On Saturday we observed Workers Memorial Day. It is a day of remembrance where we honor and remember workers who lost their lives on the job. It is a sad and tragic day because some of these casualties are the result of faulty equipment, haphazard safety standards, and employers cutting costs at the expense worker protections. It is always tragic when a person dies on the job, it is unacceptable when these tragedies could have been avoided. We honor their sacrifice and their loss, and send our love and support to their families and community.

We work to put food on our table, clothing on our backs, and a roof over our head. We work to survive and exist and enjoy our life away from our job. We should never fear death or harm on our jobs unless we have chosen such a career, like police officer or firefighter. But working on a job site or in an office or out in the field should never be deadly. Unfortunately accidents happen and we mourn those who have perished while on the job. In our mourning we also demand better safety and health conditions for all people. Deregulation has stripped away our protections and continues to threaten both our work and home environment. We need a government that protects its citizens and we need regulations to ensure going to work is not a death sentence.

April 28th is Workers Memorial Day. It is a day we honor and remember those who lost their lives while on the job. We honor their family, their children, and their coworkers for keeping their memory and legacy alive. We will commit ourselves and our organization to making sure every year the names on the list get fewer and fewer and our protections get better.