Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-27) is reporting victory for hundreds of former Bethlehem Steel workers and their families in the battle for fair compensation for their service to this nation.

“The members of the Bethlehem Steel Action group never gave up and when the government turned their back on these hard-working Western New Yorkers we forced them to listen,” said Congressman Higgins. “Through their persistence, Bethlehem Steel families are finally seeing well deserved success in their long, hard fight.”

According to data requested by Congressman Higgins, between August 13 and November 7 the U.S. Department of Labor paid 271 claims made on behalf of former Bethlehem Steel employees totaling over $22.25 million.

During the Cold War era, workers at Bethlehem Steel and other facilities helped build the nuclear arsenal.  Without adequate monitoring or protections, many of these people were exposed to high levels of radiation, which in many has led to cancer or other health problems. 

The toll that these workers have paid from the toxic exposure has cost many lives and resulted in significant suffering for their families.  The workers, and their survivors, fought for years for a fair benefit from the program that was established to help them.   While the Bethlehem Steel site in Lackawanna, NY falls within the definition of an atomic weapons employer facility,  many of the records from that time period are unavailable or incomplete leaving Bethlehem Steel families frustrated by bureaucratic roadblocks for nearly a decade.

The late Ed Walker made this issue the cause of his life.  He knew more about the intricacies of these facilities than most, and he knew, before many others would admit, that the system set up to deal with the Bethlehem Steel workers was painfully flawed and needed to be fixed.  That’s why he led the effort for Bethlehem Steel workers to be placed in a Special Exposure Cohort and founded the Bethlehem Steel Action Group.

Congressman Higgins attended several of the Bethlehem Steel retirees meetings to hear first-hand the plight of Ed Walker and the other Bethlehem Steel families.   The Congressman’s office began by fighting case-by-case for the merits of the applications of local residents, including a letter in support of Ed Walker’s application in 2007.  In 2008, Ed lost his fight with cancer but his fight for fair relief for local families continued when Congressman Higgins and Senator Schumer introduced the Ed Walker Memorial Act.  

Congressman Higgins fought for Washington to listen and at his request the Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker Health agreed to host a meeting in Western New York.  After reviewing the evidence and hearing from local families the Board agreed to grant the designation that will allow local families to get the compensation they deserve.  Over the last few months hundreds of qualifying local families began to receive benefits that cover health costs and provide compensation for those impacted.

Ed’s wife, Joyce Walker added, “I feel very relieved that this has been finalized and people are now being compensated.  I know in my heart that this is what Ed was striving for.  I can see him smiling now.”