Page 40 - OHS, January/February 2022

90TH ANNIVERSARY
The Long Road to Now: Evolution of Safe Work
OH&S takes a look at the most important events that have helped to evolve occupational health and safety since the inception of the publication.
RBY SYDNY SHEPARD
elating health issues to occupations
and their environments goes back further than you think it does. In fact, the first known instance of
correlation between health and work was in fourth century BC when Hippocrates noted lead toxicity in workers of the mining industry. Since then, there has been a long road of scientists, physicians and researchers who have spent time analyzing work environmentsandtheimpacttheyhaveon a human’s health and wellness.
As a celebration of Occupational Health & Safety’s 90th anniversary, a milestone discussed on page 4 of this issue, we will be dedicating an article in each issue of 2022 to take a historic look back on some of the most important safety and health topics. To kick off our anniversary coverage, we will be taking a look at the events that have helped to form the safety industry as we know it now.
Creating the Roadmap
It’s hard to imagine a time when air conditioning, PPE and OSHA didn’t exist but at the turn of the 19th century, workers were battling harsh conditions in workplaces throughout the world. There
had been some movement to recognize and heal workers who had fallen ill due to occupational exposures, but little had been done in the way of prevention.
One of the first industries to begin to see federal regulation was the mining industry which passed the first mine safety statute in 1891. The statute, however, only applied to coal mines and did little to protect workers as it only established minimum requirements for ventilation and prohibited operators from hiring children under the age of 12.1
The late 1800s saw some actions that hinted towards change for the better. For example, the first recorded call by a labor organization for a U.S. occupational safety and health law is heard in 1867 and in 1896 the National Fire Protection Association was founded to prevent fires and write fire safety codes and standards. Overseas, Great Britain passed a workmen’s compensation act for occupational injuries in 1897—something that would take until 1916 to pass in the U.S.2
The first 15 years of the 1900’s proved to be a flurry of events that helped to develop a more concrete foundation for occupational health and safety to stand
on. Associations like the American Society of Safety Professionals and the National Safety Council were formed and quickly went to work to create, standardize and promote safer working practices.
In 1914, the U.S. Public Health Service established the Office of Industrial Hygiene and Sanitization, which held the primary function of researching worker health and wellness, this office would latercometobetheNationalInstitutefor Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in 1971. Another prominent association to be founded in the early 1900s was the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), which was first founded as the American Standards Association and was responsible for the development of many voluntary safety standards, some of which are still referenced in laws today.
Laying Down the Groundwork
As we all know, the formation of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration did not happen until after the OSH Act of 1970, however many events in history paved the way for a more comprehensive look at worker safety and working conditions. Here’s an overview at
36 Occupational Health & Safety | JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2022 www.ohsonline.com
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