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Son of Tulsa Cintas Worker: My Father's Death Was Preventable

April 27, 2007

The son of Eleazar Torres-Gomez, the Cintas worker killed in March at the company’s Tulsa laundry, came to Capitol Hill this week asking for legislation that would prevent future jobsite tragedies.

Emmanuel Torres spoke at a press conference in support of the Protecting America's Workers Act -- legislation introduced by Senator Edward Kennedy that would protect more workers, require companies to provide necessary safety equipment for workers, and increase penalties for companies that break the law.

“My father’s death was preventable,” Emmanuel said. “In 2005, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration fined Cintas for not putting guards on a conveyor at a laundry in New York. The equipment that was unguarded in that case was similar to the equipment involved in my father’s death. If the company had added the guards, which it knew was required by OSHA, I believe my father would be alive today.”

Over the past five years, OSHA inspectors have cited Cintas for more health and safety violations than its three main industry competitors combined. Since 2003, federal safety inspectors have cited Cintas more than 170 times for illegal, unsafe conditions—70 of which could have led to death or serious injury. The National Committees on Occupational Safety and Health named Cintas one of “the nation’s 12 most dangerous employers” in a 2006 report.

“On behalf of my family, I am here to lend support to this legislation hoping it becomes law. It is my family’s hope that this law will make workplaces across America safer and prevent tragedies like my father’s death from happing to others. No one should have to endure what my family has over the past seven weeks,” said Emmanuel.

Eleazar Torres-Gomez was killed on March 6 when he was reportedly dragged by a conveyor belt into a dryer. Torres-Gomez’s death was the second serious incident at the company in two weeks. A Yakima, Washington, employee lost his arm in a washing machine in late February. The death of Emmanuel’s father led several members of Congress including Rep. Barbara Woolsey and Rep. Phil Hare to ask OSHA for a nation-wide investigation into safety hazards at Cintas facilities. After members of Congress requested the federal investigation, Cintas issued a statement blaming Torres-Gomez for failing to follow safety procedures.

“The sorrow we feel is overwhelming,” Emmanuel said. “The company’s response to my family has only caused more pain. Just weeks after this tragedy, Cintas’s CEO publicly slandered my dad’s good name and dishonored his 10 years of service by blaming him for his own death.”

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