Marcie Cipriani at WTAE-TV reports from Penn Hills, Pennsylvania that nearly 1,000 Duquesne Light Workers - including Linemen, are on Strike, demanding fair wages and better safety protocols as negotiations with the Utility Company continue. Duquesne Light says their Non-Union Crews have been filling shifts during the Strike. Michael Goodwin, whose International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 29 represents 259 Overhead Line Workers, as well as Apprentices and other Local 29 Members, said the striking Workers are the lowest-paid Linemen in the State of Pennsylvania and face significant risks on the job. “They put their lives at risk every single day for the public to give them reliable, safe electricity. They do a very dangerous job. It's not like any other Utility almost in the country or the State. We're ‘hot stick’ Linemen here. There's usually not outages when we work on the line,” he said. Goodwin also highlighted the Union’s safety concerns, saying the Workers want a seat at the table to address these issues: “We lose probably about one Lineman every week throughout the entire United States and Canada. Very dangerous job. The safety concerns we're facing here is we have inaccurate maps. We have inexperienced supervisors.”

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Photo Courtesy Of IBEW Local 29’s Facebook Page.