The Pump Handle
Liz Borkowski
Paid sick leave: Setback in Philly, progress elsewhere
Posted by Liz Borkowski on April 12, 2013 Although Philadelphia’s City Council fell one vote short of overriding a veto of the city’s paid sick leave bill, paid sick leave efforts are gaining steam nationwide.
Occupational Health News Roundup
Posted by Liz Borkowski on April 11, 2013 Wage theft, employee misclassification, and unsafe workplaces are alarmingly common in the Texas construction industry; the Philadelphia City Council fails to override a veto of a paid sick leave law; and immigrant workers in the US with temporary visas face uncertainty.
Court overturns Obama administration’s Plan B age limit
Posted by Liz Borkowski on April 9, 2013 The court decision striking down age restrictions for non-prescription sale of emergency contraceptives is good news for public health — and, let’s hope, the end of a long and disturbing episode in the history of US contraceptives.
When nerve-damaging glue is disabling workers, what can OSHA do?
Posted by Liz Borkowski on April 2, 2013 The New York Times explores the plight of furniture workers disabled by exposure to a neurotoxicant glue. Why hasn’t OSHA put a stop to this?
More excellent reporting on grain bins and temporary workers
Posted by Liz Borkowski on March 28, 2013 Reporters from the Center for Public Integrity, NPR, and WBEZ are producing excellent, in-depth stories on the circumstances and aftermaths of worker deaths in grain bins and at temporary worksites.
“The one kid who survived actually saw his friends die”: Report on grain bin deaths
Posted by Liz Borkowski on March 26, 2013 NPR and the Center for Public Integrity have teamed up to produce an excellent and chilling series of stories about workers suffocated to death in grain bins — a major and well-known hazard in agriculture.
World Water Day 2013: International Water Cooperation
Posted by Liz Borkowski on March 22, 2013 Today is World Water Day, and this year the celebration focuses on The Year of International Water Cooperation. UN Water reminds us that rivers often flow through multiple countries, and actions by one country or community can affect their neighbors’ ability to meet their water needs.
Advancing paid sick leave laws – from Portland to the US Congress
Posted by Liz Borkowski on March 21, 2013 As the list of US jurisdictions with paid sick leave laws gets longer, members of Congress introduce a bill that would require paid sick leave nationwide.
Occupational Health News Roundup
Posted by Liz Borkowski on March 19, 2013 President Obama nominates Thomas E. Perez for Secretary of Labor; a new study finds that Camp Lejeune water supplies had even more contamination that previously reported; and temp workers in China face worse conditions than permanent employees.
Trains, Transit, and Public Health
Posted by Liz Borkowski on March 15, 2013 If you’ve followed the link from the New York Times Magazine’s letters page, welcome to The Pump Handle!