WHEREAS:

            The Alaska Department of Labor Building Condition Survey of Water Staining at Interior Finishes Leases 1607 and 1632, 1111 West 8th Avenue, Juneau, Alaska Final Report was issued January 4, 2012; and

WHEREAS:

            The 44 page report includes Interior Observations, Investigations, Discussions and Conclusions, General Recommendations, Figures, Appendix, and the final reports of two laboratory samples; and

WHEREAS:  

            Nonviable Swab Analysis indicates Fungi Found: Penicillium sp.-Spores and conidiophores in both test samples; and

WHEREAS:

            Nonviable Swab Analysis indicates Fungi Found: Stachybotrys chartarum-Spores and conidiophores, suggesting active growth in both test samples; and

WHEREAS:

            The average number of employees in the above stated location is approximately 300 employees in the building daily; and

WHEREAS:  

            There are 35 cancer cases known in that population over the past couple of decades; and

WHEREAS:  

            10 of those 35 employees have lost their battles with cancer; and

WHEREAS:

            Working in a facility with mold could cause fungal infection which could be life-threatening in a patient receiving chemotherapy; and

WHEREAS:

            The United States Department of Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, does not regulate mold or mold spores in indoor air; and

WHEREAS:  

            Currently there are women with severe mold infections in their lungs and unable to work; and

WHEREAS:  

            An entire work group had to be relocated away from the most prominently effected area since the release of this report; and

WHEREAS:  

            Every employee has the right to work in a non-lethal indoor environment; and

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED:

            That AFSCME International, fully acknowledges the need for safe and non-lethal work environments in regards to the existence of molds for all employees; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED:

            That AFSCME International will press the United States Congress for policy in the federal government to study and to regulate mold or mold spores in indoor air with regard to health and safety during human habitation.