Hold massive shipping corporations accountable!
Department of Labor
The collapse of Maryland’s Francis Scott Key Bridge that likely killed six workers was a tragedy — and it could have been prevented.
Transportation experts and insurance corporations warned that cargo ships of this size would be dangerous. Despite this, shipping corporations, encouraged by former Maryland governor Larry Hogan, continued to send larger and larger cargo ships, ignoring these safety concerns.1 Now, families have presumably lost loved ones and a deadly infrastructure collapse has left the state — and the country — shaken. All this because of corporate greed.
The Department of Labor has the power to hold these corporations accountable if they cover up safety issues or ignore regulations. Just recently, this same corporation actively broke the law by silencing whistleblowers who were trying to alert officials about unsafe conditions.2
We need the Labor Department to act swiftly and decisively to leverage its power to issue fines and punish these companies who ignore warnings so they can make massive profits. This is one important way to prevent similar disasters in the future.
Shipping corporations sanctioned by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration shouldn’t be able to continue with business-as-usual. They should immediately be punished for violating safety regulations. We’ve seen that we can’t trust them to do the right thing on their own — they’re too concerned with profits. Instead, there must be real action and accountability.
Sign Demand Progress' petition: Tell the Department of Labor that corporations operating massive cargo ships must be held to safety standards — and face consequences if they break the law! >>
Sources:
Transportation experts and insurance corporations warned that cargo ships of this size would be dangerous. Despite this, shipping corporations, encouraged by former Maryland governor Larry Hogan, continued to send larger and larger cargo ships, ignoring these safety concerns.1 Now, families have presumably lost loved ones and a deadly infrastructure collapse has left the state — and the country — shaken. All this because of corporate greed.
The Department of Labor has the power to hold these corporations accountable if they cover up safety issues or ignore regulations. Just recently, this same corporation actively broke the law by silencing whistleblowers who were trying to alert officials about unsafe conditions.2
We need the Labor Department to act swiftly and decisively to leverage its power to issue fines and punish these companies who ignore warnings so they can make massive profits. This is one important way to prevent similar disasters in the future.
Shipping corporations sanctioned by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration shouldn’t be able to continue with business-as-usual. They should immediately be punished for violating safety regulations. We’ve seen that we can’t trust them to do the right thing on their own — they’re too concerned with profits. Instead, there must be real action and accountability.
Sign Demand Progress' petition: Tell the Department of Labor that corporations operating massive cargo ships must be held to safety standards — and face consequences if they break the law! >>
Sources:
- https://www.levernews.com/hogan-pressed-for-bigger-ships-despite-safety-warnings/
- https://www.levernews.com/feds-recently-hit-cargo-giant-in-baltimore-disaster-for-silencing-whistleblowers/
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Sponsored by
To:
Department of Labor
From:
[Your Name]
We ask that you use your authority to levy stiffer fines against corporations operating massive cargo ships while hiding safety issues, and strictly regulate these corporations.