UNION CALLS DU PONT UNHEALTHY, UNSAFE

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, January 14, 1993                   TAG: 9301140060
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: C5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: GEORGE KEGLEY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium
UNION CALLS DU PONT UNHEALTHY, UNSAFE
The International Brotherhood of Du Pont Workers has issued a warning to 10,000 Du Pont Corp. employees about the company's environmental, health and safety "misdeeds."
The union, headed by Dean Goad, who also is president of the local at Du Pont's Martinsville nylon plant, said a 12-page brochure "documents the vast gulf between Du Pont's desired image as a company that deserves your trust and its actual conduct."
His message to the company, he said, is "stop gambling with our health and safety."
The brochure tells of the death of a former employee of the Martinsville plant from asbestos-related disease. The union wrote of the company's handling of lead, asbestos, freon and benlate.
John Page, the Martinsville plant's manager, responded to the charges Wednesday by saying the facility "does everything possible to protect the health and safety of employees. . . . They work very hard to protect their own health and safety. . . . There is always room for improvement and we look for that every day."
These issues "have been discussed many times," Page said. He added that Du Pont's record, as measured by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, is "the safest in our class" in the nation.
The union brochure, quoting several publications, describes "a pattern of behavior so irresponsible and harmful that I think it could bring this mighty company down financially someday," Goad said in an opening message.
At the chemical company's Wilmington, Del., headquarters, spokeswoman Lori Folts said she was not surprised by the brochure. The brotherhood "followed other unions in a corporate campaign, with intent to boost their own image by tarnishing the image of the employer," she said.
The Chemical Manufacturers Association, a trade group, has ranked Du Pont as the best among chemical companies in incidence of recordable injuries and lost-work cases, Folts noted. Also, she cited the National Safety Council, which rated Du Pont as 16 times lower than the average chemical company in safety violations.
Corporate policy, Folts said, is to make sure the company won't sell a product unless it is environmentally safe and sound.
The union, however, has asked people who live near Du Pont factories to voice concerns.
"Do not simply accept Du Pont's announcements that its operation is clean and safe. Call the company with your concerns. Report your observations to governmental environmental agencies and your legislators," the union said.
The brochure points to what it calls "Du Pont's record of shame."
The company's "stupendous profits come at a cost higher than just wages and materials. It is workers and the rest of society, not the company, who pay the larger, hidden price of production. We pay, literally, with our health and our lives," the union said.

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB