Worker Safety

1
Worker Safety

• Do workers have a right to a reasonably safe work
  environment?
• What does that right entail?
• What mechanisms are available to ensure that this
  right is protected?

2
Right to worker safety

• OSHA right to safe and healthful working
  conditions and workplaces that are free of known
  dangers. http//www.osha.gov/Publications/osha302
  1.pdf

3
Mechanisms to protect right to safety

• In house compliance efforts
• Moral Persuasion
• Professional Codes
• Union contracts
• Regulatory agencies
• Regulations
• Oversight
• Enforcement
• Criminal law
• Civil law

4
In House Compliance

• 4 Elements of Ethics Compliance
• Element 1 Risk Assessment
• Element 2 Corporate Culture
• Element 3 Oversight by the Board and Senior
  Management
• Element 4 The Ethics and Compliance Office

5
Moral persuasion and professional codes

• Moral persuasion
• Moral persuasion can be used to build coalitions
  and provide pressure on both offending
  organizations and political bodies.
• Professional codes
• Professional organizations can use their
  educational and enforcement powers to motivate
  compliance with safety guidelines.

6
Regulatory Agencies

• OSHA
• Cal OSHA
• California workers have the right to a safe
  workplace and a number of other more specific
  rights under the California Occupational Safety
  and Health Act. http//www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/Worker
  sRights.htm

7
Legal Remedies

• Criminal law
• Corporations, and individuals within
  corporations, can be prosecuted under the
  criminal law for many safety violations.
• Civil law
• Organizations can be sued for injuries and
  illness caused by safety violations.
• Administrative law
• Regulations and enforcement available under OSHA
  and CalOSHA

8
When Remedies Fail

• Failure of internal compliance
• Moral persuasion not backed up with enforcement
• Professional codes weak, spotty enforcement

9
When Remedies Fail

• Regulatory agencies understaffed, insufficient
  penalties
• Criminal enforcement spotty, weak penalties
• Civil lawsuits not an option if one uses workers
  compensation system

10
Union Contracts

• Definitions of safety
• Oversight
• Safety Committees
• Independent monitoring
• Accompany OSHA inspectors
• Member education
• Enforcement mechanisms
• Investigate complaints
• File grievance

11
Should we allow unions?

• Utilitarianism
• Social utility
• yes--better working conditions
• no--higher cost of doing business.
• Kant
• Treating workers as ends in themselves
• Moral rights
• Rights that are asserted
• To association, to safety
• To property

12
Should we allow unions?

• Virtue
• Fairness, loyalty
• Care
• Seeing employees as members of community
• Basic justice
• Protection from arbitrary power, democracy,
  liberty of association

13
National Labor Relations Act

• Protects employee rights to
• Form, join, decertify or assist a union
• Bargain collectively through such a union
• Refrain from joining a union
• Team up with other employees to improve working
  conditions without a union

14
NLRB

• Forbids employers and unions from
• Interfering with their employees right
• to form, join or assist a union
• to refrain from union activities
• to team up with other workers informally to
  improve terms and conditions of work
• https//www.nlrb.gov/rights-we-protect