OSHA pays tribute to workers killed on the job at Denver Workers' Memorial Day event, April 28

WHO: Nancy Smith, deputy regional administrator for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in Denver Jack Cox, president, IBEW, Local 68 Mike Gleiforst, International Union of Elevator Constructors Wade Thornburg, Rocky Mountain Arsenal Project

WHAT: Workers' Memorial Day name-reading

WHEN: April 28, 2015, 10:00 a.m. MDT

WHERE: International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Union Hall 5660 Logan St. Denver, Colorado 80216

Background: In 2014, 68 workers lost their lives at work in Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming.

"This day is an opportunity for us to remember those in our community who lost their lives on the job and to reflect on how to make our workplaces safer to prevent senseless tragedies such as these in the future," said Greg Baxter, OSHA's Regional Administrator in Denver. "No worker should have to choose between a paycheck and their life."

Each day 12 American workers die on the job, on average. Every year, American workers report about 3 million serious occupational injuries and illnesses and more than 50,000 die from illnesses attributable to long-term exposure to hazardous materials in the workplace. A recent OSHA report, Adding Inequality To Injury: The Costs of Failing to Protect Workers on the Job, illustrates the impact these injuries have on the economy. For additional information and resources about Workers' Memorial Day, please visit http://www.osha.gov/as/opa/worker_memorial_2015.html.