PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Michael Tracey, Vice President of Uniformed Fire Officers Association, on Intro 865
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121 sec
Michael Tracey, Vice President of the Uniformed Fire Officers Association, testifies in support of Intro 865, which would create an online public database of workplace fatalities in NYC. He explains that while firefighters have resources to track and prevent work-related illnesses and injuries, many other workers do not, and this bill would provide a valuable tool for protecting all workers.
- Tracey emphasizes the UFOA's solidarity with the broader labor movement and their desire to support safety measures for all workers.
- He notes that firefighters often respond to workplace accidents involving unprotected workers in various industries.
- The UFOA believes a central repository for monitoring workplace dangers could help reduce injuries and risks for both workers and first responders.
Michael Tracey
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Good morning to the committee.
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Chairman Chairman, Counselwoman Dale Rosa, deputy majority leader, Farius, and thank you for bringing this great idea to a hearing.
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My name is Michael Tracy, the vice president of the Uniform Fire Offices Association, proud member of the AFL CIO and the CLC.
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We represent over 2000 lieutenants, captains, battalions, and deputy chiefs who run into fires each day in this city and we come to you today to support intro 865.
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Perhaps you are asking yourself why a firefighter union will come down here today to speak in support.
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While we lose about 1 FDNY member a week to a death linked to the hazards of firefighting and exposure at the World Trade Center site.
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We also have the resources to track, treat, and prevent the illnesses and injuries we sustain in our workplace.
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We have the 911 health watch tracking illnesses, an international organization that tracks firefighter injuries, presumptive bills in Albany, and our own committee here in the council where we can raise our own health and safety issues.
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It is be precisely because of these resources that we come to speak in support of this bill today.
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While we of course fight for the specific hazards facing firefighters and fire officers, we refuse to pull the ladder up behind us.
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We are part of the labor movement We respect the hard work and dignity of all workers.
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We believe these workers should be protected from unscrupulous employers, and we believe this council can offer tools for protection to protect these workers.
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This bill before us today is one of those tools.
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Union firefighters are intimately aware of the hazards these workers face.
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We respond on the scene when unprotected construction workers fall into confined spaces and when a delivery is hit by a car.
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A central repository to monitor and track these dangers that these workers face is a common sense tool that can perhaps reduce the injuries we see in the field on a daily basis and reduce our risk as well.
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It is for these reasons that the UFOA supports the worker fatality Bill, intro 865.
0:28:00
Thank you for your time today.
