A Message from Business Manager Chris Erikson
The first fatal construction accident of 2025 in our city occurred at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel last week, with the unnecessary death of a 45 year old worker on Thursday. So far, the news outlets reported that he was assisting an electrician in the ceiling above the ballroom. It was reported that he stepped off a catwalk and fell through the sheetrock ceiling falling approximately 40-60 feet to the ballroom floor. He died at the scene. He was not employed by a Local 3 contractor.
The job was shut down by the Department of Buildings on Friday, and investigations are ongoing by OSHA and the DOB.
An impromptu memorial service was held on Friday morning outside of the job to acknowledge the death and honor the worker. I was joined by New York State Building & Construction Trades Council President Gary LaBarbera, NYC Central Labor Council chief of staff Brendan Griffith, a representative of the Manhattan Borough President, Fr. Brian Jordan, and a few dozen Local 3 members and other union building trades members from nearby jobs. Still unknown are the immigration status of the victim and whether he had the proper OSHA or required NYC SST training. It seems that there was no PPE, as a harness could have saved his life. It is our hope that the Manhattan District Attorney will investigate and, if found guilty, hold the employer responsible. The death of any construction worker, especially on an open-shop job, should not be tolerated. We demand that the responsible party be prosecuted.
This Friday, January 10th, Fr. Jordan will preside over a memorial Mass for the deceased worker at 12:00 p.m. at the Workers Chapel at the Church of St. Francis of Assisi, located at 135 West 31st Street in Manhattan.
Our condolences go out to his family. We should be thankful for the safety training that our members receive and for the fact that, on union jobs, our workers go home safely to their families every day.
