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OSHA Investigation Underway at Helena Labs
Exposure to hepatitis and the HIV virus. Constant skin irritation from contact with blood products and acids. Dangerous levels of mercury in the air. Blood wastes dumped into the public sewage system.
It took a strike by members of CWA Local 6139 to expose these and other deadly working conditions at Helena Laboratories in Beaumont, Texas.
But after examining the complaints and charges of workers about unsafe conditions at the plant, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration took immediate action, stepping in for a surprise investigation, then spending a day interviewing workers and scheduling air monitoring.
Workers cited skin irritations, respiratory diseases, discolored building walls, the dumping of toxic wastes into common sinks and other concerns in their original OSHA complaint. OSHA now is determining the number and level of violations Helena Labs has committed; meanwhile, the Environ-mental Protection Agency is investigating whether the company’s discharge of mercury and other toxins is endangering the community as well.
Among the hazards uncovered by the OSHA investigation:
Workers routinely become coated with blood-borne, hazardous materials, resulting in contamination, skin irritation and possible exposure to HIV and hepatitis. The paper gowns and masks supplied by the company become saturated with blood and are ineffective.
Bio-waste has been poured into common sinks, possibly contaminating the public water and sewage system.
Asbestos floor tile was removed from the lunchroom while workers were eating, exposing them to a known cancer-causing substance.
Workers in the bio-chem labs and the coloscreen work area have no protection against splashes and spills.
Workers are exposed to dozens of dangerous chemicals, known to cause birth defects and cancers, yet Helena doesn’t provide adequate protection.
Helena Labs manufactures medical diagnostic equipment, including blood screening devices and other equipment sold to Veterans’ Hospitals and other agencies. Some 250 CWA members have been on strike since Dec. 2, fighting for fair wages, health insurance and retirement security.
Meanwhile, support for the Helena workers continues to build. At a community rally, CWA Vice President Ben Turn urged strikers to stand strong.
Helena pays substandard wages and benefits, but at the same time it wildly inflates the prices it charges for its products, Turn said. Many of our members at Helena will not benefit from the equipment they produce, because they can’t afford the health insurance premiums, he said. "We’re staying in this fight for fairness," Turn stressed.
At a news conference announcing CWA’s media campaign in the Beaumont area, religious leaders, representatives of the NAACP, elected officials and Helena workers told reporters that Helena earns millions in government contracts while paying most workers wages so low that they must apply for Medicaid, food stamps and other government assistance. Many Helena employees work two jobs just to support their families.
Mary Deem and Ron Ladwig are two Helena workers featured in radio spots that were aired in the Beaumont area over a two-week period. Ladwig, a lab technician, told listeners he was in this fight because "Helena Labs just doesn’t pay enough for me to do right by my family." While working full time for Helena, Ron even got a second job.
Deem is a single mom with three sons who works in literature services. She says it’s wrong when a billion-dollar business can pay bottom dollar wages without decent health benefits.
Joining the Beaumont workers were Rev. Sinclair Oubre, diocesan director; Rev. G.W. Daniels, president of the Ministerial Alliance, SE Texas; Pastor Brent Sparks; Jefferson County Commissioner Ed Moore; and Raymond Scott and Amos Evans, NAACP.
Helena so far is sticking to a wage and benefit proposal that would give workers a paltry increase of 17 cents an hour and an additional $30 a year toward health insurance premiums, said CWA Representative Andy Milburn.
Currently, workers who need family health coverage must pay an additional $326 a month. But the company has become a billion-dollar operation, with eight foreign subsidiaries.
CWA International Affairs Director Eduardo Diaz has been working with unions in the other countries where Helena operates to bring additional pressure on Helena management to settle the strike.
It took a strike by members of CWA Local 6139 to expose these and other deadly working conditions at Helena Laboratories in Beaumont, Texas.
But after examining the complaints and charges of workers about unsafe conditions at the plant, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration took immediate action, stepping in for a surprise investigation, then spending a day interviewing workers and scheduling air monitoring.
Workers cited skin irritations, respiratory diseases, discolored building walls, the dumping of toxic wastes into common sinks and other concerns in their original OSHA complaint. OSHA now is determining the number and level of violations Helena Labs has committed; meanwhile, the Environ-mental Protection Agency is investigating whether the company’s discharge of mercury and other toxins is endangering the community as well.
Among the hazards uncovered by the OSHA investigation:
Helena Labs manufactures medical diagnostic equipment, including blood screening devices and other equipment sold to Veterans’ Hospitals and other agencies. Some 250 CWA members have been on strike since Dec. 2, fighting for fair wages, health insurance and retirement security.
Meanwhile, support for the Helena workers continues to build. At a community rally, CWA Vice President Ben Turn urged strikers to stand strong.
Helena pays substandard wages and benefits, but at the same time it wildly inflates the prices it charges for its products, Turn said. Many of our members at Helena will not benefit from the equipment they produce, because they can’t afford the health insurance premiums, he said. "We’re staying in this fight for fairness," Turn stressed.
At a news conference announcing CWA’s media campaign in the Beaumont area, religious leaders, representatives of the NAACP, elected officials and Helena workers told reporters that Helena earns millions in government contracts while paying most workers wages so low that they must apply for Medicaid, food stamps and other government assistance. Many Helena employees work two jobs just to support their families.
Mary Deem and Ron Ladwig are two Helena workers featured in radio spots that were aired in the Beaumont area over a two-week period. Ladwig, a lab technician, told listeners he was in this fight because "Helena Labs just doesn’t pay enough for me to do right by my family." While working full time for Helena, Ron even got a second job.
Deem is a single mom with three sons who works in literature services. She says it’s wrong when a billion-dollar business can pay bottom dollar wages without decent health benefits.
Joining the Beaumont workers were Rev. Sinclair Oubre, diocesan director; Rev. G.W. Daniels, president of the Ministerial Alliance, SE Texas; Pastor Brent Sparks; Jefferson County Commissioner Ed Moore; and Raymond Scott and Amos Evans, NAACP.
Helena so far is sticking to a wage and benefit proposal that would give workers a paltry increase of 17 cents an hour and an additional $30 a year toward health insurance premiums, said CWA Representative Andy Milburn.
Currently, workers who need family health coverage must pay an additional $326 a month. But the company has become a billion-dollar operation, with eight foreign subsidiaries.
CWA International Affairs Director Eduardo Diaz has been working with unions in the other countries where Helena operates to bring additional pressure on Helena management to settle the strike.