The Importance Of Workplace Safety

Beggining the Inspection

"Alright! If you'll follow us this way, we'll give you a quick tour of the place, and you can let us know what's up to code, and what needs fixing!" The Flash said, a grin spreading across his face as he gestured to the end of the platform, where a spiral staircase lead to the floor below.

Ted nodded, pulling a pen out of his vest pocket and clicking it open. He followed the three heroes ahead of him down the stairs, taking note of the solid support beams that held it up.

The large room at the bottom had three hallways branching out from it, all of them made of a solid looking metal and lit with long strips of light that stretched across the tops of them. There were also emergency lights that were evenly spaced out along the tunnels- close enough together to provide ample light and prevent tripping should people need to make a quick exit.

"The halls coming out of this room lead to the living quarters, training area, and the lab..." The Flash informed. "Where do you wanna start?"

"The lab," Ted said. "I understand that you have some rather experimental technology here, and I must ensure you've taken the proper precautions surrounding it..."

"In that case, right this way!" The Scarlet Speedster seemed to feel right at home acting as a tour guide, and he showed Ted down the hall, the other League members trailing close behind. He chatted idly to Ted the whole way, explaining what he knew about the building as they went. Ted took notes furiously, not wanting to miss a single detail. Thoroughness was one of the greatest tools on a Safety Inspector's utility belt.

"Alright, here's the entrance..." Superman said, abruptly cutting off another of the Flash's tangents. "You'll have to step back, Ted, so we can do biometrics."

"Wonderful," Ted said, marking that down as well. He carefully watched the multi-step process of scanning and voice authentification, followed by a password input.

"It's a bit much, but considering some of what we've got inside..." The Flash paused, making a face. "Actually, you might wanna stick close to us for most of this... and don't touch anything."

Ted looked him dead in the eyes, clipboard gripped precisely between his fingers. "Do you think I'm the type of man who won't take proper precautions in a lab?" He asked.

The Flash looked Ted up and down with his head-to-toe safety gear, high-vis vest, hard hat, and OSHA approved work boots. "You know, I think it's safe to assume you'll be careful."

"Then let's continue with the inspection," Ted said. He stepped into the lab, taking note of the proper doorway clearance, ample lighting, and copius signage. The lab was long, filled up with all sorts of fancy equipment- much of which looked rather experimental. But Ted had experience with experimental technologies, and that was part of the reason he had been chosen for this job.

He carefully made his way down the narrow hall of the lab, keeping well within the yellow and black striped markers that showed where it was safe to stand. Another thing up to code, which he checked off his clipboard.

He silently made his way to the back of the lab where he found a young man comprised mostly of machinery, high tech silver plating making up a large portion of his body that gleamed in the lab's florescent lights. Cyborg. He was tinkering with a low cylindrical pad on the floor, which Ted immediately recognized as a zeta teleporter.

"Cyborg," Ted said, extending his hand. The hero stood up, retracting the wrench he had extended from his hand and accepting Ted's handshake. "I'm Ted Jenkins, OSHA certified safety inspector."

"Oh, yes... They told me you'd be coming..." He said, "Here to check out the lab?"

"Yes, and I have to say... it's looking good so far... although to bring this fully up to code you'll definitely need more fire extinguishers."

"Oh," Superman said, glancing towards the single red extinguisher that sat on the far wall of the room, tucked next to a large freezer that contained several biological samples. "Well, we always figured between the freeze breath, super speed, and plenty of other powers represented here in the League, we'd be more than able to deal with that. I mean, containing fires is a pretty big part of our job."

Ted looked up at the man of steel, his eyes narrowed seriously. "Superman. Do you know what the most important statues in the word are? It's not the law, not the constitution, and it's not our personal codes of conduct towards our fellow man. No. The law-makers, our own moral compasses, and even the united assembly of our world's nations don't hold a candle to what's really important. The iron-clad statues of workplace safety."

Several of the heroes blinked in surprise, while Batman stood, arms crossed behind them. His expression didn't betray whatever he was feeling underneath the mask.

"Your abilities, while superhuman, do not place you above the law, above your duty to help others around you. So why. Why would you think for even a moment, that you are above the most important principles of all? The principles of safety." Ted reached into his pocket and pulled out the thick but portable manual he carried with him at all times. It was still in the pristine condition he received it in when he joined OSHA- his safety manual. "Man, mortal, superman-- the one thing that unites us, the one thing we all bow before is this. Workplace safety."

Superman blinked in suprise, caught off guard by the seriousness in Ted's voice, the intensity in his eyes.

"The rules and regulations of Workplace Safety are the one thing holding our world back from anarchy." Ted stated plainly, starring right up that several Superheroes standing before him. "No workplace that shows such a blatant disregard for the most important, most necessary, most beloved statues holding our society together, will be left open on my watch. Put fire extinguishers in this room or so help me there will ne consequences. A hefty fine from OSHA."

There was a moment of silence as the members of the Justice League looked at Ted, processing his words.

"Well that was... something," Cybord said, looking up between Ted and the heroes flanking him. "Where'd you find this guy?"

"He's the best of the best," Batman said. He turned to the inspector. "We'll take note of the fire extinguishers, Ted."

"Good." Ted scribbled something else on his clipboard, then he heard the sounds of the doors opening once again. He looked up and saw Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter enter, the former carrying a cryogenic jar with a large lock between her hands.

"Oh, the safety inspector's here," Wonder Woman said, nodding in Ted's direction.

"Welcome, Ted Jenkins," Martian Manhunter said. "We apologize for the intrusion. We are merely storing this away for safe keeping."

"Safety! Wonderful," Ted said, making his way towards them. "May I ask a few questions?"

"Sure," Wonder Woman said, setting it down on the counter just in front of her. A bright green light on the side of the metal container glowed steadily, and a small screen next to it read the temperature: -272 degrees Celcius.

"What's in the jar?" Ted asked, holding his pen up expectantly.

"A sample of a very dangerous enemy," Martian Manhunter said. "We've brought it here for study."

"Biological material, then?" Ted asked. "I assume you'll be taking the proper storage precautions then."

"The containers state of the art," Cyborg said, giving it a slap on top like one would a car.

"I'd appreciate a less cavalier handling of dangerous materials," Ted told him, marking it down. "So, could you tell me any specifics?"

"It's a piece of Starro," Wonder Woman said.

"We're hoping to learn more of his mind control abilities," Martian Manhunter informed, gesturing to the jar. "After past battles with him, we're hoping that this clone of his can give us insight on how to better defeat him."

"I see," Ted said. So far everything was looking good, although he had just one more question. "Is that light supposed to be blinking red?"