Under pressure from Democrats to quickly craft an OSHA standard on workplace violence in the health sector, Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta acknowledged that DOL is behind schedule creating a special panel to consider small business concerns though he declined to commit to a series of requests for speedier and more aggressive action.
As Congress returns from its two-week recess, labor groups are stepping up their calls for lawmakers to restore Obama-era OSHA rules that Republicans have reversed and craft new rules governing workplace violence, heat stress, chemical safety and other issues, though such legislation is unlikely to be considered in the GOP Senate.
Democratic leaders in the Senate are urging EPA to ban commercial uses of the paint stripper methylene chloride, saying the Trump administration's decision to limit its ban to consumer uses and merely consider requiring additional training for workers using the chemical leaves a vulnerable population at risk.
Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO, says his union opposes Democrats’ Green New Deal (GND) that promotes policies to tackle climate change, strengthen workplace health and safety standards, improve the environment, and boost jobs, striking a major blow against the plan that is already stalled in Congress.
Congressional Democrats are renewing their long-standing push to reinstate, and update Obama-era policies aimed at barring federal contract awards to contractors with poor worker safety records after they were rescinded by Republicans and President Donald Trump.
Senate Republicans have begun approving Trump administration nominees for the Labor Department under new rules that limit debate, suggesting they may soon confirm the president's long-time pick to lead OSHA, though the move is frustrating Democrats who say the GOP is unfairly blocking two of their nominees for labor panels.
Citing EPA’s failure to account for the chemical hazards to which firefighters are exposed, the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) is sponsoring its own research to study the risks posed by chemicals in the per- and polyfluoroakyl substances (PFAS) class, which were widely used in firefighting foam.
A National Academies of Sciences (NAS) panel is backing the use of chemical dispersants to address oil spills but is urging federal regulators to improve their oversight of and data collection on the chemicals before the next major spill to ensure that future use of the substances does not adversely impact cleanup workers.
Labor advocates and their supporters in Congress are preparing to launch a long-awaited push aimed at better protecting workers from heat stress, with a public awareness campaign slated for later this month and legislation requiring OSHA to set a safety standard expected later this summer.
House Democrats appear likely to step up their oversight of EPA’s implementation of the revised Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) after the agency sidestepped their calls to ban workplace uses of methylene chloride in paint strippers, an action they said would not protect workers.