Category Archives: History

Workplace Safety and the Legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr.

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Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. speaking. (Photo by Julian Wasser//Time Life Pictures/Getty Images)

Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. speaking. (Photo by Julian Wasser//Time Life Pictures/Getty Images)

“It was horrible,” said the woman.

One minute she could see a sanitation worker struggling to climb out of the refuse barrel of a city garbage truck. The next minute mechanical forces pulled him back into the cavernous opening. It looked to her as though the man’s raincoat had snagged on the vehicle, foiling his escape attempt. “His body went in first and his legs were hanging out,” said the eyewitness, who had been sitting at her kitchen table in Memphis, Tennessee, when the truck paused in front of her home. Next, she watched the man’s legs vanish as the motion of the truck’s compacting unit swept the worker toward his death. “The big thing just swallowed him,” she reported.

Unbeknownst to Mrs. C. E. Hinson, another man was already trapped inside the vibrating truck body. Before vehicle driver Willie Crain could react, Echol Cole, age 36, and Robert Walker, age 30, would be crushed to death. Nobody ever identified which one came close to escaping.

The horrific deaths of Cole and Walker on Feb. 1, 1968, set off the Memphis sanitation workers’ strike, where 1,300 mostly African-American public employees struck to protest poor working conditions, including the defective garbage truck that crushed Cole and Walker. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his famous “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop” speech in support of the striking sanitation workers in Memphis the night before he was assassinated.

On Monday, Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday is celebrated as a holiday. But the rightful veneration of Dr. King should not, for the lack of better terms, wrongfully sanitize or whitewash the fact that what he fought for would be opposed by many who invoke his legacy today. The Memphis sanitation strikers are asking for the same thing that striking fast food and service workers are asking for in the Fight for 15 campaign. Most establishment types and so-called moderates in Memphis refused to support the striking sanitation workers. Today’s so-called moderates argue that paying employees a living wage is too radical and counterproductive. History has a way of repeating itself.

Nearly 50 years later, I still represent sanitation workers who are injured from defective equipment. However, bloody crush injuries like the ones that killed Cole and Walker are much less common. Part of the reason for the increase in workplace safety over the last 50 years was the passing of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Dr. King was willing to risk bodily harm and ultimately ended up being killed supporting workers who were protesting unsafe work conditions. The passage of OSHA is a small but important and overlooked part of Dr. King’s legacy. History is repeating itself again as the business establishment applauds the expected rollback of OSHA enforcement under expected future Labor Secretary Andy Puzder.

Dr. King also deserves credit for his role in passing laws like Title VII that prohibited discrimination against African-Americans, which has allowed an increasing number of African-Americans to join the professional class and otherwise realize their potential as human beings. Dr. King’s legacy can also be seen in the expansion of rights for disabled Americans, and the fact that gays and lesbians are able to get married, and the real possibility that Title VII may end discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people.

But by some economic measures, African-Americans are worse off now than they were 40 years ago. This fact can likely be attributed to overall increases in economic inequality over the last 40 years. The U.S. Department of Labor pointed out in a recent study that the gutting of state workers’ compensation laws has exacerbated inequality. Lawyers, legislators, academics and pundits have gradually forgotten about the risks faced by workers like Echol Cole and Robert Walker and how civil rights leaders including Martin Luther King Jr. saw the fight for workplace safety as a matter of basic human dignity and integral to the fight for civil rights.

The offices of Rehm, Bennett & Moore and Trucker Lawyers will be closed in observance of the holiday on Monday. We will re-open at 8:30 a.m. Central Time on Tuesday, Jan. 17. We encourage readers to think about Martin Luther King Jr. on the federal holiday and every day and continue to be both motivated and challenged by his words and works.

The offices of Rehm, Bennett, Moore & Rehm, which also sponsors the Trucker Lawyers website, are located in Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska. Five attorneys represent plaintiffs in workers’ compensation, personal injury, employment and Social Security disability claims. The firm’s lawyers have combined experience of more than 95 years of practice representing injured workers and truck drivers in Nebraska, Iowa and other states with Nebraska and Iowa jurisdiction. The lawyers regularly represent hurt truck drivers and often sue Crete Carrier Corporation, K&B Trucking, Werner Enterprises, UPS, and FedEx. Lawyers in the firm hold licenses in Nebraska and Iowa and are active in groups such as the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers, Workers' Injury Law & Advocacy Group (WILG), American Association for Justice (AAJ), the Nebraska Association of Trial Attorneys (NATA), and the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). We have the knowledge, experience and toughness to win rightful compensation for people who have been injured or mistreated.

This entry was posted in Courts, discrimination, employment law, Government, Harassment, History, Holiday, Martin Luther King Jr. and tagged , , , , , .

Labor Day Gives Chance for Celebration, Reflection

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Labor Day Stamp

Detailed illustration of a 3-cent stamp issued to commemorate Labor Day in 1956. The image comes from a mosaic in the lobby of the AFL-CIO building in Washington, D.C.

This blog post is from guest author Kit Case, of Causey Law Firm in Seattle. Although the U.S. Department of Labor’s centennial was in 2013, many of the messages in the post below ring loud and true today. I think the Labor Day holiday provides some wonderful opportunities to give thought and reflection to both the meaning of the holiday and looking at how workers are still struggling. So with that focus in mind, I want to challenge readers to think about Labor Day as a little bit more than the end of summer. Truthfully, I realize that many will be at work on Monday, though it is a federal holiday.

For those who have the opportunity to share a meal with loved ones, here’s a link that includes union-made products to enjoy during your cookout.

In addition, the offices of Rehm, Bennett & Moore and Trucker Lawyers will close on Friday at 3:30 p.m. and will be closed on Monday. Offices will open again at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday.

I am glad this excellent blog post provides another chance for understanding the historical context of the holiday, along with looking at the perennial argument of how far there still is to go for workers to live the American dream. Have a safe and fun Labor Day with your loved ones or at work.

     The US Department of Labor – which is celebrating its centennial this year – has provided a history of Labor Day, including the inception of the holiday and the traditions that surround it, excerpted below. 

…a day to honor those “who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold.”

     The form that the observance and celebration of Labor Day should take was outlined in the first proposal of the holiday — a street parade to exhibit to the public “the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations” of the community, followed by a festival for the recreation and amusement of the workers and their families. This became the pattern for the celebrations of Labor Day. Speeches by prominent men and women were introduced later, as more emphasis was placed upon the economic and civic significance of the holiday. Still later, by a resolution of the American Federation of Labor convention of 1909, the Sunday preceding Labor Day was adopted as Labor Sunday and dedicated to the spiritual and educational aspects of the labor movement.

     The character of the Labor Day celebration has undergone a change in recent years, especially in large industrial centers where mass displays and huge parades have proved a problem. This change, however, is more a shift in emphasis and medium of expression. Labor Day addresses by leading union officials, industrialists, educators, clerics and government officials are given wide coverage in newspapers, radio, and television.

     The vital force of labor added materially to the highest standard of living and the greatest production the world has ever known and has brought us closer to the realization of our traditional ideals of economic and political democracy. It is appropriate, therefore, that the nation pay tribute on Labor Day to the creator of so much of the nation’s strength, freedom, and leadership — the American worker.

 Opportunity. Then and now, it’s about opportunity.

     Labor Secretary Tom Perez blogged about the interwoven history of the civil rights movement and the labor movement, their common goals, and the needs we still face today.  Secretary Perez said:

     “…But again, there is still so much more to do … in skills training and education, workplace safety and health, retirement security and job creation. And in particular, we must do more to ensure an honest day’s pay for an honest day’s work.

     People who work full-time in America should not have to live in poverty – simple as that. Too many jobs don’t pay enough to get by, let alone get ahead. Too many people are finding the rungs on the ladder of opportunity further and further apart. Workers around the country are bravely raising their collective voice and taking action to demand fair wages. We need to hear these voices. They are acting in the proud tradition of the marchers 50 years ago who took action for justice and dignity.”

     We couldn’t agree more. So, as we head out to our family barbeques or other Labor Day activities, we wish to pay tribute to those individual threads – the American Workers – that together create the fabric of our nation.

The offices of Rehm, Bennett, Moore & Rehm, which also sponsors the Trucker Lawyers website, are located in Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska. Five attorneys represent plaintiffs in workers’ compensation, personal injury, employment and Social Security disability claims. The firm’s lawyers have combined experience of more than 95 years of practice representing injured workers and truck drivers in Nebraska, Iowa and other states with Nebraska and Iowa jurisdiction. The lawyers regularly represent hurt truck drivers and often sue Crete Carrier Corporation, K&B Trucking, Werner Enterprises, UPS, and FedEx. Lawyers in the firm hold licenses in Nebraska and Iowa and are active in groups such as the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers, Workers' Injury Law & Advocacy Group (WILG), American Association for Justice (AAJ), the Nebraska Association of Trial Attorneys (NATA), and the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). We have the knowledge, experience and toughness to win rightful compensation for people who have been injured or mistreated.

This entry was posted in History, Holiday and tagged .

Back to Downton Abbey – Why You Should Care About a Seemingly Ho-hum Supreme Court Case

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downtown abbeySo what does Downton Abbey have to do with a seemingly ho-hum recent Supreme Court case about pension benefits for union retirees? Lots.

The decision in question is the recent Supreme Court decision of M&G Polymers USA, LLC v. Tackett. In that case, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously overturned a decision by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that interpreted the Labor Management Relations Act ruling that health care benefits for union retirees continue permanently, even if the collective bargaining agreement expires. In other words, even if a collective bargaining agreement ends, the company is still on the hook for health care benefits for retirees.

The Supreme Court ruled that since that understanding wasn’t explicitly spelled out in the contract, then the union retirees were out of luck. The Supreme Court relied on supposed “common law” principles to arrive at this result. Common law was developed by courts in England and transported across the Atlantic to the United States in the 17th century. It was a system that largely favored the Lord Granthams of the world. For example, there was no such thing as “workers’ compensation” or “employment law.” There was the “law of master and servant.”

If you watch Downton Abbey or know much about the history of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the “servants” weren’t pleased with this arrangement. So starting in the 1910s, state legislatures started passing workers’ compensation statutes. In the 1930s and 1940s as part of President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal, Congress started passing laws like the Labor Management Relations Act and the Fair Labor Standards Act, which gave employees protections in addition to what they had under the common law. This expansion of employee rights continued with the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as well as the Americans with Disabilities Act, passed in 1990 and amended in 2008, and the Family and Medical Leave Act in 1993.

No law passed in the last 100 years that protects the rights of employees really has any basis in the common law, so when the Supreme Court starts using 18th century English law to interpret those laws, then employees should be concerned.

Lay people who follow politics may get confused by a 5-4 split. What happened there was that the four Democratic-appointed justices, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Stephen Breyer, agreed with the outcome of the case but not the reasoning used by five Republican-appointed justices, Chief Justice John Roberts, Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito. Of note, none of the supposed “liberal bloc” supported the decision made by the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, which is the highest federal court for the states of Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky and Tennessee. The judges of the 6th Circuit are appointed by the president and subject to approval of the Senate, just like Supreme Court justices. It’s hard to argue that the judges of the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals are somehow out of the mainstream of legal opinion or radical bomb throwers.

Plaintiffs’ lawyers and union leaders who read this blog will sometimes lament how the blue-collar people we represent largely vote Republican, based on social issues and national security issues, even though their economic interests are aligned with the Democratic Party. But after reading M&G Polymers USA, LLC v. Tackett, can blue-collar conservatives be entirely blamed for not thinking the Democratic Party supports their economic interests? Maybe plaintiffs’ lawyers and union leaders are the real chumps for blindly supporting a national Democratic Party that seems to be indifferent to their interests and the interests of those they represent.

The offices of Rehm, Bennett, Moore & Rehm, which also sponsors the Trucker Lawyers website, are located in Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska. Five attorneys represent plaintiffs in workers’ compensation, personal injury, employment and Social Security disability claims. The firm’s lawyers have combined experience of more than 95 years of practice representing injured workers and truck drivers in Nebraska, Iowa and other states with Nebraska and Iowa jurisdiction. The lawyers regularly represent hurt truck drivers and often sue Crete Carrier Corporation, K&B Trucking, Werner Enterprises, UPS, and FedEx. Lawyers in the firm hold licenses in Nebraska and Iowa and are active in groups such as the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers, Workers' Injury Law & Advocacy Group (WILG), American Association for Justice (AAJ), the Nebraska Association of Trial Attorneys (NATA), and the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). We have the knowledge, experience and toughness to win rightful compensation for people who have been injured or mistreated.

This entry was posted in Employment, employment law, History, history of workers' compensation, Workers' Compensation and tagged , , , , , , .

Pay Tribute on Labor Day – A Nationwide Holiday

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Detailed illustration of a 3-cent stamp issued to commemorate Labor Day in 1956. The image comes from a mosaic in the lobby of the AFL-CIO building in Washington, D.C.

Today’s post comes from guest author Kit Case from Causey Law Firm in Seattle. Although I realize that Labor Day was Monday, I think the holiday provides some wonderful opportunities to give thought and reflection to both the meaning of the holiday and looking at how workers are still struggling, which is why Monday’s blog post was more on the thoughtful side. So with that focus in mind, I want to challenge readers to think about Labor Day all week, even though most folks are back to work. Truthfully, I realize that many also worked on Monday, though it was a federal holiday. This excellent blog post provides another chance for understanding the historical context of the holiday, along with looking at the perennial argument of how far there still is to go for workers to live the American dream.

     The US Department of Labor – which is celebrating its centennial this year – has provided a history of Labor Day, including the inception of the holiday and the traditions that surround it, excerpted below. 

…a day to honor those “who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold.”

     The form that the observance and celebration of Labor Day should take was outlined in the first proposal of the holiday — a street parade to exhibit to the public “the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations” of the community, followed by a festival for the recreation and amusement of the workers and their families. This became the pattern for the celebrations of Labor Day. Speeches by prominent men and women were introduced later, as more emphasis was placed upon the economic and civic significance of the holiday. Still later, by a resolution of the American Federation of Labor convention of 1909, the Sunday preceding Labor Day was adopted as Labor Sunday and dedicated to the spiritual and educational aspects of the labor movement.

     The character of the Labor Day celebration has undergone a change in recent years, especially in large industrial centers where mass displays and huge parades have proved a problem. This change, however, is more a shift in emphasis and medium of expression. Labor Day addresses by leading union officials, industrialists, educators, clerics and government officials are given wide coverage in newspapers, radio, and television.

     The vital force of labor added materially to the highest standard of living and the greatest production the world has ever known and has brought us closer to the realization of our traditional ideals of economic and political democracy. It is appropriate, therefore, that the nation pay tribute on Labor Day to the creator of so much of the nation’s strength, freedom, and leadership — the American worker.

 Opportunity. Then and now, it’s about opportunity.

     Labor Secretary Tom Perez blogged about the interwoven history of the civil rights movement and the labor movement, their common goals, and the needs we still face today.  Secretary Perez said:

     “…But again, there is still so much more to do … in skills training and education, workplace safety and health, retirement security and job creation. And in particular, we must do more to ensure an honest day’s pay for an honest day’s work.

     People who work full-time in America should not have to live in poverty – simple as that. Too many jobs don’t pay enough to get by, let alone get ahead. Too many people are finding the rungs on the ladder of opportunity further and further apart. Workers around the country are bravely raising their collective voice and taking action to demand fair wages. We need to hear these voices. They are acting in the proud tradition of the marchers 50 years ago who took action for justice and dignity.”

     We couldn’t agree more. So, as we head out to our family barbeques or other Labor Day activities, we wish to pay tribute to those individual threads – the American Workers – that together create the fabric of our nation.

The offices of Rehm, Bennett, Moore & Rehm, which also sponsors the Trucker Lawyers website, are located in Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska. Five attorneys represent plaintiffs in workers’ compensation, personal injury, employment and Social Security disability claims. The firm’s lawyers have combined experience of more than 95 years of practice representing injured workers and truck drivers in Nebraska, Iowa and other states with Nebraska and Iowa jurisdiction. The lawyers regularly represent hurt truck drivers and often sue Crete Carrier Corporation, K&B Trucking, Werner Enterprises, UPS, and FedEx. Lawyers in the firm hold licenses in Nebraska and Iowa and are active in groups such as the College of Workers’ Compensation Lawyers, Workers' Injury Law & Advocacy Group (WILG), American Association for Justice (AAJ), the Nebraska Association of Trial Attorneys (NATA), and the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA). We have the knowledge, experience and toughness to win rightful compensation for people who have been injured or mistreated.

This entry was posted in History, Holiday and tagged .