ALBANY, Ga. (WALB) – The second work-related death of a City of Albany employee has continued to raise several questions about more than just the city's safety protocols.
On December 18, Sebastian Dykes Jr. died after a moat wall collapsed on him. Two days later, the city of Albany announced it would conduct an internal investigation into the tragedy, but why?
WALB learned that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) does not have jurisdiction in this case because Georgia does not have an OSHA program for state or local government employees.
Two families affected
“We were robbed. A life was taken. A good life,” said Sebastian Dykes, Sr. Sebastian’s father.
When Sebastian died, he was only 15 months into his job as a city employee. Ten months before his death, another City of Albany employee, Darrious Stephens, also died on the job.
Sebastian's father believes the city of Albany failed to implement proper safety protocols in both cases. The families of the two young men expressed serious safety concerns to WALB News. All of our questions remained unanswered, but Albany Mayor Bo Dorough issued a public statement Friday.
“Tragic accidents like this happen, and while nothing we do now will change what happened, we will learn from this incident and review our policies and procedures,” he said.
Who is responsible for protecting public employees in Georgia?
OSHA officials tell me they have no jurisdiction over public employees, which is why the city of Albany is conducting its own internal investigation. Instead, it is the State Personnel Board This protects public sector employees.
The State Personnel Board is appointed by the Governor. It provides policy guidelines and government employment standards. Similar to OSHA, the agency requires all employers to promptly report injuries and deaths, but the agency itself does not investigate work-related deaths or inspect the work environment.
Gibson said even though the board is in place, not enough is being done to protect public employees.
“We need to be better informed. We need to be better educated about what we should and should not do. We need to put policies and procedures in place,” she said.
What can affected families do?
Gibson said families unhappy with the city's internal investigation have limited options. You will need to hire your own private investigator, which can be extremely expensive. Civil lawsuits can also be filed.
Sebastian's family just wants to put him to rest for now. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation was scheduled to conduct an autopsy on his body on Monday.
“I just want the message to get across that the employer respects its employee. They are human beings,” Sebastian’s father said.
It is not yet known when the City of Albany will complete its internal investigation, but WALB plans to follow up and file an open records request to get more answers.
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