On the recordMay 17, 2012
I hereby submit the enclosed letters: Building and Construction Trades Department--AFL CIO Washington, DC, May 4, 2012. Rep. Howard P. ``Buck'' McKeon, Chairman, House Committee on Armed Services, Rayburn HOB, Washington, DC. Dear Mr. Chairman: The House Armed Services Committee has adopted legislation that would seriously weaken worker safety & health protections at Department of Energy (DOE) nuclear weapons complex. The legislation would not only transfer worker safety & health responsibilities from the DOE's Office of Health, Safety and Security (HSS) to the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), but would also shift the entire safety & health program to ``performance-based'' oversight thereby effectively eliminating current health and safety standards that impose fines and penalties for violations. This would be a terrible mistake and we are strongly opposed to any such tinkering with the lives of our many members working at these facilities. For years the BCTD has made the safety & health of these workers one of our highest priorities. We have worked with successive Administrations to develop the current program that the proposed legislation would now effectively destroy. As you might imagine the work that our members perform at these facilities is, by its very nature, inherently dangerous and requires the highest possible level of care and protection.…
