Cal-OSHA, Coronavirus, Worker Dangers & Crisis In CA with Dr. Larry Rose, Former Director

Dr. Larry Rose, former Cal-OSHA Medical Director talks about the danger to workers and the public with coronavirus and the massive staffing crisis in California with only one doctor and one nurse for the 19 million workers of California.

According to Dr. Rose, the lack of staffing at Cal-OSHA prevents the agency from protecting workers and the public in the growing pandemic in California and the world. Cal-OSHA is tasked with investigating health and safety violations and has only around 200 inspectors in California to enforce California OSHA regulations.

He also discusses the need for protection of workers who wear masks on the job. Workers could be fired for trying to protect their health and safety on the job.

Rose also talks about the corruption of the former Division of Industrial Relations DIR Christine Baker who bullied Cal-OSHA workers and colluded with companies to limit enforcement and liability.

She also engaged in fraud putting her daughter in a no-show job at $120,000 a year. She was forced to resign after a state audit but former governor Jerry Brown before he left office appointed her to the California Fraud Assessment Commission FAC and Governor Gavin Newsom let her take this position.

This interview took place on 23/7/20 by Pacifica correspondent Steve Zeltzer who also produces WorkWeek on KPOO.

Additional media:
2 top former Cal/ OSHA officials accuse agency of failing to protect workers
https://www.scpr.org/news/2014/02/10/42131/two-top-former-officials-accuse-cal-osha-of-failin/

Cal/OSHA Nixes Lone Medical Officer Position
https://www.ehstoday.com/archive/article/21912987/calosha-nixes-lone-medical-officer-position

CA State Audit Investigation of Improper Activities by a State Agency DIR and Its Employees
https://www.wcexec.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/DIR-audit-report.pdf

2 top former Cal/ OSHA officials accuse agency of failing to protect workers
https://www.scpr.org/news/2014/02/10/42131/two-top-former-officials-accuse-cal-osha-of-failin/

No Reporters Allowed By CA DIR Director Baker At "Private Event" On Cal-Osha & Workers Comp
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0M6m8S1OoH0

Injured Workers Faced Stacked Deck
http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Injured-Workers-Face-

WW 2-6-20 France Boyle On Coronavirus & (BSL-4) Biotech Warfare Labs
https://soundcloud.com/workweek-radio/ww-2-6-20-france-boyle-on-coronavirus-bsl-4-biotech-warfare-labs

Injured Agraquest Biotech Worker David Bell Tells His Story
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHF3aNE9FoA

The Biotech Health/Safety Crisis, Biotech Workers & Industry With Becky McClain
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BU5PMiUf2AA&t=9s

Becky McClain: Public Awareness of Public Health and Safety in Biotechnology - Tarrytown 2011
https://www.youtube.com/watch?
time_continue=1&v=uwgABDwiNVw&feature=emb_logo

Researcher Had Bacteria for Plague at His Death
https://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/22/us/22chicago.html
Yersinia pestis INFECTION IN CHICAGO USA IN 2009
https://academic.oup.com/femsle/article/362/1/1/2467558

Justice for Malcolm: Human Sacrifice Under U.S. Bioterrorism
https://www.amazon.com/Justice-Malcolm-Human-Sacrifice-Bioterrorism/dp/0990544605

Dr. Francis Boyle Creator Of Bioweapons Act Says Coronavirus Is Biological Warfare Weapon
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=11&v=TsyujjitOFM&feature=emb_logo

SF Treasure Island Conservation Corps Nightmare, The Cover-up & Environmental Racism
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lb49dvh5hsU

"No Charter School On SF Treasure Island Superfund Site!" Environmentalists/Candidates Speakout
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCvWcgx7_qI

Treasure Island Nightmare: Whistleblowers & Former Residents Speak Out About Cancers & Cover-up
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtuDlkvWJO8

SF Hunters Point/Treasure Island Radiation Whistleblower Speaks Out
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htA8lqYc96Q

SF Treasure Island Radiation Whistleblowers Expose Deadly Cover-up By Tetra Tech & Government: A $1 Billion Dollar Eco-Fraud
https://youtu.be/lb6LxUOKWks

Pacifica Correspondent
WorkWeek
https://soundcloud.com/workweek-radio


2 top former Cal/ OSHA officials accuse agency of failing to protect workers

https://www.scpr.org/news/2014/02/10/42131/two-top-former-officials-accuse-cal-osha-of-failin/

Former Cal/OSHA senior official Garrett Brown claims the agency is on a Former Cal/OSHA senior official Garrett Brown claims the agency is on a "starvation diet" partly because of Gov. Jerry Brown's austerity policies. JIM WATSON/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
Karen Foshay | February 10, 2014
Two former top officials with California’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/ OSHA) are accusing the agency of failing to do its job in keeping the state’s 18 million workers safe.

In a 20-page report, the former special assistant to the head of Cal/OSHA argues that a "starvation diet" is creating severe understaffing and is weakening worker protection. The official, Garrett Brown, resigned in late December after 20 years at the agency, more than 17 of them as a field inspector.

"I felt that the agency was being driven into the ground in terms of staff and resources and there were a number of policy decisions I could not in good conscience implement," Brown told KPCC.

Former Cal/OSHA Chief Ellen Widess, who said that she was forced to resign last September, echoed Brown’s concerns about the agency in an interview with KPCC.

Both former officials contend that the administration of Gov. Jerry Brown has been unwilling to spend money to hire additional inspectors despite a surplus in the state Occupational Safety and Health Fund.

A whistleblower advocacy group Brown is associated with, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, will file a formal complaint based on Brown's paper with federal OSHA Tuesday. The complaint will seek sanctions against Cal/OSHA for failing to meet worker protection standards.

Brown’s report, which was shared in recent weeks with labor groups and Cal/OSHA officials, blamed the "starvation diet" in part on Gov. Jerry Brown’s austerity policies. It also criticized the regulatory approach taken by Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) Director Christine Baker, who oversees Cal/OSHA, saying Baker emphasizes "compliance assistance" and "partnerships" with business over issuing citations for violations of health and safety laws.

Garrett Brown said the agency had 170 inspectors in December. According to figures provided by the State Employment Department, that would amount to roughly one inspector for every 100,000 workers in California.

Gov. Brown’s proposed budget would add another 25 inspectors, but Garrett Brown argues that that would still leave Cal/OSHA far short of the number it needs.

He said Washington state and Oregon have much lower ratios of inspectors to workers. Oregon has about 1 inspector for every 21,000 workers, according to statistics provided by that state’s Employment Department and the Oregon OSHA.

Having an undermanned inspection force leads to fewer workplace inspections and slower response to workplace injuries, Brown and Widess said.

Cal/OSHA needs to "thoroughly and quickly" investigate accidents involving workers, Widess said, adding: "We are [conducting] fewer inspections to uncover toxic chemicals and other problems that can result in death."

The governor’s office referred KPCC’s interview requests to DIR and Cal/OSHA. In response, the agencies issued a statement challenging Garrett Brown’s numbers. They asserted that they have 182 inspectors "dedicated to the enforcement unit," and another 132 "inspectors working in areas such as interagency enforcement, and other related enforcement activities."

Brown and Widess say the DIR is unwilling to spend surplus funds sitting in the Occupational Safety and Health Fund – which they say is the main source of Cal/OSHA enforcement funding.

Widess said the OSHA Fund, which comes from employer fees, ended the last fiscal year n June with $24.8 million. It is projected to have a $26.1 million surplus by this June and a $29.5 million surplus by June 2015, according to Gov. Brown’s proposed budget.

Widess said she repeatedly asked DIR Director Baker and the state Labor Secretary, Marty Morgenstern, to tap those funds to hire more inspectors, but was denied, “for reasons that were never explained to me.”

Morgenstern stepped down from his post in November.

"It remains a real mystery as to why we were never able to access that funding," even after the agency took a $3 million hit last year because of federal sequestration, Widess added.

In their joint statement, the DIR and Cal/OSHA said that "any excess funds in the account are used for cash flow purposes (6 months) until the next assessment."

Garrett Brown said he decided that he could do more to influence Cal/OSHA’s direction working outside the agency.

After penning his critical report, Brown said he’s headed to Bangledesh next week to consult with that government’s worker safety programs.