Remember the Past, Fight for the Future this Workers' Memorial Day

In 1989, the AFL-CIO declared that April 28 would be celebrated each year as "Workers' Memorial Day" to remember workers who were injured or died on the job and renew the fight for safety and protections at work. The date is intentional - April 28 is the day that the Williams-Steiger Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 was signed into law. This act, which unions led the fight for, created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the body that establishes and enforces standards for safe and healthy working conditions. Tony Mazzocchi, a labor leader in the oil Chemical and Atomic Workers International Union (OCAW), led this fight by aligning the environmental and labor movements to pass this crucial piece of legislation.

Until OSHA was created, workers didn't enjoy any formal, enforceable standards for safety and health in the workplace. OSHA set a standard for all employers - public and private - to protect workers on the job. Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics proves that OSHA works. Since OSHA's implementation, injuries in the workplace have fallen from 10.9 cases per 100 workers in 1972, to 2.8 cases per 100 in 2018. 

OSHA protects workers against bosses who want to put profit over safety. Time and again, corporations have tried to get OSHA repealed, and this year is proving no different. On Sunday, Feb. 2, 2025, U.S. House Representative Andy Biggs (R-AZ-05) introduced a bill that would abolish OSHA . Bigg's bill, which he named the Nullify the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (NOSHA) Act, demands that "The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 is repealed. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is abolished."

Removing OSHA is dangerous for many reasons. Among other things, OSHA protects whistleblowers; provides support training, outreach, education, and assistance to those who need it; and works collaboratively with state OSHA programs to ensure they are effective at furthering worker safety and health protections. OSHA is the avenue workers have to win safety at work - it can enforce federal labor standards at almost every worksite. If a worksite does not meet these standards, OSHA can even fine employers. In 2024, OSHA investigated employee complaints about a Boston waterproofing contractor and fined the company $451,694 for exposing workers to life-threatening excavation hazards that led to injured and buried workers.

OSHA, paired with the protections from our union contract helps keep us safe on the job. Workers' Memorial Day reminds us of the grim consequence that workers face when there are no safety regulations or means to enforce them.