OSHA

OSHA

Commentary

"What did we set up the government for?"

May 31, 2011

“I can’t see what all this talk is about. How is it wrong for the State to intervene with regard to the working conditions of people who work in the factories and mills? I don’t see what they mean. What did we set up the government for?”     (New York Senator Al Smith during debates regarding new health and safety legislation in the state, 1913)

The UCLA Institute for Research on Labor and Employment (IRLE) co-publishes its eighth Research and Policy Brief, OSHA at 40: Looking Back, Looking Ahead, with the UCLA Labor Occupational Safety and Health Program (LOSH). This brief reviews the accomplishments of OSHA over its 40-year history, highlighting the agency's important role in reducing workplace fatalities and protecting workers in a variety of industries from harm. In the current anti-government political climate, we make the case for robust government regulations backed by scientific evidence and effective enforcement.

 Read More
More Commentary >

Cry Wolf Quotes

[The ergonomics standard is] the most expensive, intrusive regulations ever promulgated, certainly by the Department of Labor and maybe by any department in history.

-
Sen. Don Nickles (R-Okla.) assistant majority leader. The Los Angeles Times.
03/07/2001 | Full Details | Law(s): Ergonomics Standard (2000), Occupational Safety and Health Act, Occupational Safety and Health Administration

Repealing the ergonomics regulation will save small businesses billions of dollars that means fewer layoffs, less pay-cuts and economic growth.

-
Rep. Henry Bonilla (R-TX), The New York Times, “House Joins Senate in Repealing Rules on Workplace Injuries”.
03/08/2001 | Full Details | Law(s): Ergonomics Standard (2000), Occupational Safety and Health Act, Occupational Safety and Health Administration

This fight is as old civilization: the unending war of a free people with inalienable rights granted by God, against those tyrannical power-hungry politicians intent on the establishment of a totalitarian government.

-
William Pitts owner of the 80 year old Hermitage Mills, located in Camden South Carolina.
02/03/1980 | Full Details | Law(s): Occupational Safety and Health Act, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, OSHA's Cotton Dust Standard

This fight's not over… The best-intentioned employer isn't going to be able to figure out [the standards], even if he has hundreds of lawyers. It's like getting your arms around a bowl of Jell-O.

-
Randy Johnson, a vice president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, The Los Angeles Times.
11/23/1999 | Full Details | Law(s): Ergonomics Standard (2000), Occupational Safety and Health Act, Occupational Safety and Health Administration
More Quotes >

Related Laws and Rules