How Workers died last week: Snowplowing, falls, forklift, train, carbon monoxide, helicopter, drowning, trash compacter, vehicle incidents, carbon monoxide poisoning and shootings. The Weekly Toll jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...

A 100-year archive of human hair shows exactly how leaded gasoline poisoned the public—then how lead levels plunged after it was phased out and banned for on-road use. Powerful evidence that environmental regulation works. Read more: www.webpronews.com/how-a-centur... #PublicHealth

Measures to control an incurable lung disease aren't enough @kqednews.kqed.org @npr.org - Lopez feels desperate sitting at home, unable to work ... His wife asked NPR not to use her name due to fears of deportation. She chokes back tears... The couple have four kids. www.npr.org/2026/02/01/n...

The regulatory czar was once a powerful figure using cost-benefit analysis to control agency regulations. But Trump disdaims cost-benefit analysis, there's no nominee for the position, and the stand-in faces possible disbarment. legal-planet.org/2026/01/29/t...

Workplace Injuries and Illnesses decline in last Biden year in the private sector, but go up in public sector jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...

We lost a public health legend yesterday, Bill Foege. www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/202...

This wrecked me. Goodnight.

This action says it all about this administration: the value of reducing deaths in the workplace, community, and from exposure to risk? $0. Even the most conservative economists would say this is insane policy. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/21/c...

Not a milestone to celebrate. California just reported its 500th silicosis case (including 28 deaths, & 54 lung tranplants) among artificial stone workers who make kitchen countertops. Instead of moving to a safer product, the industry is asking Congress for total immunity from lawsuits.

thanks @michaelpollan.bsky.social !

A hugely important and hopeful story out of Minnesota. 3M, which had been the world's largest manufacturer of toxic #PFAS since 1950s, has officially gotten out of the business. www.startribune.com/3m-end-pfas-...

"The purpose of TSCA is to protect people and the environment from harmful chemicals. The proposed changes to this law are alarming: they remove public health guardrails, undermine EPA’s ability to protect people from harmful chemicals, and will lead to more death and disease."

Trump admin.: prosecutes peaceful MN protestors fully. Also Trump admin.: stops decade-old, successful criminal prosecutions of corporations that violated Clean Air Act & spewed millions of pounds of illegal air pollution, calling criminal cases invalid?! subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2026...

Last year of Biden administration showed record breaking declines in workplace injuries and Illnesses. share.google/yrpDCgZWHDfS...

Great to see @dianaforqueens.com proudly talking about workplace safety in her campaign for NYS Assembly.

Pleased to announce that John Barth has endowed a Democracy Innovation Prize at @smpagwu.bsky.social. Modeled on venture competitions, the prize will reward GW students who come up with ways to strengthen our democracy. I hope other schools follow John's lead. mediarelations.gwu.edu/school-media...

It would be very powerful if Powell were joined at the SCOTUS hearing by former Fed chairs Janet Yellen, Ben Bernanke and Alan Greenspan, along with the former Treasury Department officials who signed the statement decrying the investigation of Powell.

"We should not allow this carnage to continue" Congress shouldn’t give the artificial stone industry immunity from litigation. Instead, congress should ban the product to so its stops killing workers. That would protect the manufacturers and the distributors from lawsuits, as well.

Trump EPA head, Lee Zeldin: I mean, sure, formaldehyde is known to cause cancer, but the previous amount of formaldehyde the government allowed was so small, we’re just doubling that amount, it’s not like we’re doubling cancer risk, ‘cause the small number was close to zero, so double zero = zero.

Aftter devastating #NIOSH last April, the Trump administration retreats in the face of resistance by unions, public health advocates and Democratic politicians. We fight, we win. jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...

Hearing Report: This legislation is a death sentence for workers in this industry. If there is no obligation of manufacturers to ensure that downstream users of their products are safe, we will continue to see more silicosis cases, more lung transplants & more deaths. @ngreenfieldboyce.bsky.social

You often hear that Americans don't want to do back-breaking jobs like roofing. Ronda Kaysen and Rob Gebeloff have a great piece explaining how the jobs actually became lousy and low-paying first, *then* Americans no longer wanted to do them. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/14/u...

Today’s hearing featuring @raskin.house.gov and Jim Jordan should be well worth watching. I will testify that rather than ban lawsuits by workers with silicosis, we should ban the product that is causing the disease. Tune in at 10 AM ET at the link below.

Hundreds of workers who fabricate artificial stone countertops have developed silicosis. Dozens have died. Manufacturers of the product have known for years about the risk but have done nothing. Tomorrow, I will be testifying against legislation prohibiting lawsuits by workers with silicosis. 1/ 🧵

How Workers Died Last Week: Three dead from electrocutions, 5 workers crushed under vehicles, construction, confined space, welding explosion, falls, machete attack, shootings and vehicle incidents: The Weekly Toll jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...

My new book, “Eat Your Ice Cream” is out NOW! Wellness isn’t about being perfect—and chasing perfection will only lead to disappointment. In my book, I lay out six simple rules to live a long, healthy, and happy life. Order it now. #EatYourIceCream #Health #Wellness #Doctor

Yes, this is idiotic & reckless & illegal (again) on the part of the Trump EPA & its head, Lee Zeldin—AND the Trump EPA never was going to strengthen protections against hazardous air pollution anyway. This nonsense is about stopping *future* EPAs from doing so. www.propublica.org/article/air-...

Construction employers oppose OSHA's proposal to remove a standard requiring adequate lighting on construction sites, fearing it will cause more injuries & raise insurance rates. #OSHA wanted to eliminate the standard because the hazard was "obvious." canada.constructconnect.com/dcn/news/usa...

How workers died last week: Overturned tractor, crushed in machine, trapped in farm equipment, shootings and vehicle incidents: The Weekly Toll. On average, over 100 workers are killed every week in the United States due to traumatic injuries suffered at work. jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...

As Zohran Mamdani takes over as mayor of New York City, he joins his new Deputy Mayor for Economic Justice, Julie Su, to talk about building an economy that works for the many — not just a select few.

The Washington Business Journal asked the White House if it plans to bypass the GSA and demolish the Cohen federal office building and three others. (Doing so would be illegal.) The White House declined to answer. I sure wish the Washington Post would cover this. www.bizjournals.com/washington/n...

New Year, New Era. #nyc

Devastating. www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...

I was one of the 10 experts the NYT asked to review the test results

If the US invested in child care and had national policies like paid leave comparable to other industrialized countries, we would generate $775 billion of economic activity a year. The question should not be, “how can we afford to do this?” The question is, “how can we afford not to?” Let’s do this.

How workers died last week: Logging, construction, gas explosion, truck repair, avalanche, mining, stabbing, shootings and vehicle incidents. On average, over 100 workers are killed every week in the United States due to traumatic injuries suffered at work. jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...

55 years ago today, Richard Nixon signed the Occupational Safety and Health Act giving American workers the right to a safe workplace. www.politico.com/story/2018/1...

Science-for-Hire alert. The insurance industry uses the tobacco playbook to lowball payments to residents whose houses are contaminated by toxic chemicals following LA fires. Thanks @rukminicallimachi.bsky.social, Blacki Migliozzi, @nytimes.com for powerful, heartbreaking investgative reporting.

This month's 11th Hour column in the print New Republic is about Trump's threatened sale of the Wilbur J. Cohen Federal Building, the "Sistine Chapel of the New Deal." We have since learned Trump is preparing to bypass the GSA and demolish it before sale. Please spread the word.

Important piece by @noamscheiber.bsky.social on why tech workers exercise voice and organized even in tough times. Hint: They realize they are more like each other than their boss. www.nytimes.com/2025/12/26/b...

When Jim Gallogly took over LyondellBasell it was in bankruptcy proceedings. But instead of focusing solely on profits, he took a different approach: "Safety's a religion to me. It turns out that if you operate really, really well, you're doing a lot of things right, and that begins with safety."

How workers died last week: Trench collapse, skid steer, fork lift, coal mining, fall, shootings and vehicle incidents. On average, over 100 workers are killed every week in the United States due to traumatic injuries suffered at work. jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...

The Trump administration had adopted policies condemning a sizable group of its core MAGA supporters — miners, firemen, manufacturing workers — to slow deaths from diseases that cut off their ability to breathe. Make America Healthy Again? More like how many people can we kill? Thanks, Tom Edsall.

My latest is about regulatory cost-benefit analysis and how conservatives fell out of love with it. (Spoiler alert: It wasn’t because they started liking regulations.) newrepublic.com/article/2046...

Perfect visual and choice. @juliesulabor.bsky.social doesn't just talk about working people-she fights for them with relentless creativity. I've seen her integrity and ingenuity firsthand. This is the team Mayor-elect @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social is building and it's exactly what NYC needs. Let's go!

This is the 5th worker killed in a trench collapse over the past month. This was a Texas public employee who is not covered by #OSHA, so there will be no investigation, no citation, no penalty. But the Mayor & County Judge have expressed condolences, so there's that. www.kcbd.com/2025/12/17/s...

Fabulous Appointment! @juliesulabor.bsky.social brings tremendous experience, expertise, and passion to NYC, where she will advance her life's mission of improving the lives of working people.

This has flown below the radar, but it’s a low-key outrage that Trump’s FDA has withdrawn the rule to regulate asbestos in talc products. It’s the opposite of making America healthy. www.notus.org/health-scien...

Wondering what’s happening to the Washington Post?

My overdue annual holiday post about the best labor and workplace safety & health books. Use them as ideas for loved ones or yourselves. Sorry, I'm a bit late this year, so this goes out to those of you panicking about not completing your Holiday shopping yet. jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...