Skip Navigation

NIEHS WTP: November 10, 2022 Newsbrief

Weekly E-Newsbrief, November 10, 2022

Weekly E-Newsbrief

November 10, 2022

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 StoriesBack to Top

Advancing Partnerships to Improve Worker Health and Safety: A Compendium of Success Stories

This document is a compendium of success stories from organizations (grantees) funded by the NIEHS Worker Training Program (WTP). These success stories were shared prior to and following the program’s fall 2021 workshop on Advancing Partnerships to Improve Worker Health and Safety. During the workshop, program staff and grantees shared how worker health and safety benefit from strategic partnerships.

Compendium Document

Fall 2021 Workshop Page

Environmental Injustices Still Felt by Many, Says Robert Bullard

The “father of environmental justice,” Robert Bullard, Ph.D., delivered the 3rd Annual NIEHS Olden Distinguished Lecture Oct. 3. He shared his more than four decades’ worth of experiences spotlighting how people of color often experience greater exposure to environmental contaminants, and he noted that such individuals are often hardest hit by climate change. Bullard pointed to practices such as racial redlining, siting polluting factories near their homes, and lack of green spaces as contributors to unhealthy and unsustainable communities.

Environmental Factor [Author: Kelley Christensen]

VA to Move Veterans with Cancer to Front of the PACT Act Line

Veterans with cancer will get priority when the Department of Veterans Affairs begins processing benefits claims under the sweeping toxic exposure law enacted earlier this year, officials said Monday. The law designated 23 diseases as presumed to be linked to burn pits used during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and other airborne pollutants and environmental hazards from earlier conflicts, meaning veterans with those ailments will now have a streamlined process for claiming health care and disability benefits.

Military.com [Author: Rebecca Kheel]

Advocacy Group Calls on Senate to Pass Pregnant Workers Fairness Act

Passage of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act would benefit millions of workers, the National Partnership for Women and Families contends in a recently published report. The Act would require private-sector employers with 15 or more workers to make reasonable accommodations for pregnant employees. Those accommodations include an extra bathroom break, a stool, limiting contact with certain chemicals and a reduction in lifting requirements.

Safety and Health Magazine

At Least 38 Were Injured in a Manhattan Apartment Building Blaze That Was Caused by a Lithium-Ion Battery, Officials Said

At least 38 people were injured in a Manhattan apartment building fire, which authorities believe was caused by a lithium-ion battery connected to a micromobility device, most likely an electric bicycle. In 2022, there have been nearly 200 fires linked to lithium-ion batteries in New York City.

CNN [Authors: Samantha Beech, Sheryl Lawrence, and Christina Maxouris]

Wildfire Clean-Up Crews Face Multiple Health Risks

Wildfires are one of the world’s natural disasters that have become more common in vulnerable climates. The season length, frequency and surface area of the fires have become more extreme, increasing the danger for the people who fight them. The article discusses the short and long-term health risks wildfire clean-up crews face and how local and federal governments are working to make their jobs safer.

Industrial Safety & Hygiene News [Author: Evelyn Long]

Calendar FeaturesBack to Top

NIEHS WTP Urban Flooding and the Health Risks to Recovery Workers Webinar

In urban areas where there are increasing impervious surfaces and storm water systems designed for less severe storms, heavy rainfall can quickly overwhelm such infrastructure, and result in rapid urban flooding. Projections show more severe storms, increasing the frequency of flooding in the urban environment resulting in a greater need for clean-up workers. The NIEHS National Clearinghouse for Worker Safety and Health Training is hosting a webinar that will explore the unique features of the urban environment and its potential to impact the health of workers, including residents, performing recovery activities following urban flooding. The event will be held on November 14, 2022, at 2:00 p.m. EDT.

Event Registration

Register Today: Lead Safe Housing Rule Amendment Trainings

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office of Lead Hazard Control and Healthy Homes is sponsoring a training series that will help participants review federal lead regulations and discuss the Lead Safe Housing Rule Amendment for pre-1978 housing. Presenters will provide a step-by-step explanation of how Public Housing Agencies, grantees, and owners respond to cases of elevated blood lead levels (EBLL) in children less than six years old living in a federally assisted housing unit. The first event in the series will be held on November 15, 2022, at 1:00 p.m. EDT.

Event Registration

National Safety Council - Roadmap to a Recovery Ready Workplace

The Employment and Training Administration’s (ETA) Office of Workforce Investment (OWI) is rolling out its Fall Series of technical assistance on the role of the workforce system in serving individuals with substance use disorders. OWI, in collaboration with the National Safety Council, is hosting this webinar on tools and resources for creating safe work environments while supporting individuals in recovery. The event will be held on November 16, 2022, at 2:00 p.m. EDT.

Event Registration

On The Web This WeekBack to Top

New Report: Small Towns and Communities of Color Less Likely to Receive Funding for Clean Water Infrastructure

Aging and insufficient infrastructure to treat wastewater and manage stormwater plagues communities nationwide, but a new review of the Clean Water State Revolving Fund (CWSRF) shows federal and state funds for clean water infrastructure are allocated unequally. Specifically, places with smaller populations and those with larger communities of color were statistically less likely to receive federal assistance needed to improve local wastewater and stormwater systems through the CWSRF from 2011 to 2020.

Environmental Policy Innovation Center

Building a Stronger Workforce and a Cleaner Environment

RecycleForce is a U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) grantee committed to reducing crime through employment and job training, while improving the environment through electronics recycling. Since 2006, RecycleForce safely recycled more than 65 million pounds of electronic waste and provided job training to thousands of citizens returning to their communities from the justice system. RecycleForce is also a partner organization of the NIEHS Worker Training Program grantee OAI, Inc.

DOL Blog

How a Team of Black Paramedics Set the Gold Standard for Emergency Medical Response

It is difficult to imagine society without the assurance that skilled, professional paramedics will respond to a medical emergency. Before the 1970s, clumsy, haphazard care, often at the hands of police officers, was the norm for emergencies. So much so that negligent ambulance care was responsible for an estimated 1,200 to 2,000 preventable deaths per year in the United States. In the book, American Sirens is the story of the eight-year saga of the Freedom House Ambulance Service, the all-Black team of paramedics who pioneered the profession from 1968-1975 in Pittsburgh.

NPR [Author: Akilah Wise]

Federal Agency UpdateBack to Top

Drought.gov Launches New Map Feature for Tribal Nations

National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS), in partnership with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Centers for Environmental Information, has launched a new map customization feature for Tribal Nations on Drought.gov. This feature allows users to display reservation boundaries on any map on Drought.gov. Users can display boundaries for the more than 300 reservations across the U.S. from the U.S. Census Bureau on any of the maps available on Drought.gov.

Climate Program Office News

Awardee Highlights/Online LearningBack to Top

Guide: Mass Casualty Preparedness and Response in Emergency Units

The World Health Organization (WHO) defines mass casualty incidents (MCI) as disasters and major incidents characterized by quantity, severity, and diversity of patients that can rapidly overwhelm the ability of local medical resources to deliver comprehensive and definitive medical care. The WHO Academy has developed the Mass Casualty Management Program for frontline healthcare staff working in emergency units.

ReliefWeb

Fact Sheet: Building a Recovery-Friendly Workplace

Recovery-friendly workplaces support their communities by recognizing recovery from substance use disorder (SUD) as a strength, and by being willing to work intentionally with people in recovery. These workplaces encourage a healthy and safe environment where employers, employees and communities can collaborate to create positive change and eliminate barriers for those affected by addiction.

National Safety Council

Google Crisis Response Tools

Google offers disaster and crisis preparedness information, forecasting and alerts and recovery tools. When a location is affected by a disaster, a notification may be sent to cell phones and devices from the Google app directing people to an SOS Alert on the Google Search page, where access to credible safety information will be available.

Google

Job OpeningsBack to Top

Heavy Equipment Operator Instructor, Based in Edinburgh, IN

International Union of Operating Engineers National Training Fund is seeking an individual for full-time position of Heavy Equipment Operator Instructor. Position requires individual to have journey-person status and ability to teach disadvantaged youth ages 16-24. Previous teaching experience a plus.

Job Posting

Safety and Occupational Health Specialist

Foster, promote and develop the welfare of wage earners, job seekers, and retirees while improving working conditions, advancing opportunities for profitable employment, and assuring work-related benefits and rights! This position conducts workplace inspections and assesses employee exposure to health hazards as part of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) mission to ensure workers are provided with safe, healthful workplaces.

Job Posting

We Want Your FeedbackBack to Top

We Want Your Feedback

What kinds of stories or other content would make this newsletter especially valuable to you?

Send your ideas for this newsletter to: wetpclear@niehs.nih.gov

To go back and subscribe to the newsletter, click here

Back issues of our Newsbrief are available at our archives page

Back
to Top