JAN 14, 2010
To: SPEEA Council Members
From: SPEEA
L&PA Committee
Subject: PRE-SUBMITTED NEW BUSINESS: Support PROTECTING
AMERICA’S WORKERS Act in Congress
Background
Each Day 16 Americans Are Killed Due to Poor Worker
Safety Laws
"It
is only a six month misdemeanor if [an employer] willfully commits a violation
of worker safety laws. It is only considered a misdemeanor if a worker
dies." David Uhlmann, Professor and Director of
Environmental Law and Policy Programs at Michigan University.
"[The
companies] consider OSHA a mosquito. They'd rather pay the fines than
bring the plants into compliance [with the laws]. They think the law is
so ineffective that it's more profitable for them to take the risk by not
having safety programs in place than to comply with the law." Charles
Jeffress, Former Assistant Secretary of Labor, OSHA
Protecting America's Workers
Act – does the following:
1. Amends the Occupational
Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSHA) to expand its coverage to federal, state,
and local government employees.
2. Authorizes the Secretary
of Labor, under specified conditions, to cede OSHA jurisdiction to another
federal agency with respect to certain occupational standards or regulations
for such agency's employees.
3. Declares OSHA inapplicable
to working conditions covered by the Federal Mine Safety and Heath Act of 1977.
4. Sets forth increased
protections for whistle blowers under OSHA.
5. Sets forth provisions
relating to:
(i) the posting of employee
rights;
(ii) a prohibition against the adoption or implementation
of policies or practices by employers that discourage
the reporting of work-related injuries or illnesses or that
discriminate or
provide for adverse action against
any employee for reporting such injury or illness;
(iii) a prohibition against the
loss of wages or employee benefits as a result of an employee participating in or aiding workplace
inspections;
(iv) investigations of incidents
in a place of employment resulting in a death or the hospitalization of two or more employees;
(v) a prohibition against
designating a citation for an occupational health and safety standard violation as an unclassified citation;
(vi) the rights of an employee
who has sustained a work-related injury or illness that is the subject of an investigation;
(vii) an employer's right to
contest citations and penalties;
(vii) the Secretary's assertion
of an employer's failure to correct a serious hazard during an employer's contest to a citation;
(ix) employee objections to
modifications of citations. Increases civil and criminal
penalties for certain OSHA violators.
6. Requires a state that has
an approved plan for the development and enforcement of occupational safety and
health standards to amend its plan to conform to the requirements of this Act
within 12 months after enactment of this Act.
H.R. 2067: Protecting
America's Workers Act Apr 23, 2009. Introduced into Congress by Ms.
WOOLSEY (for herself, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Ms. BERKLEY, Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania,
Mr. COHEN, Mr. HARE, Mr. HINCHEY, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. HOLT, Mrs. MALONEY, Mr.
GEORGE MILLER of California, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. ROTHMAN of New Jersey, Ms.
SCHAKOWSKY, Ms. SHEA-PORTER, Mr. YARMUTH, and Mr. MCGOVERN).
Motion
It is moved that: THE SPEEA COUNCIL supports the
provisions of H.R. 2067, PROTECTING AMERICA’S WORKERS Act of the 111th
Congress, and authorizes members, officers and staff to advocate for passage of
the PROTECTING AMERICA’S WORKERS Act bills, going forward.
PRO
·
This legislation provides long overdue protections to all American
workers.
CON
·
The provisions may be too broad
or punitive, giving individuals something to find in the act they dislike.
For Informational
Purposes:
Rick
Hoffman, CR (R-7), Member of SPEEA L&PA will make a motion to amend M10-002
by adding the following:
Additionally
the SPEEA COUNCIL supports the following revisions to H.R. 2067:
1.
In SEC 310 Subsection (a) (1) (A) and (B) the fine amounts are to be increased
to $250,000 and $25,000 fines respectively.
2.
In SEC 310 Subsection (4) (B) (page 19 line 11) is amended by adding the word
"daily" between the words "such" and "civil" so
that the section shall read, "...such daily civil penalty amounts..."
3.
Sec 311 shall be amended to require employers to identify in writing all
management responsible for ensuring the safety of the workplace, to post the
list in the workplace and to provide the list to OSHA and the Department of
Labor and to update the list on a regular basis.
4.
Sec 311 shall also be amended to require a minimum prison sentence of 2 1/2
years in the case of the death of an employee or 5 years if the conviction is
for a violation committed after a first conviction.
The following pages provide additional
supporting information.