Union files complaint over UC Berkeley death

Kale Williams

(05-09) 16:31 PDT BERKELEY — Union leaders representing a worker who died after an accident at UC Berkeley have filed a complaint with the state alleging that the university failed to provide a safe working environment – a charge that the university denies.

Damon Frick, a 45-year-old father of two, fell from a lift he was using to clean windowsills 20 feet off the ground at the International House on April 7. He died two days later, said Peter Melton, a spokesman for Cal/OSHA, the state agency that regulates workplace safety.

The complaint was filed Thursday by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 3299, which represents 22,000 service workers.

It alleges that Frick was performing duties outside of his job description and should have had a spotter. The complaint says the lift was 30 years old and that the university has not produced any records showing the equipment was properly maintained.

Kathryn Lybargar, the union president and a UC Berkeley employee, said inadequate training for service workers is widespread at the university, where she said workplace injuries have gone up by 20 percent over the last 5 years.

“The point of this complaint is prevention,” she said. “We’re not going to be able to bring him back, but we need to make sure that everyone who walks into work also walks out. It’s the best way to honor him.”

Frick’s family also plans to sue the university for wrongful death, the union said.

UC Berkeley spokeswoman Janet Gilmore said Friday that the equipment Frick was using when he fell did not require a spotter. It had no mechanical problems, she said, and Frick had received documented training in its use.

The university is cooperating with the ongoing Cal/OSHA investigation, Gilmore said.

[Source]: SF Chronicle