In
the aftermath of an investigation conducted at Sea-Tac International
Airport, the Washington Department of Labor and Industries issued
citations recently to Alaska Airlines and its ground-handling
contractor, Menzies Aviation, for health and safety violations.
Inspectors
found "Alaska Airlines did not provide safety devices,
safeguards, work practices, processes and the means to make the
workplace safe from hazards that were causing, or likely to cause,
serious physical harm to Menzies ramp agent employees who handle
cargo and passenger baggage for Alaska Airlines at SeaTac Airport."
Menzies
was fined $62,000 for 16 violations of state workplace health and
safety laws."The vehicles and other
equipment we use are often poorly maintained and it has led to
injuries. This should not be happening anywhere, much less on public
property," said Socrates Bravo, a ramp agent who has worked for
Menzies Aviation for more than four years.
Menzies employees
filed a complaint with the state's Division of Occupational Safety
and Health last summer alleging unsafe vehicles and other ground
service equipment "with malfunctioning or deficient engines,
brakes, gears, steering, electrical systems and tires, and other
safety violations." The workers requested a fleetwide review of
all ground service equipment used in the company's operations at
Sea-Tac.
"Given
the critical nature of the service that we provide, it is
unacceptable that we have to deal with brake failures, dangerously
worn tires, stalling engines and other unsafe conditions,” said
Darius Harris who handles baggage for Menzies.
"The
commissioners need to be mindful of the fact that last year a jury
assessed $10 million judgment against the Port in a case filed by a
contract worker tragically paralyzed in a ramp accident at Sea-Tac,”
said Sergio Salinas, president of Seattle-based SEIU Local 6.
Alaska
is the dominant carrier at Sea-Tac; together with Alaska Air's
regional carrier Horizon Air, Alaska Air handles just over 50 percent
of passengers at the airport.
Alaska
Airlines made headlines across the country in April 2015 when one of
its flights was forced to make an emergency landing at the
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport after passengers heard banging
and screams from a ramp agent who was trapped in the plane's cargo
hold. Alaska reported the ramp worker, who was not injured, told
officials he had fallen asleep in the cargo hold and did not wake up
until after takeoff.
Menzies' safety record came under intense
scrutiny following a fatal accident at Los Angeles International
Airport last year that resulted in the death of Menzies ramp worker
Cesar Valenzuela when he was thrown from his tug and pinned under one
of the tug's tires. The vehicle did not have seat belts.
