labor lawAdivision of labor law center

Help is on the way for beleaguered workers in Kansas. This week the U.S. Department of Labor announced an emergency grant of $10 million to assist workers affected by the recent flood. The funds will be used to create about 1,000 temporary jobs to assist in the cleanup and recovery efforts. An initial grant of $5 million will be released to the Kansas Department of Labor immediately.

Hundreds of residents in eastern and southeastern Kansas were forced from their homes and jobs earlier this month as massive flooding covered parts of Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas. The rains began on Friday, June 29, 2007. Some of the affected counties in southeast Kansas reported more than 20 inches of rain over three days, resulting in severe flooding. Many of the residents were low-income families without flood insurance.

Kansas Governor Kathleen Sibelius mobilized the Kansas National Guard. Five water rescue teams from northeast Kansas were on the scene in Fredonia, Neodesha and Garnett.  Among other efforts, the Guard was deployed to Oswatomie in Miami County, where a crumbling levee made speedy evacuation of all residents crucial. In Neosho County, the Guard helped residents evacuate to a shelter set up at Chanute High School. Meanwhile, the Army Corps of Engineers continued to monitor the levels of rivers, lakes and dams as several levees were deemed a danger to citizens.

Under the grant, preference in hiring will be given to workers who have lost their jobs due to the floods. In addition, workers who have been classified by the U.S. Department of Labor as “dislocated” for other reasons, such as plant closings, will be considered. Finally, long-term unemployed workers are eligible as well.

The state Emergency Operations Center in Topeka was immediately activated and operated 24/7 to coordinate the delivery of state resources to the affected counties.  According to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, every person in the flooded area should make sure that their tetanus shot is current, before beginning the clean-up process.

The situation was compounded by the flooding of several major rivers in Kansas. These included the Verdigris River in Montgomery County, which was swollen to 53 feet. Downstream, flooding isolated Elk City. Residents in a number of towns, including Elk City, were ordered to boil water.

In Independence, the water treatment plant was without power, resulting in unsafe drinking water for the region. In a cooperative effort, the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army brought in drinking water.

In Coffeyville, the Verdigris was 3 feet over the levee from July 1 through July 3, 2007. The area’s problems were compounded when the water overran an oil refinery on the banks of the river, spilling petroleum products into the raging river. The resulting mud-and-oil slick made cleanup very difficult.  

Wilson County was hard hit by the flooding, as well. Neodesha was surrounded by water, with access only possible by boat or air. The town’s water supply was contaminated. A flooded substation resulted in power outages, and the sewer plant was backing up due to flooding.

In Fredonia, 7 people – both staff and patients – were stranded at the hospital, with only enough food, water and medical supplies for three days. A nursing home in Dexter evacuated one wing, moving residents to anther part of the facility on higher ground.

The Neosho River created problems in Woodson and Chautaqua Counties. In Neosho Falls, many roadways were impassible. The town of Erie was flooded.

On July 2, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, declared 17 southeastern Kansas counties eligible for public assistance. These include Allen, Anderson, Bourbon, Butler, Chautauqua, Cherokee, Coffey, Cowley, Elk, Franklin, Linn, Miami, Montgomery, Neosho, Osage, Wilson and Woodson counties.

“This $10 million grant will put about 1,000 Kansans to work helping communities recover from the recent flood damage,” said Secretary Chao.
 

Increasing public awareness of the need to be careful around highway construction workers is critical to Texas highway worker safety. That’s why OSHA decided the first week of April should be National Work Zone Awareness Week each year. Drivers need to pay attention to the safety zones used by highway workers and slow down when driving near these zones.

Officials hope that the theme for this year’s campaign, “Signs for Change,” will remind drivers to exercise caution.

The dangers that affect Texas highway worker safety are significant. Consider the statistics. Over 20,000 workers are injured while performing construction on streets and highways. Sadly, many workers die from the injuries they receive on the job.

The Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA, Edwin G. Foulke, Jr, explained, “Employees who work in highway zones have one of the most dangerous occupations in the United States and these employees need not only OSHA’s support, but the support of everyone who gets behind the wheel on a daily basis.”

According to Assistant Secretary Foulke, “There were nearly 1,100 work zone fatalities last year — that is a tragedy. I am hopeful that campaigns like this will help reduce those numbers.”

How will OSHA approach this campaign? OSHA is cooperating with the Roadway Work Zone Safety and Health Partners Alliance to improve highway construction worker safety. These two organizations will work to promote public awareness of the problem and the need for drivers to use caution near highway worker safety zones. Moreover, these two organizations will spotlight additional health issues that highway workers face. To help, OSHA has an array of resources available that address the safety of highway workers.

In a recent speech, Jeffrey P. Koplan, M.D., M.P.H., said, “Every day, when orange traffic cones prompt us to slow down and drive carefully near work zones, we are reminded that highway and street construction is hard and potentially hazardous work. As we enter the busy spring construction season, NIOSH’s new document offers practical and comprehensive advice for reducing workers’ risk of injury.” Koplan is the Director of the Center for Disease Control.

Raising the public’s awareness of ways to increase Kentucky highway worker safety is a major goal of OSHA. Tragically, many highway workers are killed each year. In addition, while working on highway and street construction projects, 20,000 workers are injured. The need to get drivers to slow down and observe highway worker safety zones prompted OSHA to name the first week of April as National Work Zone Awareness Week. This year, a campaign has been launched entitled “Signs for Change,” which reminds drivers to take care.

A kickoff was held in Alexandria, Virginia, on April 3 appropriately enough at a construction site on Interstate 495. OSHA has joined forces with the Roadway Work Zone Safety and Health Partners Alliance to raise driver awareness of the safety zones for highway workers. These two organizations will bring focus on the health issues that highway workers face. A variety or resources are available through OSHA to help raise awareness of this problem.

Tragically, many highway workers are killed every year. In addition, approximately 20,000 are injured. Safety awareness on the part of drivers is vital. According to Edwin G. Foulke, Jr., Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA, “Employees who work in highway zones have one of the most dangerous occupations in the United States and these employees need not only OSHA’s support, but the support of everyone who gets behind the wheel on a daily basis. There were nearly 1,100 work zone fatalities last year — that is a tragedy. I am hopeful that campaigns like this will help reduce those numbers.”

If you’re a mechanic, each old truck or car you work on can be an asbestos problem waiting to happen.

A Kentucky OSHA alert warns that mechanics can be exposed to asbestos when they work on the brakes or clutches of older-model vehicles. Asbestos may still be found in those parts, and once the material freed, it is likely to break up into tiny, invisible particles. Those particles are health hazards. Some 10,000 people every year die in the U.S. of asbestos-related ailments. Those illnesses include lung cancer, asbestosis, mesothelioma, and gastrointestinal cancer.

If you’re a mechanic, there is no way for you to know ahead of time if the truck or car you are working on contains asbestos. The best approach – treat every brake job or clutch project as if asbestos is involved. Don’t forget that when asbestos is released, not only you, but also everyone in the shop can be affected.

Employers have a responsibility as well. OSHA regulations require that affected industries must develop a plan for safe handling of asbestos. That plan must be written down. Employees must be trained to use the plan, and must follow through after the training.

Here are a series of practical steps that can be taken to exposure of employees to the hazards of asbestos. Wet down the asbestos to help keep particles from becoming airborne. Put the material in well-marked and tightly sealed bags for storage. Use a negative pressure enclosure/HEPA vacuum system approach and the low pressure/wet cleaning technique. The last two are “best practices,” according to OSHA, and recommended by the agency, although the wet method is allowed only for shops that do 5 clutch and/or brake jobs a week.

Most newer trucks and cars do not contain asbestos. But if you’re a home mechanic, OSHA recommends saving the brake jobs and clutch work to professional mechanics.

Asbestos is often considered a past problem rather than a present one. The material is banned from newer buildings and has been removed from most older ones.

Would you know what to do if an influenza pandemic were to occur? If such an outbreak were to occur, and according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration there is no sign of a flu pandemic, you can protect yourself by doing many of the things you do to protect yourself from the seasonal flu.

An influenza pandemic is much different than the common seasonal flu so many experience during the fall and winter months. This type of flu is not a major threat because most healthy people have developed the antibodies to fight it. Only the elderly, those with compromised immune systems like HIV, and children are at risk of dying from a common seasonal flu.

A recent Washington OSHA alert warns that a pandemic occurs when a new strain of the virus appears. Since no one has had a chance to develop antibodies, many people end up dying. This is what happened from 1918 to 1920 where more than 50 million people died within 18 months during the Spanish Flu.

The Spanish Flu, named so because of the exposure it received in Spanish newspapers, first appeared at a military base in Kansas and spread globally from there. Wartime newspaper censorship prevented most newspapers, except the Spanish newspapers, from publishing many stories about the flu. Reports stated that even healthy young adults died within days of getting the virus.

Keeping yourself healthy during a pandemic involves the same precautions you’d take when protecting yourself against the seasonal flu.

• Cover your mouth when coughing.
• Wash hands frequently or use hand sanitizer
• Stay home if you’re sick
• Stay at least 6 feet away from infected people

The last major influenza outbreak occurred between 1918 and 1920 and killed more than 50 million people, many of who were healthy young adults. This pandemic was called the Spanish Flu because it received so much coverage in the Spanish press.