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Secretary Walsh: Fifty years ago, something in our country changed –
for the better. OSHA was created –
the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
From that point on, a safe workplace was no longer
a privilege for a few. It was a right of every worker.
I started out as a construction worker, like my father before me.
I’ve seen these changes that save lives.
Before OSHA, workers didn’t have the most basic protections
to keep them safe and healthy on the job.
But in 50 years, OSHA helped transform America’s workplaces.
That’s cut down on deaths, injuries and illnesses
in a major way.
Yet, there is more work to do.
Too many workers still get hurt, get sick,
or even lose their life on the job.
We owe it to millions of workers who get up and do their
jobs every day to protect the fundamental right of every
worker to a safe and healthy workplace.
It’s their labor that supports families, communities,
and keeps this nation moving.
So as we rebuild our economy,
we’re going to put safety and health first –
for all of our workers, no matter what industries or what jobs.
We’re going to keep protecting them from COVID-19.
And we’re going to keep fighting for a
future when no worker ever has to sacrifice their life
or health for a job.
So on this historic anniversary of OSHA’s creation,
I want to say thank you.
Thank you for half a century of making the workplace safer and healthier.
And may the next 50 years bring even more progress
for the American worker.
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NARRATOR: On December 29, 1970,
the Occupational Safety and Health Act was signed into law,
establishing a new federal agency to set and enforce
workplace safety and health protections for American workers.
On April 28, 1971, OSHA first opened its doors,
and in its first half century, the agency has helped
transform America's workplaces in ways that have significantly reduced
workplace fatalities, injuries, and illnesses.
In its initial years, OSHA issued the first
federal workplace health and safety standards.
FMR ASST SECY MORTON CORN: The agency was the instrument of a
revolutionary law. I always looked upon it as insuring
Americans of a new right in the Bill of Rights.
The right to a safe and healthful workplace.
NARRATOR: The agency’s first standard provided
worker protections from asbestos.
Health standards for lead, carcinogens, and cotton dust,
as well as construction safety standards
followed in that first decade.
FMR ASST SECY EULA BINGHAM: One of the most important - I’d say
memorable events was having the cotton dust standard ready to go out.
NARRATIOR: These initial standards have significantly
reduced worker exposures to these hazards and helped
to prevent workers from dying or suffering chronic disease
or serious injury.
In its second decade, OSHA issued standards giving workers
the right to know which chemicals they may be exposed to,
and requiring employers to provide workers and their
doctors with medical and exposure records.
The agency also established its first cooperative program –
the Voluntary Protection Program, or VPP.
OSHA’s cooperative programs provide businesses, labor groups,
and other organizations the opportunity to work with
the agency to improve workplace health and safety.
The 1980s also brought important worker protections
for combustible grain dust, trenching, noise,
and hazardous energy.
The 1990s brought a Chemical Process Safety Management standard
to protect workers from the risks
of chemical fires and explosions.
New and stronger standards addressed falls,
blood-borne pathogens, and toxic substances.
ASST SECY DAVID MICHAELS: When you go into a hospital
or any sort of health care facility now there’s a sharps container
on the wall, everybody is wearing gloves,
there’s special equipment to make sure people
aren’t stuck with needles,
that’s all because of the standards that OSHA put out
during the AIDS, the HIV AIDS epidemic.
Most people in hospitals have no idea that those precautions
are in place because OSHA made them.
OSHA put them into place.
NARRATOR: Workers in confined spaces,
longshoring and marine terminals,
and laboratories also gained stronger protections.
For the first time, Safety and Health training became widely
available at the first OSHA Education Centers,
and the new Strategic Partnership Program
expanded collaboration with employers.
Shortly after the dawn of the new century,
the nation was forever changed by the terrorist attacks
on September 11th, 2001.
FMR ASST SECY JOHN HENSHAW: I came in to Lower Manhattan,
and everything was dark from Canal Street all the way down.
Our folks were already there working issues
and trying to understand what the risks are.
NARRATOR: The 9/11 response and recovery efforts shaped
how OSHA and the federal government have responded
to subsequent disasters or events,
such as Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy,
and the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
The 2000s also saw new standards to protect
construction workers in steel erection and prevent exposure
to hexavalent chromium.
In its fifth decade, OSHA issued standards for silica dust,
beryllium, cranes, confined spaces,
and the classification and labeling of work-related chemicals.
The Severe Violator Enforcement Program was established
to place an inspection emphasis on employers with a history
of safety and health violations.
The agency also launched several initiatives to address
serious workplace issues, including fall prevention,
youth safety, heat illness, trench safety,
and suicide prevention.
And in 2020, OSHA launched a historic response
to protect workers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
FMR ASST SECY DAVID MICHAELS: When OSHA issues a standard
it makes a huge difference. I don’t think there’s any question
OSHA has prevented millions of injuries
and saved thousands of lives.
ASST SECY DOUGLAS PARKER: From issuing and enforcing
workplace health and safety standards,
to extensive compliance assistance
to help employers keep their employees safe,
and whistleblower protections for workers
who raise their voice to protect themselves and others
workplace conditions have improved dramatically
over the last half century because of the efforts
of OSHA and its partners.
As OSHA wraps up its first fifty years,
the COVID-19 pandemic has shown
that the agency’s mission remains as important today
as when the OSH Act was signed.
At the core of our work is the fundamental right
for all workers to be protected on the job and empowered to speak up
about unsafe conditions.
We are focused on expanding the agency’s outreach,
building on existing relationships,
and developing new partnerships to ensure that every worker
– no matter what job they do or what language they speak
– has the protections they need and deserve.
In half a century OSHA has made great progress towards its mission.
As we look ahead to the next fifty years,
we must continue working hard – day in and day out
– until every worker is able to go home to their families
healthy and safe at the end of each day.
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