The Occupational Safety and Health Act at 50—A Labor Perspective

Correspondence should be sent to Margaret M. Seminario, 4 Kentbury Way, Bethesda, MD 20814 (e-mail: moc.liamg@822oiranimesp). Reprints can be ordered at http://www.ajph.org by clicking the “Reprints” link.

In 1970, Congress passed the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act), with the goal of providing workers a safe and healthful place to work. The law did not just happen—it took decades of struggles by unions and workers and only came following workplace and environmental tragedies, part of a wave of federal legislation to protect workers, the public, and the environment from harm. And like many of the laws enacted at the time, it was based upon a foundation of setting and enforcing protective standards, with the federal government—in this case the Department of Labor—given the responsibility to carry out the law in collaboration with the states. In addition, the OSH Act gave workers and their representatives important new rights, including filing complaints, requesting onsite inspections, accessing information, and seeking new protective standards.

The law has been described as radical and revolutionary, fundamentally changing the balance of power between the government and employers and between workers and employers on a central workplace issue. While the law established a framework and structure for the government to exercise authority and power to advance new protections and oversee compliance, it did not establish a framework and structure for safety and health in the workplace. There were no requirements for the establishment of workplace safety and health programs, safety and health committees, worker safety and health representatives, or basic core safety and health training for workers. That was left to collective bargaining between unions and employers and future regulatory efforts.

Thus, the success of the law has been tied largely to the commitment and actions of the government—both at the federal and state level—to support and advance stronger worker safety and health protections, and the effectiveness of unions and other safety and health advocates in pushing the government to act.

For the past 50 years, unions and allies have raised key safety and health issues and pushed for stronger standards, greater worker rights, and tougher enforcement of the law. Virtually all of the major standards issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)—asbestos, lead, hazard communication, silica, bloodborne pathogens, lockout or tagout, and confined space entry, to name a few—were the result of petitions, lawsuits, and direct action by workers, unions, and other safety and health advocates. Unions have sought increased funding and staffing for OSHA and the other job safety agencies. And unions and safety and health advocates have pushed to hold the agency accountable for its failures to act while at the same time defending the agency and the law against endless industry attacks aimed at weakening protections.

Nearly 50 years after the law went into effect and OSHA was created, there is no question that real progress has been made. Work-related deaths have declined dramatically—from 14 000 in 1970 to 5250 deaths in 2018—with high-hazard industries such as construction seeing the greatest reductions in the numbers and rate of fatalities. The same is true for work-related injuries and exposures to key toxic substances such as asbestos and benzene.

OSHA standards have dramatically changed norms and practices. Just think about how asbestos removal is handled today—with enclosures, full body personal protective equipment, and more—compared with decades ago when few control measures were employed and workers were provided little protection.

Similarly, OSHA enforcement has changed practice and improved conditions, both through emphasis programs that focus on high-hazard industries like meat packing and poultry processing and inspections at individual workplaces with high injury rates or in response to complaints. It is well documented that OSHA inspections improve conditions, reducing exposures and injuries.

When there has been strong leadership and commitment and OSHA has focused its efforts, the agency has made a real and lasting difference, even in the face of strong opposition from industry groups and their political allies.

But the fact is, over the decades, OSHA’s ability to address major safety and health issues and problems has greatly diminished.

Federal OSHA and the state OSHA plans are responsible for overseeing the safety and health of 160 million workers at more than 8 million workplaces, twice as many as when the OSH Act was passed in 1970. 1 But in fiscal year 2018, there were fewer than 1900 federal and state OSHA inspectors; federal OSHA had just 752 inspectors, the lowest number since the early 1970s when the agency began its work. Currently, federal OSHA is able to inspect workplaces under its jurisdiction on average only once every 165 years. The agency’s budget, even with a small increase to $582 million in fiscal year 2020, is significantly less in real dollar terms than a decade ago. 2

OSHA’s ability to issue needed standards is also seriously constrained. In its 50-year history, federal OSHA has issued standards for 32 toxic substances. The standard-setting process has gotten harder and longer as layers of procedural and analytical requirements have been added, and industry and political opposition has intensified. Early on, it took OSHA one to three years to issue new standards for major hazards. The most recent standards—silica and beryllium issued during the Obama administration—took 20 years. For most hazards, standards are out of date or nonexistent. OSHA cannot address even long-recognized problems, let alone the emerging hazards, that put workers in danger, such as workplace violence.

Today’s workplaces and workforce are much different than those in 1970. The service sector has grown significantly while manufacturing has declined. Women make up a much larger segment of the workforce, which is also much more diverse. Employment structures and relationships are more fissured and fragmented, making it more difficult to determine employer responsibility for compliance with safety requirements. Declines in unionization have resulted in fewer workers covered by the protection of a collective bargaining agreement, making them more vulnerable to retaliation for raising job safety concerns. Yet the OSH Act remains largely unchanged since 1970, and federal OSHA has struggled to keep up with these changes.

The OSH Act and OSHA program need to be strengthened and modernized building on what has been established. The Act must be extended to cover the millions of public employees who still lack legal protection; penalties must be strengthened, including making criminal offenses a felony instead of a misdemeanor; and whistleblower protections must be improved so workers can exercise their rights. The law should require all employers to establish a safety and health program, which fully involves workers and their representatives, to identify and fix hazards, whether the hazard is covered by a specific OSHA standard or not.

The law must also be brought into the 21st century, making all employers jointly responsible for safety and health at multiemployer worksites and by requiring active coordination and collaboration among employers to address safety and health issues. Permissible exposure limits for toxic chemicals must be updated to reflect currently recognized and recommended standards.

Like the passage of the OSH Act of 1970 and other safety and health gains, this will not just happen. It will require organizing and direct action by workers, their unions, and other safety and health activists and advocates to demand that the promise of safe jobs for all workers finally be fulfilled.

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

The author has no conflicts of interest to declare.