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News & Analysis | REG•WATCH Blog | Press Room
Saturday, April 15, 2006
Good Jobs, Safe Jobs: Protect Workers Now
Worker Memorial Day is coming up -- Friday, April 28. It is a time to reflect upon the vital importance of safety and health for the men and women of America who work for a living. Get more info here.
And just in time for Worker Memorial Day comes the revelation that the incidence of workplace injury is significantly understated by federal statistical programs. The Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine published a study comparing its own estimates of illness and injury in Michigan over a 3-year period against the BLS statistic. The difference is huge: the BLS estimates suggest 1 in 15 workers in Michigan experienced occupational health and safety issues, whereas the researchers believe the rate is closer to 1 in 5. And the researchers didn't pull their numbers out of thin air: they used government databases!
If the BLS numbers are that wrong just in Michigan, how wrong are they nationwide? Is the need for occupational safety and health improvements greater than we already know? If so, what does that tell us about the Bush administration OSHA, which has become the black hole of government that fails to do anything of substance for workers?
Posted by Robert Shull
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