By Megan Sayles
AFRO Business Writer
msayles@afro.com
Community leaders and workers across Baltimore City gathered at the Western Sanitation Yard in Brooklyn on Aug. 28 to demand safer labor conditions for employees of the Department of Public Works (DPW).
The rally comes after the untimely death of DPW worker Ronald Silver II on Aug. 2. The 36-year-old died of hyperthermia, or overheating, on the job. That day, Baltimore was under a Code Red Extreme Heat Alert, an advisory issued when the heat index surpasses 105 degrees Fahrenheit.
“There has been a gross failure—not an oversight— but a failure of leadership, human decency and integrity,” said civil rights activist Linda Batts. “That indecency starts with DPW and ends with the leadership of the city of Baltimore.”
Following Silver’s death, Baltimore City announced that it would retain Washington, D.C.-based law firm Conn Maciel Carey to lead an independent investigation on DPW’s safety standards and practices.
The Baltimore City Council also held a hearing on the agency’s working conditions on Aug. 22. During that meeting, questions were raised about the decision to hire Conn Maciel Carey. Some council members asserted that the firm had a history of opposing Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards.
During the Aug. 28 demonstration, Batts and other speakers reproached the city for its response to the tragedy.
“It’s audacious for the city of Baltimore to appear at a city council hearing to report that they will address complaints by sending employees to the very human resources office that has violated their rights,” said Batts. “ that they will use an outside law firm to review the cause and effect of lackluster management practices and failed oversight for safety that they had an obligation to correct with a sound system of inspections, checklists, audits and accountability.”
Thiruvendran “Thiru” Vignarajah, attorney for Silver’s family, said updates to DPW’s policies and procedures have been long overdue. Several speakers called attention to the 2019 death of DPW supervisor Trina Cunningham, who fell through a grated walkway into a wastewater treatment tank. An investigation by Maryland Occupational Safety and Health later revealed a number of hazards at the plant.
A July report from Baltimore Inspector General Isabel Cumming was also referenced. The review found dangerous working conditions in several DPW facilities. In some, workers did not have access to air conditioning or adequate water.
“Our inspector general responded to complaints that were filed two months before Ronnie died. Then, warning, after warning, after warning, and we still did nothing until a man died,” said Vignarajah. “Then, all of a sudden, we all woke from our slumber and decided we suddenly cared.”
He said that Silver’s family wants justice and to see meaningful change.
“I don’t know about you, but Ronnie’s mother, family, loved ones and children are not going to rest until every Ronnie Silver is treated with the basic decency and dignity that every worker, even the least among us, deserves,” said Vignarajah.
DPW worker Stancil McNair condemned agency supervisors during the rally. McNair has been vocal on Instagram about the unsafe and abusive working conditions he has encountered at the department for some time.
“You have supervision in place that doesn’t take you seriously,” said McNair. “They’re not scared because there’s no repercussions.”
He said, most recently, a co-worker called him seeking guidance after hurting his knee on the job. The co-worker said his supervisor did not believe him.
“The supervisor told him he couldn’t go to medical because she thought he hurt his knee at home,” said McNair.
He also called out AFSCME Local 44, a union that represents municipal workers in the city, for their perceived failure to address ongoing concerns from workers.
Union President Dorothy Bryant said that Silver’s death could have been prevented by agency management.
“Brother Silver’s death was entirely preventable, and his supervisor and manager did not do their job to protect the employee,” said Bryant. “At Reedbird and across the city, we have and will continue to fight for healthy and safe working conditions.”
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