Inside the Danger Zone

Every day AFSCME members put their lives and their health on the line. They work in tunnels, on bridges, on highways; they expose themselves to disease, to the elements, to violent clients; they work with their minds, to be sure, but the burden of their work all too often wears on their backs and their hands.

These workers, dependable and uncelebrated, do the unpleasant, dirty and dangerous work that keeps our lives running smoothly. Thanks to them, we can rely upon the roads we travel, the hospitals that treat us, the parks and zoos we enjoy.

They care for us but who cares for them?

Workers and their unions pressured the federal government to create the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in 1970. But over 8 million public employees in 27 states do not have federally approved OSHA programs. Is it any wonder, then, that the National Safety Council reports that public employees are twice as likely to be killed or seriously injured on the job as other workers? Last year over 600 public workers lost their lives on the job and some 550,000 suffered severe injuries.

Labor photographer Earl Dotter has recorded the lives of brave working people for over 25 years, frequently exposing himself to many of the same risks they themselves face. Dotter explains that he tries to "put a human face on the pervasive problems of workplace health and safety." His award-winning photographs not only illustrate the dangers workers experience every day but capture their dignity as well.

The following photographs pay tribute to our courageous AFSCME members and show why an active union and strong federal oversight are as important as ever: They can make the difference between health and sickness, between life and death.

By Alison S. Lebwohl

Marie Carmel-Bernard and Franklin Gray, Jr., laundry workers
Elain Jones, road worker
Gen Lustfield, snowplow driver
Jimmy Rhynes, sanitation worker
Richard Todd, bridge inspector
Tammy Sperle, prison employee
Joanne Ames, corrections officer