In Pennsylvania, the public sector does not have operate with federal OSHA (Occupational Safety & Health Administration) workplace safety standards.

“Because of that, there is trainings that they're not getting. There's reporting standards that aren't being upheld to, in the public sector necessarily, that are in the private sector,” Angela Ferritto said, president of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO.

There are around 600,000 public sector workers in the Commonwealth— from county administrators to public school teachers, to sanitation workers and plow drivers.

For 10 years, Representative Pat Harkins (D-Erie) has sponsored a bill to bring the public sector under OSHA standards. This session’s bill is H.B. 308, and it was brought up for a vote on the House floor today.

Harkin's dedication to the issue is inspired by personal loss in Erie.

In November of 2014, Jake Schwab, an employee with Erie’s Metropolitan Transit Authority, went to do some maintenance work.

“He lifted a bus up with the wrong capacity jack, that was given to him,” Harkins said on the House floor today. "And the mechanism in the bus fell on him and crushed him.”

Schwab died a few days later.

Advocates say that OSHA standards can help prevent future tragedies… and provide transparency for if accidents and fatalities do happen.

“Studies have shown that workplaces with strong safety regulations experience fewer accidents when safety guidelines are in place and enforced,” Harkins said.

H.B. 308 passed the House this afternoon with 111 yes votes. Some Republicans were cautious that OSHA over regulates or creates jurisdiction over more institutions than what is required.

“Let’s take time, bring something across the table that we can all celebrate that makes workers safe and does not overreach in areas where we just don't need to do that at this time,” Rep. Eric Nelson said, a Republican from Westmoreland County.

The bill has been opposed by the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania. Harkins said that conversations continue with the commissioners and other groups wary of the change, and he hopes for progress in the Senate.