Council Member Moya at the Rally for Carlos’ Law (Council Member Francisco Moya Twitter)
April, 22, 2019 By Meghan Sackman
Council Member Francisco Moya gathered with other officials and labor leaders on Thursday to demand the passage of Carlos’ Law, state legislation that aims to protect the lives of construction workers from dangerous building sites.
Moya, along with Assembly Members Marcos Crespo and Carmen de la Rosa, Building Trades Council President Gary LaBarbera, and laborers, rallied on the steps of City Hall last week and called on Albany to pass Carlos’ Law
The legislation, written by then- Assembly Member Moya in 2015 and supported by late state Sen. Jose Peralta, was prompted by the death of 22-year-old Carlos Moncayo, who was buried alive on a construction site in Manhattan in 2015 while directed to perform illegal excavation work.
The company responsible for the tragedy, which was eventually found guilty of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide, was only fined $10,000.
Carlos’ law would create class D and E felonies for developers whose negligence causes the death of a worker and raises the fine to $500,000.
The urgency for this bill resurfaced after three New York construction workers, Nelson Salinas, Erik Mendoza and Gregory Echevarria, died earlier this month as a result of working in unsafe construction related situations.
“Our skyline should not be built with the blood of workers or symbolize the tears of their families,” Moya said. “We cannot continue romanticizing the cruel sacrifices that construction workers are asked or forced to make.”
“State lawmakers must immediately pass Carlos’ Law to protect the workers who put their lives at risk on a daily basis in the name of progress.”
The bill has passed the Democratic-controlled Assembly twice in the past, but was stopped both times by the Senate, where Republicans were in the majority. Both chambers are now controlled by the Democrats.
