that amount when indirect costs, such lost productivity, recruitment and training of replacement workers are accounted for,” added Joel Shufro, Executive Director of the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health. “With a program to reduce illnesses and injuries, we can bring that number down. But it’s not just about saving money. It’s also about protecting the municipal workforce from often disabling illness and injuries.”
Posted at 12:50 AM, Feb 05, 2007 in Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
