[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 49 (Tuesday, April 28, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E684]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          WORKER MEMORIAL DAY

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. TIM ROEMER

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, April 28, 1998

  Mr. ROEMER. Mr. Speaker, for today's observance of Worker Memorial 
Day, I would like to have the opportunity to recognize a shameful 
tragedy that millions of Americans must face every day.
  Last year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, over 6,000 
workers were killed by traumatic injuries, 50,000 workers died of 
occupational diseases, and 6.2 million suffered injuries on the job. 
Lamentably, my home state of Indiana has paralleled these statistics by 
averaging 60 deaths a year.
  Today in South Bend, Indiana, community leaders, business owners, and 
union representatives are gathering to pay tribute to two friends whose 
deaths hit very close to home. Officer Paul Deguch, member of the 
Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 36, was struck down in the line of duty 
by a senseless act of violence. This pointless death has not only 
shocked our community, but left his family devastated.
  Jim Slater, member of the Elevator Constructors Local 57, was also 
killed on the job this year while working in an elevator shaft. His 
wife is now without a husband, his three children no longer have a 
father, and those he knew have lost a great friend.
  As Members of Congress we must continue the fight begun at the turn 
of the century to ensure safety for everyone at their place of 
employment. Our American workforce is responsible for our booming 
economy, our high standard of living, and the quality of life which we 
enjoy. We have made a great deal of progress in the last eighty years, 
but for Officer Deguch, Jim Slater, and every other worker killed or 
injured on the job, we must do more.
  My prayers go out of the families of those who were taken from us, 
and I know the rest of our community joins me. I only hope that we in 
Congress can do more to prevent tragedies like these from happening in 
the future.

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