Never forgetting workers killed on the job is something officials in Ohio don’t take for granted.
The Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation (BWC) recently held the fourth annual Fallen Workers Memorial honoring workers who died in the past year due to workplace injuries. The annual service commemorates these workers and recognizes their service and sacrifice. The names of 118 workers were read aloud during this year’s ceremony.*
“Each life lost represents a hardworking Ohioan who left behind grieving loved ones, friends and colleagues,” said BWC Administrator/CEO Steve Buehrer. “One workplace death is too many and a sad reminder of the tremendous sacrifice workers make in the course of their labor.”
The ceremony was held in BWC’s William Green Building in downtown Columbus. Buehrer was joined by members of the BWC Board of Directors, including Chairman Nicholas Zuk, Peggy Griffith and David Caldwell, along with labor and business leaders, including Tim Burga, president of the Ohio AFL-CIO, and Andrew Doehrel, president of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce.
All Ohioans Asked to Pay Tribute
Griffith recited the poem, “Memorial for Workers,” and the names of the fallen were read by Tina Kielmeyer, BWC’s chief of customer services, and BWC employees Shirley Hubbert and Mary Albayati. During the ceremony, Buehrer read a resolution issued by Governor John Kasich. The resolution recognized the memorial and asked that all Ohioans pay tribute to those who lost their lives on the job. The ceremony concluded with the tolling of a bell.
Buehrer also reflected on BWC’s core mission of preventing workplace accidents, caring for injured workers and assisting families of those who lost their lives while working. “Paying compensation to a family left behind is only part of what we do at BWC,” Buehrer said. “Ohio has come a long way in terms of protecting our workers, and making safety a top priority in every workplace, but we constantly ask ourselves what we can do to keep workers safer in the future. We will continue to seek the answers.”
Names of the fallen workers are available here.
*Including 72 allowed claims with dates of death in the last policy year (7/1/13-6/30/14), as well as 46 allowed claims with dates of death that fell within the two-year filing period and were not included in previous memorials.
Author Kori Shafer-Stack, Editor, Amaxx Risk Solutions, Inc. is an expert in post-injury response procedures and part of the Amaxx team helping companies reduce their workers compensation costs by 20% to 50%. www.reduceyourworkerscomp.com. Contact: kstack@reduceyourworkerscomp.com.
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