The need to revise Osha protections has prompted the reintroduction of federal law and the publication of a new report.
In the US, 343 people lose their lives due to unsafe working conditions every day. In fact, in 2021, there were 5,190 workplace fatalities and an additional 120,000 cases of fatal illnesses.
Of the more than 429,000 workplace fatalities that have occurred since 1970, just 128 have resulted in criminal prosecution under Occupational Safety and Health Act (Osha).
To update Osha, a federal legislation has been reintroduced and a new study has been released, The Guardian reported.
Protecting America's Workers Act
On Workers' Memorial Day, April 28, Democratic Representatives Joe Courtney and Bobby Scott reintroduced their Protecting America's Workers Act.
As part of this legislation, Osha coverage will be extended to the roughly 8 million state and local government employees in 24 states. This restores an Obama-era rule requiring employers to keep records of worker illnesses and injuries, authorizes felony penalties for employers who knowingly commit Osha violations that result in the death or serious injury of a worker, and provides power for increased civil penalties for serious Osha violations.
Furthermore, the law would mandate an Osha investigation into any workplace fatality or significant injury and provide rights for families who have lost a loved one in such a manner.
Several versions of the bill have been proposed in Congress on several occasions during the previous two decades. Washington State Senator Pat Murray reintroduced the bill in 2013 and said it was "long overdue." While sitting in the Senate, Joe Biden was a co-sponsor of earlier versions of the measure.
Demand to Update and Expand Osha Coverage
Death on the Job 2023, published by the AFL-CIO on April 26, details the "toll of neglect" that results from insufficiently addressing workplace safety concerns. This is in the face of intense resistance from business organizations and employers to enhancing and enforcing workers' safeguards.
The research highlights the need to enhance and extend data on worker injuries and illnesses, as well as the need to increase Osha's civil penalties for safety breaches. The report also highlights the millions of employees who are not covered by Osha, and the lack of effective retaliation safeguards for workers who speak out.
The mortality rate for Black employees in the workplace jumped to 4.0 per 100,000 in 2021, the highest rate in a decade. Latino workers had a 25% higher mortality rate than white workers, with 4.5 deaths per 100,000 employees.
Workers of both younger and older ages are more likely to die on the job. On the opposite end of the age spectrum, employees over the age of 65 face a 2.3-fold increased risk of workplace death compared to younger workers. In 2021, 350 people under the age of 25 lost their lives on the job.
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