Murray: We must fight back LAKE PLACID — Injustice is killing Americans, and we need to fight back. “This is not something you should tolerate,” said Dr. Linda Rae Murray, chief medical officer at the Cook County, Ill., (Chicago) Department of Public Health and a social justice activist, during her keynote address at the recent CSEA Statewide Conference on Occupational Safety and Health. Murray noted repeatedly in her address that public workers “are in trouble.” In recent years, income inequality has skyrocketed, as the wealthy have made large gains in wealth at the expense of workers. Not only have working people, particularly those of color, lost wealth, but communities are suffering from cuts to government services, slashed regulations (including for work place safety and health) and lack of commitment to the public good. “I didn’t think that people who go to work every day would be in worse shape today than they were in 1980,” Murray said. And the 1 percent’s misguided choices are literally killing American workers every day. “How did we get here?” Murray said. “The people who have the power in this country are killing our brothers and sisters on the job because they won’t spend an extra nickel on safety or won’t hire an extra person to avoid overtime.” Murray said the key to the battle facing working people and communities today is power. “Power doesn’t come to you easily,” she said. “You have to grab Dr. Linda Rae Murray addresses CSEA Statewide Conference on Occupational Safety and Health attendees. it; you have to rip it out of the hands of the people who have it … You can’t forget that people have died (for unions to have power),” she said. “People have died to get enough power to be able to have dinner with their families and leave their jobs while the sun was still up.” And the way to work toward grabbing that power back from misguided political leaders and the wealthy is for workers to become educated on issues, stand in solidarity with one another, and support our communities. “We know what we’re supposed to do,” she said. “We need to demand what we deserve and stand up for what’s right.” She urged CSEA activists to examine past successes and mistakes and learn from them to learn how to move forward in fighting back. Murray believes that public employees have a special responsibility to their communities. “We work for our families, our neighbors,” she said. “We have a special responsibility to educate our bosses and work for the common good.” — Janice Gavin Meunier-Gorman receives McGowan award CARMEL — Putnam County Local President Jane Meunier-Gorman was honored with CSEA’s William McGowan Occupational Safety and Health Award at the recent Statewide Conference on Occupational Safety and Health. Thanks to the strong efforts of Meunier- Gorman and other Putnam County Local activists, the county is a model for public work places across the state on how to properly protect work place safety and health. After several instances in which a manager in the county’s Health Department showed a lack of concern for workplace safety and health, Meunier-Gorman decided to take action. “I’ve always been safety and health minded,” said Meunier-Gorman, who had served as a volunteer firefighter and emergency medical technician in her community. “But I decided that (protecting worker safety and health) was my calling.” Meunier-Gorman has worked hard to bring together CSEA, other county unions and management as a team dedicated to ensuring safe and healthy work places. “This is really a collaboration for all of us,” she said. “We all need to work together and everybody has to be on the same page for this to work.” And it has. After the state enacted its work place violence law in 2006, CSEA activists worked with the other unions and management on implementing the county’s work place violence program. Meunier-Gorman offered the county’s personnel director free employee safety and health training through CSEA’s Occupational Safety and Health Department. This led to not only a stronger relationship between the unions and management, but to a strong work place violence prevention program in Putnam County. Work place safety and health is a top priority in Putnam County; the county has hired a full-time safety officer in recent years who works closely with the unions and management. Worker training in safety and health is also emphasized. Peer training programs are active, and CSEA and other workers host an eight-hour mandatory training day for highway workers at least once a year. The See more OSH Conference coverage on pages 10-11. CSEA Executive Vice President Mary E. Sullivan and Southern Region President Billy Riccaldo congratulate Putnam County Local President Jane Meunier- Gorman, right, on receiving the William McGowan Occupational Safety and Health Award. day combines classroom instruction, safety equipment vendor visits and fun events such as “backup rodeo,” a game that teaches safe ways to back up county vehicles and prevent accidents. — Janice Gavin June 2014 The Work Force 9
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