COSHCON Honors MassCOSH Staff

If we are doing our job right, when you hear about worker justice in Massachusetts, you think of MassCOSH. But what about beyond our state borders? MassCOSH is proud to be part of the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (National COSH), a federation of 22 local and statewide committees/coalitions on occupational safety and health.

Every year, these groups gather for COSHCON, a national conference on worker safety and health, the only national gathering of its kind. Earlier this month, over 300 people participated in COSHCON 2019 representing a diverse, inclusive, and bilingual group of workers, occupational health and safety experts, unions, activists, and academics. They were united around a common goal: ending unsafe work. MassCOSH staff and board were among those taking part, including COSH Fellows from Massachusetts/MassCOSH Tolle Graham, Peg Seminario, Elise Pechter, Nancy Lessin, Michael Felsen, and Tish Davis.

A highlight of the week occurred December 4, at the annual National COSH Awards banquet. The event helps break up long days of informative trainings and panel discussions with an inspirational evening dedicated to honoring those in our movement who have achieved excellence in the effort to ensure all workers can go home safe at the end of their shift. MassCOSH Worker Center Director Milagros Barreto was honored to receive the National COSH Leadership Award, making her remarkable rise from our operations associate/worker center hotline coordinator in 2013 to heading one of the most effective Worker Centers in the nation. We could not be more proud of Milagros and her dedication to supporting immigrant workers during these very challenging times.