A news release on April 14^th by the U.S. Department of Labor states that Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis assembled the 1st ever national action summit on health and safety of Latino workers. The event was held over the course of two days (April 14 & 15, 2010) in Houston, TX and was co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), in partnership with the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS).

“Each year, thousands of workers in the U.S. are injured or killed on the job as a result of preventable incidents. And, Latino workers are killed and suffer work-related injuries at higher rates than all other workers.” as reported in the news release.

The purpose of The Summit was to draw attention to the level of injury and death among Latino workers and to reduce future injuries and illnesses by enhancing knowledge of their workplace rights and improving their ability to exercise those rights. “Workers have a right to talk to their employers about unsafe conditions and, if necessary, to call OSHA. They have a right to get safety equipment that is required by law and paid for by the employer. They have a right to be trained in a language and in a way they understand.” said Secretary Solis

“Far too many Latino workers have needlessly lost their lives just trying to earn a living, and it must stop,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Dr. David Michaels. The Summit was aimed for the construction industry and other high risk industries that employ large numbers of Latino workers. The types of people in attendance were workers and representatives from employer associations, labor unions, the faith community, community organizations, worker centers, the medical community, safety and health professionals, educators, government officials, Consulates, the entertainment community, the advertising industry, and other non-traditional partners.

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