"Protecting the health and safety of our country's workers is an important national value. It's something we should all share… We don't believe that anyone should have to endanger their personal health or their very lives to make a living for their families to live a life of dignity."

The UA's Role in Safety and Health

The United Association Department of Safety and Health is charged with one of the United Association's most important and essential activities: Protecting the lives of UA members on the jobsite.

The Department monitors the many regulations put forth by the Occupational Safety and Health Department (OSHA) to make sure that our local unions are aware of these rules and their significance for our members. OSHA through the Federal Register regularly issues rules to address new safety hazards. When it is appropriate, the UA Safety and Health Department provides comment and recommendations to OSHA regarding these regulations.

All workers should know:

Their rights
The hazards of their jobs
Which chemicals, equipment, and practices are dangerous and how to protect themselves
Who the official safety and health individual is on their jobsite

In short, safety must be the top priority of every worker and particularly every UA member stepping onto a jobsite each day.

The Occupational Health and Safety Act

Since 1970, when the Occupational Safety and Health Act was enacted to "guarantee every American worker a safe and healthful working environment," workplace safety and health conditions have certainly improved.

According to the National Safety Council, the job fatality rate has been cut in half since the OSH Act took effect and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was established. Yet, things could still be made better; workers are still becoming ill, injured and dying at significant rates.

Unions, like the United Association, have played a significant role in calling attention to and helping to reduce the incidence of workplace-related injuries and deaths. We have fought hard to encourage safety education and standard enforcement.