April 28 is Workers Memorial Day
More than 50 years ago on April 28, Workers Memorial Day, the Occupational Safety and Health Act went into effect, promising every worker the right to a safe job—a fundamental right.
The law was won because of the tireless efforts of the labor movement, which organized for safer working conditions and demanded action from the government to protect working people. Since then, unions and allies have fought hard to make that promise a reality—winning protections under the law that have made jobs safer and saved lives. But our work is not done.
Each day, more than 340 workers are killed and more than 6,000 suffer injury and illness because of dangerous working conditions that are preventable.
April 28 is Workers Memorial Day, a day where we elevate safe jobs and raise our collective voice to protect what we have—confronting attacks on regulations that keep our workplaces safe and demanding action to win stronger protections. We hold employers accountable to keep workers safe. We demand more resources from Congress for our nation’s job safety agencies. We demand dignity at work.
Workers are winning good jobs and safe jobs through union contracts across the country to secure a better livelihood and safer future for ourselves and our families. A seat at the bargaining table can be a matter of life or death in the workplace, ensuring everyone can go home at the end of a work shift, alive and without work-related illnesses that plague many workers. Across the United States, workers are organizing for strong health and safety standards from employers and governments to improve working conditions.
We will continue to fight for a seat at the bargaining table and in the halls of government to ensure good jobs are safe jobs. We will fight to protect our fundamental right to a safe job until that promise is fulfilled.
Central labor bodies and affiliate unions across Ohio are hosting Workers Memorial Day events across our state. Find an event near you here