The Pennsylvania State House Labor and Industry Committee successfully voted House Bill 299, the Jake Schwab Worker Safety Bill, out of committee. This Bill would finally grant public sector workers the OSHA-style safety and health protections they deserve.
More than half a million public employees in Pennsylvania are not covered by OSHA. Most people have no idea that the federal OSHA Act does not cover state, county, and municipal employees. Individual states must pass legislation to provide them with the same protections, and more than 25 states already have. Unfortunately, Pennsylvania is not one of them.
Our union movement has been fighting for these protections for years. This bill is named for Jake Schwab, an ATU union mechanic in Erie public transit, who lost his life on the job when his work equipment failed. The General Assembly has never held a vote on the issue. Today’s vote was an incredibly important first step in our fight to get you and hundreds of thousands of colleagues the workplace protections you deserve.
Here’s how you can help:
Email and call your Pennsylvania State House Representative. Tell them to call for a full House vote on House Bill 299 as soon as possible and urge them to vote YES on House Bill 299.
Email your legislators here.
Look up your legislator’s phone number here.
Visit them! Your House Reps are in Harrisburg until Wednesday and back in their District on Thursday, so drop by their office at the end of the week and tell them how important workplace safety and health protection are to you and your colleagues.
The more our House Representatives hear from us, the better chance we have of getting this bill across the finish line. As union members, we know we can win when we work together. No matter what district you live in, please take the time to reach out to your House Representative and share any responses you may receive with us at local668@seiu668.org, which will help us advocate effectively. Your voice is critical to this fight.
Email and call your legislator and tell them to advocate for HB 299, the Jake Schwab Worker Safety Bill, to be brought to the House floor and vote YES.
