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CWA, OSHA Probe Death at Texas Plant
An IUE-CWA member in San Antonio died Oct. 20 when he was crushed by the forklift he was operating at Newell Recycling. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating, as is the union.
Alejandro Gonzales, 39, who was married and the stepfather to three children, had worked at the company for 11 months. He was a member of Local 86780, which represents about a dozen workers at the scrap metal recycling center.
Charlie Barrett, CWA representative for occupational health and safety, said Gonzales was trying to remove some stray copper wire caught in an axle of the forklift. To do so, he had to raise the forklift and apparently had moved it onto a railroad tie and wood support.
"It's still not totally clear how everything happened," said Barrett, who went to San Antonio to investigate. "He was underneath the forklift, trying to remove some wire and it came down on his chest."
He said the incident happened in the afternoon while Gonzales was alone in the shop, where people and companies bring scrap metal to be crushed, bundled and sold for recycling.
The company, which could faces citations and fines depending on the outcome of the OSHA investigation, has generally been cooperating with the union and the federal agency, Barrett said.
Local 86780 President Rene Rodriguez said the death was a blow, coming just two days after the local buried another member. Kevin Eldridge, a young father, died in his sleep of apparent natural causes.
Though Gonzales hadn't worked at the plant long, he was well liked. "The guys who work around him seem very stunned and hurt by his loss," Rodriguez said.
Alejandro Gonzales, 39, who was married and the stepfather to three children, had worked at the company for 11 months. He was a member of Local 86780, which represents about a dozen workers at the scrap metal recycling center.
Charlie Barrett, CWA representative for occupational health and safety, said Gonzales was trying to remove some stray copper wire caught in an axle of the forklift. To do so, he had to raise the forklift and apparently had moved it onto a railroad tie and wood support.
"It's still not totally clear how everything happened," said Barrett, who went to San Antonio to investigate. "He was underneath the forklift, trying to remove some wire and it came down on his chest."
He said the incident happened in the afternoon while Gonzales was alone in the shop, where people and companies bring scrap metal to be crushed, bundled and sold for recycling.
The company, which could faces citations and fines depending on the outcome of the OSHA investigation, has generally been cooperating with the union and the federal agency, Barrett said.
Local 86780 President Rene Rodriguez said the death was a blow, coming just two days after the local buried another member. Kevin Eldridge, a young father, died in his sleep of apparent natural causes.
Though Gonzales hadn't worked at the plant long, he was well liked. "The guys who work around him seem very stunned and hurt by his loss," Rodriguez said.