In a recent article in Public Health Reports, the U.S. Surgeon General, Vice Admiral (VADM) Jerome Adams, MD, MPH, recognizes the important relationship between employment and health. The article, “The Value of Worker Well-being,” also highlights the efforts of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), the NIOSH Office of Total Worker Health®, the NIOSH-funded Total Worker Health (TWH) Centers of Excellence, and NIOSH TWH affiliates.

Australia’s largest union representing workers in construction, forestry, maritime and mining and energy is demanding urgent national action on silicosis after revelations that 1-in-5 Queensland stone workers tested positive to the potentially fatal disease. The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU ) says the severity of the risks associated with engineered stone products calls for a nationally coordinated approach rather than piecemeal regulations and health monitoring programs.

ACGIH® announced today that its Board of Directors ratified the 2020 Threshold Limit Values (TLVs®) for Chemical Substances and Physical Agents and Biological Exposure Indices (BEIs®). The Board also approved recommendations for additions to the Notice of Intended Changes (NIC).

Ignoring mental health problems in the workplace can lead to conflicts between employees, affect productivity and, of course, result in a worsening of the mental health issues being experienced by individuals. Here are recommendations from Mental Health America for employers who want to support mental health in their workplaces:

Flight attendants are applauding the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) bid to restrict the types of animals allowed in cabins, saying emotional support animals have threatened the safety and health of crew members as well as passengers. Amid a surge in passengers claiming that their emotional support animals – of many species – must fly with them in the passenger areas of planes, the DOT has released a notice of proposed rulemaking that seeks to amend the definition of a service animal in air transportation.

OSHA stayed busy in fiscal year 2019. The agency trained a record 1,392,611 workers on safety and health requirements through its various educational programs. OSHA also helped small employers identify 137,885 workplace hazards through its On-Site Consultation Program, which OSHA estimates protected 3.2 million workers from potential harm.

A Florida shooting range employee who was fired after reporting workplace safety concerns to OSHA will get $30,000 in back wages and compensatory damages, under a settlement with the agency. The U.S. Department of Labor says the agreement with Orlando-based Shooting Gallery Range Inc. is the result of a U.S. District Court consent judgment issued January 24, 2020.

Woodburn, Indiana: Sean Redden was crushed to death early Tuesday morning in an industrial press at the BF Goodrich tire plant. The Allen County Coroner's office has ruled his death an accident. The Indiana Occupational Safety and Health Administration will be conducting an investigation into the fatality. The plant's union, United Steelworkers Local 715L, said in a statement that it is eager to assist in the investigation and work with the plant’s management “to prevent another tragedy in the future.”

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has announced plans to reestablish the state’s Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board – a regulation-setting agency that had previously been abolished by his predecessor, former Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin. The newly formulated board will consist of 12 members representing industry, agriculture, labor, and safety and health.

Most American workers are not at significant risk of contracting the new coronavirus (2019-nCoV ) – but there are certain categories of employees who may be in danger of exposure, according to OSHA, which has published a webpage about rapidly-evolving outbreak. Chinese health officials have reported thousands of infections with 2019-nCoV in that country, with the virus reportedly spreading from person-to-person in many parts of that country.