Minnesota lawmakers have passed a bill that will increase the amount of highly trained contract workers at refineries, which they believe will help to reduce their risk of injuries or major disasters.
Efforts to increase safety standards at oil refineries in Minnesota became a priority after an explosion at a nearby refinery in Superior, Wis., injured more than 30 people and caused hundreds of millions of dollars in damages. Under the new bill, a certain percentage of all third-party contracted employees working at the refinery must either be apprentices or graduates of a registered program. This percentage of skilled contract workers will slowly increase until it represents 60 percent of the contracted workforce by January 1, 2026.
Oil Refinery Injury Compensation
Enforcement of the new threshold will be handled by the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, which would investigate complaints or begin investigations on their own. Refineries could face fines of between $5,000 and $10,000 for each violation.
“This bill came around because workers in refineries were seeing unsafe practices, they were seeing things that needed to be corrected,” said state Sen. Judy Seeberger, DFL-Afton, who sponsored the bill this session.
Opponents of the bill said the requirements were too burdensome, but proponents say that highly skilled workers are needed when working in a position that could cause massive destruction if they aren’t properly trained for the role.
“If there’s a problem at the refinery, it’s different than if there’s an accident at the warehouse. This has global implications,” said Rep. Nolan West, R-Blaine, who was one of the GOP legislators who joined Democrats in sponsoring the measure. “It’s a good idea to make sure the people working there have top-notch training.”
It’s nice to see that Minnesotans working in oil refineries will soon be able to have more faith that their coworkers are properly trained to help keep others safe in the workplace, and it’s good to see that it didn’t take an accident in Minnesota to spark change. A problem at an oil refinery can lead to mass casualties in a matter of seconds, so it’s imperative that workers have the right kind of training and education.
Despite the new measures, we know that accidents and injuries in oil refineries across Minnesota will still take place, and you need to collect the compensation that you are owed if you end up getting injured on the job. If you were injured while working at a refinery, or in another large scale plant across Minnesota, make sure that you reach out to an experienced injury lawyer like the team at Hey Workers. We’ll put together a strong claim on your behalf so that you can focus on your health and your family. For more information on how we can help you in the wake of an injury, or to talk with a lawyer to see if you may have a valid claim, reach out to the team at Hey Workers today at (844) 439-9675.
