OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH

WHEREAS, the AFT represents members who confront myriad work-related hazards in:

• schools¾where teachers, paraprofessionals, office workers, maintenance personnel, food service workers and school bus drivers are commonly exposed to indoor air pollution, communicable diseases such as tuberculosis, asbestos, radon, pesticides, lead in paint and drinking water, dangerous chemicals in duplicating fluids, art materials and science reagents, antiquated and unsafe equipment, deteriorating physical plants; and

• public agencies and corrections facilities where employees must cope with abusive and violent clientele, poor working conditions and ventilation, exposure to communicable diseases such as tuberculosis and inadequate staffing levels; and

• office buildings where employees confront inadequate ventilation, friable asbestos as well as poorly designed video-display terminal work stations, poor security measures; and

• public maintenance facilities¾such as bus barns or garages¾that present the potential of heat stress, chronic musculoskeletal injury and of exposure to dangerous chemicals in addition to the hazards of poorly maintained equipment and operations; and

• health care facilities-where nurses, medical technologists, respiratory therapists and other professionals must contend with blood-borne diseases such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease, and hepatitis B and C; disabling back injury and other ergonomic strain; aerosolized drugs, such as pentamidine; unsafe needles and sharps; ionizing radiation; anti-neoplastic drugs; patient abuse; waste anesthetic gases; and

WHEREAS, AFT members have generally been required to shoulder more job responsibilities in an environment of shrinking resources and, therefore, are at greater risk of cardiovascular disease and other conditions associated with work-related stress; and

WHEREAS, AFT members in Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Dakota, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Texas, West Virginia and Wisconsin are denied full and comprehensive coverage under a federally approved state OSHA plan; and

WHEREAS, AFT members in federally approved OSHA plan states are often inadequately protected:

RESOLVED, that the American Federation of Teachers urge Congress to enact the Comprehensive Occupational Safety and Health Reform Act (H.R. 3160 and S. 1622) so that at a minimum OSHA protection is guaranteed to all public employees, joint labor-management worksite programs are established, and the OSHA rulemaking process is expedited; and

RESOLVED, that the American Federation of Teachers urge OSHA and the Department of Transportation to promulgate a motor vehicle standard that: (1) sets a minimum standard for school buses; (2) provides training for school bus drivers on checking school bus mechanical systems; and (3) permits drivers to refuse to drive dangerous and unsafe vehicles.