Bricklayers Testify in Support of OSHA's Proposed Silica Rule

[Omaha Steve]

http://bacweb.org/news/press_releases/pr_140331.php

[Washington, D.C.] March 31, 2014 – Today, members of the International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers (BAC) testified at the public hearings held by the Occupational Safety and Health (OSHA) in support of the adoption of OSHA's proposed silica standard affecting more than 2.1 million workers. BAC has fought for more than four decades for a stronger, more comprehensive standard to reduce silica exposure and protect workers in the construction industry.

Led by the International Union President James Boland, five BAC members including Local 2 Michigan members Tom Ward and Dale McNabb, Local 5 Oklahoma/Arkansas/Texas member Tommy Todd, Local 3 Massachusetts/Maine/New Hampshire/Rhode Island member Sean Barrett, and Local 3 Arizona/New Mexico member Dennis Cahill told their stories of silica exposure, a jobsite poison that has injured and killed thousands of workers. Their testimonies provided incontrovertible evidence that the provisions of OSHA's proposed silica standard are reasonable, feasible and necessary to protect workers. The standard once implemented is expected to prevent more than 1600 illnesses and nearly 700 deaths annually.

President Boland stated in his testimony, "It's been four decades. Four decades. Workers are still getting sick and dying from silicosis and there is no denying it anymore. Enough is enough. Workers in the construction trades are counting on us to enact the new standards. They need protection. NOW."

To learn more about OSHA's proposed silica standard, please visit: https://www.osha.gov/silica/

The International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers, headquartered in Washington, D.C., is the oldest continuous union in North America and represents roughly 85,000 skilled masonry-trowel trades craftworkers in the United States and Canada, including bricklayers, tile setters, cement masons, plasterers, stone masons, marble masons, restoration workers, and terrazzo and mosaic workers.