The fatal work-related injuries that killed John Dunnivant, 57, could have been prevented had his employer followed worker safety regulations.
Government
A Q&A with public health leaders on emergency preparedness: ‘It should be approached as a permanent and consistent part of what public health does, not a quick fix’
“All response is local” is a commonly heard phrase among public health practitioners who serve on the front lines of disease outbreaks, emergencies and disasters. Whether it’s a measles outbreak, a terrorist attack or a hurricane, public health agencies are at the ready to deploy an emergency response infrastructure designed for one overriding purpose: to protect their communities against preventable disease and injury.
Government
Massachusetts extends OSHA protections to state workers: It’s about ‘creating an infrastructure that supports health and safety’
Back in 1970 when the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration was established, local policymakers could choose whether or not to extend OSHA protections to state employees. Unfortunately, Massachusetts took a pass. But decades later — and after years of advocacy, organizing and research on the part of worker advocates — employees of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts can now look forward to safer and healthier workplaces.
Government
Blacklisting? Hardly. Congressmen exaggerate Obama’s Executive Order for government contractors
Some Members of Congress are calling a new Obama Administration policy requiring government contractors to disclose labor law violations “blacklisting.” I say that’s a big exaggeration.
Family-friendly workplace policies can have unintended consequences for women; building owner charged with murder in collapse of garment factory in Bangladesh; new standing recommendations proposed for office workers; and a famous food journalist calls for improved working conditions for food workers.
Government
Predicting key regulatory action on new worker safety protections should not be that difficult
OSHA and MSHA have a pathetic track record of estimating target dates for key regulatory action on new worker safety regulations. The Labor Department’s explanation for why they miss the mark just doesn’t hold up.
Affordable Care Act
Study: Poor eye health prevalent across the U.S. South, where poverty and vision loss often go together
Another day, another study that finds poverty is linked to adverse and often preventable health outcomes. This time, it’s vision loss.
Food & Water Watch released “Factory Farm Nation,” a report this week on the dominance of industrial beef, pork, chicken, dairy, and egg production in the US. Besides overuse of antibiotics, foodborne disease, water and air pollution, and loss of local independent farms, the mountains of manure are monstrous and largely unregulated.
For more than a decade, biologist Mariam Barlow has been working on the theory that administering antibiotics on a rotating basis could be a solution to antibiotic resistance. After years of research, Barlow had lots of data, but she needed a more precise way to make sense of it all — something that was so specific it could easily be used to treat patients. So, she joined forces with a team of mathematicians. And the amazing results could help solve an enormous, worldwide problem.
Education
Chicago organizers take on domestic worker health and safety: ‘We start with the idea that everyone deserves dignity and respect’
After 18 years as a professional house cleaner in the suburbs of Chicago, Magdalena Zylinska says she feels very lucky. Unlike many of her fellow domestic workers, she hasn’t sustained any serious injuries.