The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), a group of labor unions representing workers in education, manufacturing, mining, and nursing, and a personal protective equipment (PPE) manufacturer filed a suit in federal court to reverse the recent reorganization of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), the AFL-CIO announced May 14.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced on March 27 it would create a new “Administration for a Healthy America (AHA),” combining NIOSH with the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health (OASH), the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR).
NIOSH had been a part of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). NIOSH, like the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), was created by the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. OSHA was tasked with setting and enforcing workplace safety and health standards, providing education and training, and assisting employers with compliance. NIOSH was given responsibility for performing and supporting occupational health and safety research, developing interventions to help reduce worker injuries, illnesses, and fatalities.
The labor unions’ suit objected to cuts to NIOSH programs that:
- Certified respirators and tested other PPE and technologies used by workers across industries, including in construction, firefighting, health care, manufacturing, and mining, and prevented counterfeits from entering the market;
- Conducted critical mine safety research and provided medical screenings for coal miners;
- Investigated workplaces through the institute’s health hazard evaluation (HHE) program to identify and mitigate exposure to toxins and potential health hazards;
- Funded formal training for future industrial hygienists, epidemiologists, physicians, and other occupational safety and health professionals through universities and field-based internships; and
- Provided scientific and technical support for medical compensation to nuclear weapons workers and the September 11 first responders.
“By gutting NIOSH, Elon Musk and his DOGE won’t just be cutting corners—they are cutting lives short and placing working people in danger,” AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said in a statement.
On April 2, the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) expressed concerns about reductions to NIOSH as part of the HHS reorganization. The group issued a policy position statement and urged members of Congress to carefully review the HHS decision to move NIOSH under the newly created AHA.
More than 100 members of Congress sent a letter on April 4 to President Donald J. Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr., secretary of the HHS, calling on them to reverse the staff terminations at NIOSH.
The American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) announced on April 9 the launch of a campaign to restore staffing and funding for NIOSH. The AIHA partnered with the ASSP, the National Safety Council (NSC), and other members of the Intersociety Forum, a coalition of more than 20 environment, health, and safety associations, presenting a unified response against the cuts to NIOSH programs and staffing.