AK STEEL: Temporary replacement worker (Scab) dies in AK accident

[JesterCS]

http://www.middletownjournal.com/news/content/news/stories/2006/05/05/mj050506AKAccident.html

A temporary replacement worker died Thursday night from injuries he suffered after he “was struck by a moving piece of coke plant equipment,” at AK Steel Middletown Works, the steelmaker said.

The incident occurred at about 6:30 p.m., said Alan McCoy, an AK Steel spokesman.

Middletown firefighters were called to the plant to set up a landing zone for the medical helicopter, which took the injured worker to Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton. He died en route to the hospital.

AK Steel is investigating the accident. McCoy said the employer of the temporary replacement worker was in the process of notifying the worker’s family members.

[OKNancy]

1. JesterCS - please edit your post

We need a link for the story, and also copyright rules state no more than four paragraphs should be copied and pasted.

Thank you
OKNancy
LBN Moderator

[JesterCS]

2. Fixed and kick n/t

[Dogmudgeon]

3. A "scab"?

Let's not become like the Republicans who dehumanize people and take all events personally.

He may have disrespected a union picket line, but that's not a death-penalty offense. Sadly, he has become an object lesson. A fellow working man, acting out of ignorance, paid the ultimate price for siding with the Boss in a dangerous and exploitative jobsite. This should be an occasion for sorrow for all those who work in dangerous and poorly-paid jobs without a safety system in place, or even legal protection.

Sure, he wasn't exactly Joe Hill. Just Joe Anybody -- and as far as management was concerned, Joe Nobody.

--p!
Known only to God ...

[jukes]

5. but, he was a scab

time-honored union phrase. i saw *nothing* disrespectful in the OP, and certainly nothing to indicate that the OP felt the man deserved death or punishment.

*my* read of the comment was, "if you use scab labor, expect them to be untrained y expect accidents".


i think any modern union person wd expect this take, y the use of a validated lable is acceptable.

[cmd]

6. He crossed the line

On the day he crossed, he bacame a scab. Union firefighters did their best to save him. AK, it appears, didn't even face the responsiblity of notifying the family. They left that to the firm they subcontracted with. Unions only work when workers stick together. Scab workers work at their own risk. Too bad. However, those are the facts.

[Xithras]

8. Like the saying goes...

If there's still enough rope to hang yourself with, or a puddle deep enough to drown yourself in, there's NO excuse for becoming a scab. He's NOT a "fellow working man". He shoved a knife in the back of his fellow working men when he took their jobs and took the food from the mouths of the working mens children. Scabs prolong strikes, which directly hurt the strikers. No pity, no empathy, no forgiveness.

Maybe this guys death will convince the other scabs that they shouldn't be working there.

[brentspeak]

13. Good grief

Speaking as someone who's staunchly pro-union, your post is a disgrace.

RIP, accident victim.

[doc03]

10. A steel mill is dangerous work, it is not a( poorly-paid job)

and the Union requires a safety program. I would guess a Steelworker would be in the upper 20% income level of DU. The people that were locked out probably had 25 years average experience and know the dangers of the workplace and that is why they are paid more than the average manufacturing wage. The SCABS that are replacing them were willing to take another mans livelihood off of him and accept the dangers of the workplace. A Scab is another tool the Republicans have been using to drive wages down in America. I personally know one of the scabs at AK, the guy is the typical Republican bigot, Union hater and guess what a pro-life pro-war Christian Bush voter.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

14. As a one-time Steelworker union rep I have NO respect for scabs

My sympathies to the man's family, but he was obviously not trained to be doing what he was doing. That's one reasons unions exist- to assure proper training for complex jobs.

[AngryOldDem]

16. Sounded like long hours contributed to this, too

Local media had an interview with a steelworker (think he is striking) who basically said inexperience and long hours make for a deadly mix.

Second incident in -- what? -- a month?

[hedgehog]

4. This is a typical contemporary steel mill fatality

The process is generally well controlled so explosions and spills are relatively rare. Most people who die in a mill get struck by moving equipment. You have to learn what equipment moves, what paths it takes and what to watch for so you don't walk under a loaded crane or in front of a truck. Some equipment moves automatically, and you have to be aware of that, too. You learn never to walk where something can swing around and pin you to the wall.

When a new person comes to work, the rest of the crew is keeping a special eye out for a couple of days because they know the hazards. Having an entire crew of new people is just asking for trouble.

I was through two strikes at the mill where I worked.* What I saw management do while showing the union guys that supervisors could run the mill without them was criminal.


*(Salaried people are required to cross the lines or lose their jobs. Even though I worked during the strike, I evidently didn't show enough team spirit as I was systematically ostracized and then laid off shortly after.))

[FreakinDJ]

7. Another GOOD reason for UNIONS

Unions have been at the forefront of worker safty for many years.

You look at some of the worst violators of worker safty (texas) and you will never see Union membership

[Blue Diadem]

9. AK Steel better wake up..this is accident # 2 in a very short time

except this time the poor guy died.

Wonder when they'll figure out it's better to have their "old" workers in there instead of locking them out, bringing in new people and having these accidents.

[SidDithers]

11. Does OSHA issue fines in a situation like this?...

In Canada, our Ministry of Labour would be all over this company like stink on a monkey, and AK would be facing significant fines. Also, management, and potentially even corporate directors, could face personal liability and criminal charges.

Similar regs in the US?

Sid

[doc03]

12. Yes OSHA has fines, but it may not be the company's

fault, there are accidents in a steel mill you accept that when you go to work in a steel mill. You could have the best safety program on earth and still have accidents. It may have been human error since he was an inexperienced scab worker. I have heard AK steel does have a very bad safety record compared to the rest of the industry. AK also has a very bad history with labor relations.

[Prisoner_Number_Six]

15. OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Adminstration) had their

teeth pulled years ago. They're basically useless these days.

[WhiteTara]

17. He didn't know the routine and how the

machines cycled. Probably just management left, and they know very little about actual operations. That is a tragedy of union busting.