Not good for NIOSH health

Unsung heroes

Donald Trump hit the ground running when he entered his second term of office as President of the United States, by swiftly signing a large number of executive orders, many of which seem to have upset the established world order.  As global markets reeled under his imposed trade tariffs during the week I wrote this blog, another story slipped under the radar.

The President’s ‘Department of Government Efficiency’ Workforce Optimization Initiative has ordered the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to slash two-thirds of its 1,300-person workforce.

Who are they?

America’s Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 established NIOSH as a research institute focused on the study of worker safety & health (as opposed to OSHA, the enforcement agency).

You may remember the part played by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) during the COVID-19 pandemic? 

NIOSH forms part of the CDC, though is probably under-recognised for its significant contributions to improving global health and safety standards over the decades through several key initiatives including:

• Prevention of workplace injuries
• Health hazard evaluations to identify and address workplace hazards
• Disease surveillance programmes tracking occupational illnesses and injuries
• Ergonomics research to prevent musculoskeletal disorders
• Workplace violence prevention strategies
• Noise-induced hearing loss prevention
• Research on emerging workplace health concerns like nanotechnology hazards
• Conducting studies on COVID-19 transmission in workplaces, effectiveness of preventive measures, and impacts on worker populations and provided expertise to employers, workers, and health departments on workplace controls, ventilation improvements, and other engineering solutions.

And there’s more

• NIOSH scientific findings on occupational exposures, ergonomics, and safety interventions are referenced worldwide by regulatory bodies and multinational organisations.  For example, the UK’s Health & Safety Executive (and its international counterparts) derive many occupational exposure standards from NIOSH research.
• NIOSH works closely with the World Health Organization (whom President Trump also wants to withdraw from) on global occupational health initiatives and it partners with the International Labour Organization to develop and implement workplace safety programs
• NIOSH runs training programs and provides technical assistance to help developing countries build their occupational health infrastructure
• World Trade Center Health Program provides care to survivors of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Unpredictability

One word I sometimes hear journalists use to describe the President is “unpredictable”, and he has been known to row back on some of his directives after a bit of persuasion.  Let’s hope so in the case of NIOSH. 

A significantly diminished NIOSH will be a loss to the whole world of work.

How Arinite helps

Arinite is one of few health & safety consultancies to offer: “global locally based health and safety consultants”. 

We are headquartered in London which serves as the base of many multinational corporations, and have many years’ expertise in helping clients harmonise H&S standards worldwide.

Contact us

Arinite clients appreciate we provide practical, no-nonsense advice about what you need to do to establish and maintain a safe and healthy working environment.

Our team of health and safety consultants take pride in keeping health and safety simple.

If you need to call upon our expert assistance, or just for an informal chat, please call our office +44 (0) 207 947 9581, or type an enquiry to: https://www.arinite.com/contact-us/.

Jan Mirkowski