115 Workers Honored at Worker Memorial Day Ceremony April 28
Summary
Washington State's Labor & Industries department will hold its 33rd annual Worker Memorial Day ceremony on April 28, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. at its Tumwater headquarters to honor 115 workers who died from workplace incidents. Of those being memorialized, 89 died in 2025 while 26 died in prior years; chemical exposure was the leading cause of death, accounting for 49 workers including 13 firefighters and at least 12 Hanford workers. The event will be streamed live, and L&I Director Joel Sacks emphasized workplace safety culture as the best way to honor fallen workers.
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GovPing monitors WA LnI News Releases for new labor & employment regulatory changes. Every update since tracking began is archived, classified, and available as free RSS or email alerts — 6 changes logged to date.
What changed
This news release announces the 33rd annual Worker Memorial Day ceremony to honor 115 workers killed on the job, with chemical exposure, blunt force injuries, vehicle crashes, and falls as leading causes. The ceremony will include reading the workers' names with bell ringers from local fire departments. The public is invited to attend in person or via livestream at L&I's Tumwater headquarters.\n\nAffected parties include employers, workers, and families of fallen workers. While this is a commemorative event rather than a new regulatory requirement, Director Sacks's statement emphasizes that fostering a workplace safety culture is the most meaningful way to honor those lost. Employers may use this occasion to reinforce internal safety protocols.
Scheduled event
- Date
- 2026-04-28 at 14:00
- Location
- Tumwater, WA
Archived snapshot
Apr 23, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
Washington to honor 115 at Worker Memorial Day ceremony
April 23, 2026 #26-06 TUMWATER — A logger crushed by a falling tree, a security guard gunned down by an active shooter, and a baseball coach who gave his own life trying to save one of his players caught in the ocean surf are among the 115 workers being honored at the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) 2026 Worker Memorial Day Ceremony.
This year’s state observance is planned for Tuesday, April 28, 2:00 p.m., at L&I’s headquarters building in Tumwater. ****
People are invited to attend in person, and the event will also be streamed live.
Chemical exposure, blunt trauma, and vehicle crashes lead workplace deaths Eighty-nine of the 115 workers being memorialized this year died in 2025. The remaining 26 passed away before last year but were not included in previous ceremonies.
Forty-nine died from exposure to toxic chemicals at work. Thirteen of them were firefighters, and at least a dozen worked at Hanford. Others worked as pipefitters, mechanics, construction workers, and other industries that work with hazardous chemicals.
Other leading causes of death include blunt force or crushing injuries, motor vehicle accidents, and falls. ****
“Each year this ceremony is one of the most important, and perhaps most difficult, things we do,” said L&I Director Joel Sacks. “It’s a reminder of how important workplace safety is, and of the real-life, heartbreaking impact of work-related deaths.”
“The best way to honor fallen workers is to focus on preventing these tragedies from happening in the first place—to encourage employers and workers to create a workplace culture centered around safety,” said Sacks.
Joint observance to share responsibility for workplace safety Along with Director Sacks, Governor Bob Ferguson and representatives from the Washington State Labor Council, the Association of Washington Business, and Washington Self-Insurers Association will speak.
Also sharing their story will be Bob and Gail Spurrell, the parents of a river guide honored during last year’s ceremony. Mike Spurrell died when his raft flipped while he was working as a river guide on a whitewater rafting trip.
During the ceremony, the names of the workers who died will be read, accompanied by bell ringers from the Olympia and Tumwater Fire Departments. After the ceremony, families are invited to ring the brass bell in the Worker Memorial garden on the grounds of L&I’s headquarters.
This is the 33rd time L&I has held the annual Worker Memorial Day ceremony. It’s one of many events in April honoring fallen workers across the nation.
Details
What: Worker Memorial Day Ceremony.
When: April 28, 2026, 2 p.m. (PST).
Where: L&I Headquarters 7273 Linderson Way SW, Tumwater, WA 98501
Who: Families, friends, L&I employees, and the public are invited to attend the event in person or watch the ceremony via livestream (lni.wa.gov/workermemorialday) and on L&I’s Facebook page. ****
For media information: Dina Lorraine, L&I Public Affairs, 360-972-4868.
Connect with L&I:
Facebook (www.facebook.com/laborandindustries)
X (x.com/lniwa) Communication Services | www.Lni.wa.gov/news-events
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