At least 1.7 million US workers are exposed to respirable crystalline silica each year, this according to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). These exposures occur in a variety of industries, among them construction, sandblasting, mining, masonry, stone and quarry work, and in the rapidly expanding method of oil and gas extraction […]
My public health colleague, Adam Finkel, ScD, MPP, received the 2013 Alumni Leadership award from the Harvard School of Public Health. He challenges the assertion that scientists and researchers are supposed to be ‘neutral,’ not advocates.
APHA Annual Meeting
Amid minimum-wage votes and Walmart strikes, APHA OHS section honors workplace-safety champions
At the 141st meeting of the American Public Health Association (APHA) held last week in Boston, the organization’s Occupational Health & Safety section honored the achievements of some extraordinarily dedicated individuals and organizations whose efforts have been advancing workplace safety. While these awards are typically most meaningful to others in the field, events taking place […]
Environmental Health
Salmonella, crippled workers, tortured chickens, and toxic chemicals: Surely USDA is now ready to ditch its plan to “modernize” poultry inspection
How much more evidence does Secretary Vilsack need before he scraps the USDA’s ill-conceived proposal to “modernize” the poultry slaughter inspection process?
It takes time to change social norms, so it’ll probably take many, many years until it’s as socially unacceptable to text or use a cell phone while driving as it is to start the engine without first buckling a seat belt. In the meantime, researchers say, smart policies are needed to address the increasing share of pedestrian and bicyclist deaths attributed to distracted driving.
Environmental Health
Reporting workplace hazards: “If people are afraid to report, things don’t get fixed”
According to a new report from the Center for Effective Government, American workplace health and safety is suffering from – and as a result of – a serious lack of resources. While the number of US workplaces doubled between 1981 and 2011 and the number of US workers increased from 73 million to 129 million […]
Cancer
Toxicologist John Froines: epitome of irreproachable scientific research and effective public health advocacy
UCLA Professor Emeritus John Froines was awarded this week the 2013 Ramazzini Award from the internationally renowned Collegium Ramazzini. Professor Froines’ work represents the best of public health research: solid science with the highest integrity for the benefit of groups with little economic and political power.
Cancer
The air we breathe: WHO says air pollution is carcinogenic and urges action – scientists contend industry is hindering progress
On October 17, the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) announced that it has classified air pollution as a human carcinogen. Although the composition of air pollution and exposure levels vary widely from place to place, IARC says its assessment is applicable worldwide and notes that exposures in rapidly industrializing countries […]
Environmental Health
Despite shutdown, journalists finding plenty to report on coal miner fatalities
Reporters were shut out during the shutdown of access to agency information. That situation didn’t stop two of them from continuing to report on deaths of workers in the U.S. mining industry.
USDA continues to insist that worker safety concerns are OSHA’s responsibility, even in the face of overwhelming evidence that its proposed rule to “modernize” poultry slaughter inspection with dizzying line speeds will injure workers.