I don't know where else to ask this question but I follow this thread closely and you all mostly have the right attitude regarding work and… ethical treatment of just being treated like human beings. So here goes…
I've been at this job for almost 3 months. I can't say that I'm fond of it but I need a job. I work on an assembly line and I build hundreds of the same item, sometimes different versions but more or less the same thing. Today I was spraying out a ball bearing of old lubricant. Again, hundreds of these built, countless times 100% of the time, a mist of wet fluid comes out. I cover the bearing with my rag and it mists Into it. Today, out of nowhere, instead of a wet mist, after triggering the burst of air and a ginormous brown dust mushroom came out and covered my face. It went into my eyes (despite wearing glasses) and my mouth. I instinctively covered my face but it was too late. It burned my throat and eyes and I couldn't see for the 10 mins I was coughing up a lung from the cloud. I fumbled to the eye wash station and took care of my face and eyes.
I tried reporting it to a supervisor but couldn't find one for 20 mins. By then my eyes wanted to stay shut and burned. They insisted I do the eye wash in front of them. Again, I flushed them out and they sent me back on the line and told me they'd check on me later. Later came and went and I powered thru, my vision slowly getting worse and my coworkers told me my eyes looked closed externally but I felt they were open and I could still see. I waited until break to again say it got worse and asked to go see a doctor. They felt like sandpaper and wanted to stay closed. My supervisor ran to the owner/boss and told him and they both pried(sp?) my eyes open and told me they looked fine and gave me clear eyes and sent me back on the line.
It sorta helped for 30 mins but then turned into less sandy feel, to wanting to stay shut and puffy. Like you hadn't slept in days and just spent hours crying. Lunch came and they grabbed me before and since I'm still not better, finally sent me to their eye doctor.
I'm sitting in the optometrist chair now and this… Behavior isn't sitting right with me. I felt like they were doing everything they could to keep me from going to the doctor and staying on the line. This is really not sitting right with me. While I'm all for being a team player, I can't help but feel this was treating me more like a number having to meet a quota and less like a person. This happened on shift at 6:30 and at 11:15, they finally sent me off. I'm not crazy right? This doesn't seem right to me.