For Immediate Release
Monday, July 16, 2001
Bush Administration Stalling on Ergonomics, AFSCME Expert Testifies
Washington, DC —In holding more forums on ergonomics injuries, the Bush Department of Labor is mocking years of careful research and public input on the issue and further delaying much-needed corrective measures, an expert for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO, testified today at the first of these hearings.
James August, director of AFSCME's occupational health and safety program and an authority on ergonomics issues, also chastised the Administration for paying more attention to representatives of industry, who pushed successfully for repeal of the existing ergonomics standard, than the millions of workers who suffer daily from painful repetitive motion injuries.
"By creating the illusion of ignorance and stacking the deck in favor of industry representatives and their concerns, these public forums serve as a smokescreen for the Administration to avoid taking any action required to protect workers," Mr. August testified.
Industry representatives were well-represented at the forum held at George Mason University in Virginia, the first of three on ergonomics issues scheduled around the country by the Labor Department. But over 100 unions and affected workers who asked to testify were turned down, which provided additional motivation for hundreds of protestors to rally outside the auditorium.
The outgoing Clinton administration issued the new OSHA Ergonomics Standard following a promise to do so one decade ago by then-Secretary of Labor Elizabeth Dole, thousands of scientific studies that reached similar conclusions, and two months of public input. This rule would have prevented hundreds of thousands of painful and disabling back injuries, carpal tunnel syndrome, and other musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) that cost the U.S. economy an estimated $50 billion each year.
Yet despite this long and thorough investigation, the Bush administration and its allies in Congress used an unprecedented legal maneuver to repeal the rule in March. As a result, over 500,000 more workers have already fallen prey to repetitive-strain injuries.
"To pretend that not enough is known about MSDs to issue a strong ergonomics standard ignores the reality of the workplace and workers' expectations of justice," Mr. August said, adding that most of AFSCME's 1.3 million members work for state and local governments or health care employers and suffer disproportionately from lost work time caused by severe MSDs.
The remaining forums will be held July 20 in Chicago and July 24 in Palo Alto, California.
