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March 30, 2005
Spanish Speaking Construction Workers Have Someone In Their Corner for Safety
Spanish Speaking Construction Workers can work safer thanks to assistance from Maria Isabel O'Connell, Bilingual Safety Consultant and trainer. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Hispanics suffer a higher injury and fatality rate in construction. Well known safety activist is changing this dynamic by assisting workers on construction projects, arrive home safely each day.
SAN JOSÉ, CA (PRWEB) March 30, 2005 -- The high accident rate among U.S. Hispanic Construction Workers is beginning to change thanks to the actions of Maria Isabel O’Connell, of SAFETRAN, LLC. The well known Bilingual safety consultant and workplace activist will ensure Latinos arrive home safely everyday. You’ll often find Maria out on the jobsite with her workers on bridge, highway, pipeline and general construction projects throughout the Bay Area and Central California.
Originally from Guadalupe Victoria, Mexico, this hardworking safety activist concentrates on getting the “Safety Message Out” to all her workers. Holding impromptu safety meetings in Spanish, she translates OSHA regulations, and common sense safety rules to workers in the field. The recent catastrophic loss of life from a pipeline explosion in Walnut Creek shows how important OSHA safety training in Spanish is for our industry.
SAFETRAN is cosignatory to the United Brotherhood of Carpenters (UBC), and Maria and team tells workers everyday, “Don’t forget, safety is first and your family depends on you working safe everyday.” She also has a message for company owners about their commitment to safety and says, “How can companies expect their workers to understand hazards on the job and protect themselves, if we speak to them in a foreign tongue?” It is time that safety training be language specific, as evidences by Federal OSHA’s Spanish Language website.
-Federal OSHA Spanish Language Site
http://www.osha.gov/as/opa/spanish/index.html
-National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) (Spanish)
http://www.cdc.gov/spanish/niosh/
Maria and her team have recently begun a new initiative to bring desperately needed safety training to Day Workers in San Rafael, San José and Watsonville. Armed with hardhats, safety glasses, and Spanish Language training materials Maria will certify and safety train workers left out of traditional training resources.
By Fernando Juan Ocano / Strategic Pipeline Safety Consortium (SPSC) (510) 687-1740.
Posted by Industrial-Manufacturing at March 30, 2005 03:22 AM