Vigil Honors Those Who Died In Workplace Accidents

BOSTON (CBS) -- We've seen a number of workplace tragedies this year, with the most recent happening last week in a Braintree water tower. On Tuesday, a vigil aimed to highlight those deaths and the need for change.

The purpose of today's vigil was to bring attention to the number of workplace injuries and deaths in Massachusetts, and to ensure that working conditions are improved to prevent injuries on the job.

An empty dinner table was set up as a symbol of the number of families who will not be able to celebrate the holidays together because of a work place death.

Last year, the Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health said the state reached a five-year high for deaths. They claim 63 people were killed on the job, many of them immigrant workers.

"We're all brothers, all good guys. They put their boots on, went to work,  and didn't make it home at the end of the day," one worker said emotionally. "They just got up to do a job, a lot of them didn't come home to see their family."

The parents of Colleen Ritzer, a teacher murdered while at work, were also at the vigil.

Advocates are calling for the legislature to pass a bill that will give workers more protection on the job.