Weekly E-Newsbrief
January 27, 2023
The E-Newsbrief of the National Clearinghouse is a free weekly newsletter focusing on new developments in the world of worker health and safety. Each issue provides summaries of the latest worker health and safety news from newspapers, magazines, journals, government reports, and the Web, along with links to the original documents. Also featured each week are updates from government agencies that handle hazmat and worker safety issues such as DOE, EPA, OSHA and others.
Subscribing to the National Clearinghouse Newsbrief is the best way to stay on top of the worker health and safety news.
- Top Stories
- Calendar Features
- On The Web This Week
- Federal Agency Update
- Awardee Highlights/Online Learning
- Job Openings
- We Want Your Feedback
- Newsbriefs Past Issues
| Top Stories | Back to Top |
The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Worker Training Program is Recruiting New Program Officer
The NIEHS WTP is recruiting a Program Officer within the Worker Training Branch. The Program Officer will develop and oversee programs that support health and safety training for workers who may be involved in handling hazardous waste or in responding to emergency releases of hazardous materials. The incumbent should be a recognized subject matter expert in the field of public health with a focus on occupational health and safety and associated environmental and human health disparities and its impacts.
Government Program Celebrates 25 Years of Commitment to Environmental Justice Movement
For over 25 years, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) Environmental Career Worker Training Program (ECWTP) has advanced principles of environmental justice by funding nonprofit organizations, or grantees, to deliver health, safety, and job training for individuals from disadvantaged communities. This article provides a brief background of the environmental justice movement and examines the efforts of grantees to demonstrate how the ECWTP model can serve as a pathway for advancing environmental justice in disadvantaged and underserved communities.
Updated Training Tool: Prevention of Occupational Exposure to Fentanyl and Other Opioids
The NIEHS Worker Training Program (WTP) has updated its awareness-level training tool on the prevention of occupational exposure to fentanyl and other opioids. The training tool includes updates on statistics, guidance, references, and resources, including five new participatory activities and improvements to the structure and flow of the training program.
NIH Biosecurity Advisers Urge Tighter Oversight of Pathogen Research
Scientists advising the National Institutes of Health (NIH) released a draft report urging intensified government oversight of experiments on dangerous pathogens, including broadening the definition of the kinds of pathogens that could trigger a pandemic.
The Washington Post (subscription required) [Author: Joel Achenbach]
Construction Worker Deaths Reach 5-Year High as Lawmakers Seek to Hold Companies Responsible
Construction companies convicted of criminal negligence that led to an employee’s severe injury or death could face penalties of up to $500,000, according to the new Carlos’ Law. However, advocates doubt the higher fine under Carlos' Law will significantly reduce worker deaths, which have reached their highest count in at least five years.
The Gothamist [Author: Laura Bratton]
Sold an American Dream, These Workers from India Wound Up Living a Nightmare
Following Hurricane Katrina in 2006, hundreds of welders and pipefitters were recruited from India to come to the Gulf Coast to repair oil rigs. But when they arrived in the U.S., it was nothing like what they were promised.
Inside the 'Staffing Apocalypse' Devastating U.S. Nursing Homes
The nation’s nursing home industry has shed roughly 235,000 jobs since March 2020, according to an analysis of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Workers say their exits are driven by dangerous working conditions, poor pay and benefits, limited opportunities for advancement, burnout and the respect deficit for their profession.
AARP [Author: Emily Paulin]
| Calendar Features | Back to Top |
PEPH Webinar: Social Stress and Susceptibility
In this Partnerships for Environmental Public Health (PEPH) webinar, we will hear from NIEHS-funded researchers at the University of California, San Francisco and Oregon State University. They will present their research on stress, health, and the environment. The presenters will give a brief overview of the Stress Management Network’s Stress Measurement Toolbox for self-report measures of stress and physiological measures of stress reactivity. The webinar will be held on January 30, 2023, 1:00 p.m. EST.
Brownfields 2023: Call for Ideas
The Call for Ideas for the 2023 National Brownfields Training Conference is now open. Submit ideas for dynamic educational sessions that encourage conversation and participation from fellow attendees. A great session will motivate brownfields stakeholders to engage, learn, and share their experiences and knowledge of community revitalization challenges and solutions. The Call for Ideas will close on February 6, 2023, 11:59 p.m. EST.
NYNJ Occupational Safety and Health Center 43rd Annual Scientific Meeting
The New York-New Jersey (NYNJ) Occupational Safety and Health Center 43rd Annual Scientific Meeting is open for registration. The meeting will feature presentations on health equity, back-support exoskeletons, direct-reading instruments, climate and health, and World Trade Center health surveillance program. The meeting will be held on February 10, 2023, 9:00 a.m. EST.
| On The Web This Week | Back to Top |
Support Decent Work for All as a Public Health Goal in the United States
This policy statement advocates for adoption of the broad framework of decent work initially developed by the International Labour Organization (ILO) as a sustainable health strategy for improving public health and well-being. Adoption of such a comprehensive policy gives the American Public Health Association (APHA) the ability to advocate in a timely manner for a wide range of potential initiatives and legislative proposals that affect worker, family, and community health.
Advancing Environmental Health and Justice: A Call for Assessment and Oversight of Health Care Waste
American Public Health Association (APHA) policy statement addresses healthcare waste as an environmental health and justice issue. Health care waste poses many threats to public health, including from excessive production and disposal of petroleum-based single-use medical waste plastics (MWPs), unsustainable waste management practices that contribute to climate change and inequities associated with transport and siting of health care waste that disproportionately harm communities of color and low-income communities, both urban and rural, that are situated near waste streams.
Lessons Learned from the COVID-19 Pandemic—What Occupational Safety and Health Can Bring to Public Health
The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated how vital it is that occupational safety and health (OSH) and public health (PH) work together effectively. Many workplace health issues are also PH issues and vice versa. Duplication of efforts in respective areas of expertise is inefficient and undesirable; addressing these issues will require thoughtful collaboration to improve governance and strategy formulation within and shared between OSH and PH.
Watch: Behind the Scenes of Flight Attendant Training
A behind the scenes look at United’s new Houston training facility that includes a water tank for practicing water emergencies. Flight attendants play many different roles while working in the sky and their training prepares them for those roles. Training involves first aid techniques, emergency landing evacuations, customer de-escalation methods and proper food handling.
| Federal Agency Update | Back to Top |
New from OSHA: Heat Illness Prevention Newsletter
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has published its first issue of Heat Source, the official newsletter of the agency’s Heat Illness Prevention campaign. The publication features tips on determining hydration levels and a collaboration with the Mine Safety and Health Administration on preventing heat illness in surface and underground mines.
U.S. Department of Labor Seeks Nominations for Membership to National Advisory Committee on Occupational Safety and Health
The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is seeking nominations to fill six membership vacancies on the National Advisory Committee on Occupational Safety and Health. OSHA invites nominations to fill the following vacancies: two public representatives; one management representative; one labor representative; one occupational safety professional representative; and one occupational health professional representative.
U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) Launches Miner Safety and Health App for Spanish-Speaking Miners to Expand Access to Useful Information
The Miner Safety and Health app provides miners with a tool to use while working at mines and outside of working hours to review best mine safety and health practices, find resources on miners’ rights and responsibilities, and report hazardous work condition complaints. The app also sends users notifications of mining fatalities and information on how to prevent them.
DOE Launches $10 Million Prize to Accelerate Community Solar in Underrepresented Communities
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s National Community Solar Partnership (NCSP) launched a slate of initiatives to support the deployment of equitable community solar projects and recognized projects exemplifying best practices in community solar. Community solar allows any household to access the benefits of renewable energy, with an emphasis on those that cannot access rooftop solar.
| Awardee Highlights/Online Learning | Back to Top |
Deep South Center for Environmental Justice Attends White House Event Focused on Louisiana
The Deep South Center for Environmental Justice (DSCEJ) attended the Communities in Action: Building a Better Louisiana at the White House. The goal of the event was to highlight the impact of programs enacted by the Biden-Harris Administration, including Justice40, in communities across Louisiana. Monique Harden, Director of Law and Public Policy/Community Engagement Program Manager represented the DSCEJ at the event.
NABTU Workforce Development Programs Are Increasing Diversity in the Construction Industry
At its first Opportunity Pipeline Forum, North America’s Building Trades Unions (NABTU) released a new report from the Institute for Construction Economics Research (ICERES) entitled, “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiatives in the Construction Trades” which examines workforce development and diversity, equity and inclusion in the construction industry, including the unique programmatic success of building trade programs and their results. Building Pathways, a partner organization of WTP grantee Center for Construction Research and Training (CPWR), is highlighted in the report.
| Job Openings | Back to Top |
New York Foundation for Fair Contracting Seeks a Construction Analyst
The Construction Analyst supports the work of the New York Foundation for Fair Contracting Seeks (NYFFC) by monitoring the local public construction marketplace for compliance with prevailing wage and responsible contracting standards. The position reports to the Director and the NYFFC Board. This position will provide critical operations and administrative support to NYFFC staff and partners.
| We Want Your Feedback | Back to Top |
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