Yesterday, after being delayed two years at the White House, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) proposed a new rule to protect workers from silica exposure. Crystalline silica kills hundreds of American workers and sickens thousands more each year. These very small silica dust particles are hazardous when workers breathe them in. They can cause silicosis – an incurable and progressive disease. Workers can be exposed to airborne silica dust from cutting, sawing, drilling and crushing concrete, brick, block and other stone products. They also can be exposed during operations that use sand products such as glass manufacturing, sand blasting and foundry work. In addition to silicosis, breathing in silica dust also increases workers’ risk of lung cancer, kidney disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. By lowering exposures to respirable silica, the proposed rule is aimed at preventing these debilitating respiratory diseases from devastating the lives of American workers. OSHA estimates that the proposed rule would save nearly 700 lives per year and prevent 1,600 new cases of silicosis annually, once the full effects of the rule are realized. This proposal is long overdue. OSHA’s current standards for protecting workers from silica exposure are dangerously out-of-date and do not adequately protect workers’ health. OSHA’s current standard is more than 40 years old, is based on research from the 1960s and earlier, and does not reflect more recent scientific evidence about the health effects of inhaling even small amounts of silica dust. It’s time to bring workplace protections into the 21st century. Protecting workers under the proposed rule is not difficult or expensive. The rule suggests using very commonsense control measures to protect workers’ lives and lungs − things like wetting down materials to keep dust out of the air or using a simple vacuum to collect dust. Tools that use these methods are readily available; consumers can even find them at local big box retailers. The rule, which includes separate standards for general industry and maritime employment and for construction, would also give employers flexibility to tailor the best solution for their businesses. Public comments on the proposal can be submitted through written comments and by participating in hearings. The proposed rule has already incorporated many suggestions and ideas provided by industry groups, small businesses, scientists and other stakeholders. In 1938, Frances Perkins, then secretary of labor under President Franklin Roosevelt, proclaimed “With control measures conscientiously adopted and applied,” she says, “silicosis can be prevented!” It has been 75 years since Frances Perkins committed the Labor Department to eradicating silicosis in the United States. This proposal is an important step forward in fulfilling that commitment. This is from the 1940 film, Men and Dust, which is posted to my YouTube channel.
Posted on: Sat, 24 Aug 2013 12:29:55 +0000
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