National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

Delivering on the Nation's Investment in Worker Safety and Health National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

It has been nearly 40 years since the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 was passed. During that time, NIOSH has worked diligently to ensure that U. S. workers are safe from occupational illness, injuries, and fatalities while at work. Our strong scientific foundation has guided our work as we strive to fulfill the responsibilities of the Act, and to carry out the duties entrusted to us by Congress. NIOSH?s research and recommendations over the years have made a significant impact in reducing and preventing occupational injuries, illnesses, and fatalities. Our work has lead to recommendations on reducing exposures to asbestos, lead, vinyl chloride, and other toxic industrial agents. As the U. S. economy has changed NIOSH has kept pace by addressing the new occupational hazards that have arisen or become more prominent, such as latex allergies, musculoskeletal disorders, indoor air quality, and workplace violence. And with the goal of achieving even greater impact with our research, NIOSH created the National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) in 1996. The creation of NORA allowed us to expand our partnerships and leverage resources to meet the needs and challenges of the changing face of work. This document provides a snapshot of our work addressing the safety and health issues that reach across all the U. S. states, industries, and disciplines. Here we have included information about our efforts in traditional and emerging areas such as NORA, research-to-practice, emergency response, nanotechnology, personal protective technology, global collaborations, and other cross-cutting programs. We have also included examples of how NIOSH and our partners are working hard to achieve our shared mission of making the workplace safer and healthier for all workers.