Labor Unions and Similar Labor Organizations

NarrativeEmployee working on a ladder was knocked off and landed in a pile of construction debris. Employee sustaineda broken collarbone, eye socket, and skull.

NarrativeAt approximately 4:00 p.m. on December 29, 2009, Employee #1 and Employee #2, bo th labor relations representatives, were loading desks and attempting to tie the m down in a truck. Both men were working together to move these desks to another office in Bakersfield. Their employer was part of an international labor union, Labor International, called Laborers Southwest Regional Organizing Coalition. E mployee #1 had four years of experience as a labor organizer, and his normal dut ies are talking to contractors and laborers in agriculture and in construction. While loading the desks and trying to tie them down, he tripped on a desk, fell off the tailgate of the truck, hit the pavement, and fractured his right wrist. The height of the truck's tailgate was estimated to be about 30 in. to the pavem ent. Employee #1 suffered a compound fracture, which required surgery and a hosp ital stay of four days. Both employees were provided safety training and orienta tion. They emphasized that since they were union organizers, they actively parti cipated in many training activities with the labor force on a weekly basis.