On May 1, 2019, over 200 NFFE and IAM members gathered at the annual Workers’ Memorial Ceremony at the Winpisinger Education and Technology Center in Hollywood, MD. Last year, NFFE lost two of its members on July 19 at the Letterkenny Army Depot after a horrific chemical explosion injured and ultimately took the lives of Richard L. Barnes and Eric S. Byers from NFFE FL 1429.
The IAM tradition of honoring the fallen includes the installment of a memorial brick with the name of the fallen member inscribed added to the Workers’ Memorial in remembrance of the lives we lost, and as a reminder that our members face danger on the job every day.
“This year we will add 26 more bricks to our memorial. Each one forever serving as a reminder of their lives and their service to our great Union,” said International President Bob Martinez. “Every time we lose one of our own, it cuts to the very core.”
“For the IAM, just one death on the job is too many,” said Martinez. “We will never rest, we will never stay silent and we will always be the voice for those who can no longer speak, thanks to a tragedy in the workplace. When tragedy does strike, like it did in Letterkenny, like it did in Aurora, like it did in Chattanooga, we will be there every step of the way.”
“I ask that we pray not only for our fallen Sisters and Brothers, but also for their friends and families left behind to pick up the pieces,” said General Secretary-Treasurer Dora Cervantes. “Please pray for everyone here, that we can continue to go to work and come home to our families safe.”