Research, updates, and worker safety resources

Zero waste is the future. Growth in the recycling economy has the potential to not only con serve the environment, but also create 1.5 million new jobs. But research indicates that recycling work can be dangerous, with injury rates more than double the national average.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 9/22/2015 Available for further comment: Tolle Graham, MassCOSH, 617-825-7233 x19 Alex Papali, Clean Water Action, 617-338-8131 x212 Katelyn Parady, Toxics Action Center, 617-747-4362 Curtis Rollins, Boston Workers Alliance, 713-724-4845 Report Shows Dorchester and Roxbury Key for Improving Bos...

With powerful testimonies from workers and labor advocates, legislators were urged to close a loophole in the states safety laws that has resulted in hundreds of public employee injuries and deaths.

Currently, Massachusetts private sector and executive branch workers are covered under the federal Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), but the law for other public employees is vague, causing widespread confusion about whether OSHA measures are required.

Families who have lost loved ones due to workplace tragedies know why safe, healthy workplaces can make a critical difference. In experiencing such loss, families of fallen workers often need emotional support, links to resources, and help navigating workers compensation and OSHA investigations.

Lead sponsors: Rep.

Legislative Fact Sheet An Act to further define Standards of Employee Safety (S2190) Lead sponsors: Rep.

Click here to view the 2015 Dying for Work in Massachusetts: The Loss of Life and Limb in Massachusetts Workplace s

A new report released by the Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Safety & Health (MassCOSH), environmental, labor, and community rights groups illustrates how sorting recyclable materials can be a high-risk occupation, with workers regularly exposed to used needles, dead animal carcasses, hazardous chemical...

According to the report, Safe & Sustainable Recycling: Protecting Workers who Protect the Planet , Recycling workers are more than twice as likely to be injured at work as the average worker. On June 15, a Florida man was crushed to death in a cardboard compactor while working at a recycling plant.

Many schools around Boston have trophy cases full or winning teams and record-breaking athletes. Yet these schools are now also home to equally deserving champions who are fighting to help staff and students with asthma breath with ease.

When an injured worker meets with MassCOSH’s Worker Center staff for the first time, their stories and background may vary, but their primary concerns are always the same: ‘Due to work, I am hurt, can’t receive the care I need, and am going broke.’ Hurt on the job and suffering from untreated and undertreated slippe...

As federal inspectors investigate an elevator fall at an Assembly Square construction project that killed one worker and injured another last week, construction officials say they met all safety standards at the site.

Fact Sheet: An Act Increasing Injured Workers Access to Medical Care and Workers Compensation Benefits (HB1684) Lead sponsors: Rep. Garrett Bradley, Senator James Eldridge Background: Workers compensation is a lifeline for workers who suffer a workplace injury or illness.

On July 23, 2014, Jason Faria, a 26-year-old Fall River native was working for Diaz Construction Co., a concrete company, on top of a concrete form that was incorrectly attached. The form came loose and fell, crushing him underneath.