U.S.-HONDURAS SIGN AGREEMENT TO PROTECT MIGRANT WORKERS

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

US Labor Department and consulate general of Honduras sign agreement to protect the rights of Honduran national migrant workers

Agreement covers Alabama, Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi and Missouri

NUEVA ORLEANS — The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division and the consulate general of Honduras today in New Orleans signed an agreement of understanding to combine resources and coordinate efforts to inform employers about the laws enforced by the department and to educate Honduran nationals working in Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi and Missouri about their rights under United States law.

The signing ceremony took place at the Honduran consulate's New Orleans office at One Canal Place. As part of the agreement, the division will provide training for consulate staff to ensure they have a working knowledge of statutes enforced by the division, including the requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act and its child labor provisions, the Migrant and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Protection Act, the field sanitation standards under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, and the temporary nonimmigrant agricultural guest-worker (H-2A) program under the Immigration and Nationality Act.

"This is a tremendous opportunity for us and the Honduran consulate to promote compliance with wage and hour laws," said Cynthia Watson, regional administrator for the Wage and Hour Division in the Southwest. "Today, through our efforts, workers will be educated on their rights under Wage and Hour laws and be assured that they are fully protected under all its statutes."

WORKERS' MEMORIAL DAY

FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
Statement by Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis on Workers’ Memorial Day
WASHINGTON — Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis today issued the following statement on the observance of Workers' Memorial Day:

"Tomorrow, April 28, is Workers' Memorial Day, an occasion for reflection and remembrance of the thousands of workers who needlessly have suffered fatal injuries on the job every year. We also think of those workers who have been seriously injured or sickened as a result of preventable workplace hazards.

"We are never prepared to say goodbye to the people we love, but we are even less so when we send our loved ones off for a day's work. It is our duty to ensure that all workers come home safely at the end of each workday, and we stand behind our firm conviction that workplace injuries and fatalities are entirely preventable.

"On this day, I urge all Americans to raise their voices in support of workers' right to a safe and healthful workplace. In the 41 years since the Occupational Safety and Health Act was enacted, we have made tremendous progress, but our steadfast mission to make every job in America a safe job must continue. One workplace death is too many.
"Making a living shouldn't include dying."