Unions to remember fallen workers at memorial service in Salem

The Oregon AFL-CIO will hold a memorial service at the Fallen Workers Memorial at noon Wednesday, April 28 —Workers Memorial Day.

The Fallen Workers Memorial is located on the Capitol Mall in Salem near the main entrance of the Labor and Industries Building, 350 Winter St. NE.

Gov. Ted Kulongoski has issued a proclamation declaring April 28 Workers Memorial Day in Oregon.

The memorial service will include the reading of the names of the 58 Oregon workers killed on the job in 2009, as well as the eight Oregon soldiers killed in military service last year. (A list of those names appears on Pages 8 and 9 of this issue.)

The Oregon AFL-CIO also is asking union members to make arrangements with their employers to observe a moment of silence that day.

Additionally, on Monday, April 26, the Northwest Oregon Labor Council will hold a memorial service at its monthly delegates’ meeting, as will the the Lane County Labor Council on April 28.

Michael Wood, administrator for the Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration, is scheduled to speak at the NOLC meeting, which also will include a presentation of colors by the Oregon Military Funeral Honors Program. The meeting starts at 7 p.m. at the IBEW Local 48 Hall, 15937 NE Airport Way, Portland.

Workers Memorial Day was enacted by the AFL-CIO in 1989 to remember workers killed or injured on the job. April 28 was chosen because it is the anniversary of the creation of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and the day of a similar remembrance in Canada.

Home | About