SMOHIT Safety Matters

FROM THE DESK OF RANDALL A. KROCKA

SMOHIT Administrator

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The Costs of Failing to Protect Workers on the Job

 

A  new report released by OSHA explores the substantial impact of workplace injuries and illnesses on income inequality Despite the decades-old legal requirement that employers provide workplaces free of serious hazards, every year, more than three million workers are seriously injured, and thousands more are killed on the job. The report states these injuries can force working families out of the middle class and into poverty, and prevents families of lower-wage workers from attaining greater economic opportunity.

 

"For many, a workplace injury or illness means the end of the American dream, and the beginning of a nightmare," said Dr. David Michaels, assistant secretary of labor for occupational safety and health. "Employers must do more to prevent these injuries from happening in the first place and insure that when they do, workers receive the benefits to which they are entitled."

 

OSHA is asking workers who have been affected by the cost of a workplace injury to  share their story. For more about this report and read Dr. Michaels' recent  blog post.