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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 2021)
PAGE 10 | January 1, 2021 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS BUILDING COMMUNITY Unions step up in SW Washington to help elderly this holiday Southwest Washington labor groups took part in their annual holiday donation to Meals on Wheels through the Lower Co- lumbia Community Action program (CAP ). Meals on Wheels delivers food to homebound and disabled seniors. This year, labor groups raised $9,135, enough to purchase 7,035 pounds of ham from union grocer Cascade Select Market in Castle Rock. For the past decade, the building trades council has teamed up with Cowlitz-Wahkiakum Central Labor Council and its affiliated union locals to raise money to buy food for the program. “It took four trucks and a large covered trailer to transport all that holiday cheer from the store to the CAP crew, who will get the food out to those in our commu- nity that need it most,” said Mike Bridges, president of the Longview/ Kelso Building Trades Council. “This beat last year’s donation by five thousand dollars,”said Bridges, who also is a union rep for IBEW Local 48. “I’m so proud of all the unions in our commu- nity. They really kicked it up a notch in a tough year.” Donating this year were Plumbers and Fitters Local 26, IBEW Local 48, Oper- ating Engineers Local 701, Boilermakers Local 502, Laborers Local 335, Iron Workers Local 29, Sheet Metal Workers Local 66, Insulators Local 36, IAM- Woodworkers Local 536, Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers Local 633, and Northwest Innovations Works. Union volunteers included Mike Bridges, president of the Longview/Kelso Building Trades Council; Tara McElligot, pres- ident of the Cowlitz/Wahkiakum Labor Council; Tracey Eixenburger, business manager of Boilermakers Local 502; Justin Sellers of Laborers Local 335; Tom Wishard of Operating Engineers Local 701; Adam Davis and Cameran Wilinson of Plumbers and Fitters Local 26; and Evan Lovingfoss of AWPPW. Julie McIvor of Northwest Innovations also volunteered. DOL: Work-related deaths on the rise WASHINGTON, D.C. (PAI)— 5,333 workers died from on-the- job injuries in 2019, a 2% increase from the year prior and the highest figure since 2007. The annual re- port was released Dec. 16 by the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics. The 2019 rate of fatal occupational job injuries was 3.5 per 100,000 workers. Construction and trucking again had the most fatal occupa- tional injuries last year, the report said. There were 1,005 fatalities among truckers and related driv- ers, a new record since DOL started collecting that data in 2003. And 1,061 construction workers were fatally injured on the job, a 5% increase and the highest num- ber since 2007. BLS said 2,005 workers aged 55 or older died last year, an 8% increase from 1,863 in 2018—and a new record in absolute numbers. Under the Trump Administra- tion, the U.S. has seen declining enforcement of safety by DOL’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and revocation of prior OSHA rules protecting workers. Bethany Sherer 971.978.9534 12/31/20 2020
