In 1970, 18 out of every 100,000 workers were killed on the job—a total of nearly 14,000 dead. That same year, President Richard Nixon signed legislation creating the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
As OSHA celebrates its 40th birthday this month, we also celebrate safer and healthier workplaces. Workplace fatality, injury, and illness rates are down more than 65 percent since 1970, thanks in large part to OSHA’s efforts.
Despite this progress, workers still face many dangers. Every year more than 4,000 workers die on the job and more than 4 million suffer work-related injuries and illnesses. OSHA must stay vigilant and keep up with ever-changing occupational hazards.
Please join the Center for American Progress for a conversation about the agency’s past and future. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for OSHA, will talk with workers about changes they have seen on the ground. He will also talk with experts from labor and business about OSHA’s latest policies and actions.
Featured speaker:
David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health
Introduction by:
John Podesta, President and CEO, Center for American Progress
Featured panelists:
Cathy Stoddart, Staff Nurse, Allegheny General Hospital, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, SEIU
Mike Weibel, United Steelworkers/Goodyear Safety and Health Coordinator, Goodyear Tire and Rubber, Topeka, Kansas
Peg Seminario, Director of Safety and Health, AFL-CIO
Joseph Van Houten, Senior Director of Worldwide Environment, Health, and Safety, Johnson & Johnson
David Weil, Professor of Economics, Boston University School of Management
Moderated by:
Reece Rushing, Director of Government Reform, Center for American Progress