Every day, people go about their daily work
with labor laws that are meant to protect them from injury. It's far
from perfect, but for the most part, employees are able to go about the
business of making a living without many of the hazards that plagued the
workplace for generations before. From restrictions on the number of
hours a person can work to requirements for safety gear and
environmental protections, there is a complex web of federal and state
regulations.
History of Labor Laws
Working conditions of 100 years ago would be hard to imagine today. The 40-hour workweek and overtime pay were not around. Safety rules were spotty at best. The Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 established the first national minimum wage and set the work week at 44 hours. Safety regulations were less defined by a single event and were more of a patchwork of struggles. By 1890, nine states had some workplace safety laws in place.Mine Disaster and a Tragic Fire - In 1907, an explosion in a coal mine near Monongah, West Virginia, killed 362 miners. It was the worst event in a year that saw 18 mine disasters. The tragedies led to the creation of the Bureau of Mines in 1910. Just a year later, a conflagration at a garment factory in New York helped fuel the emerging labor movement and bring more safety regulations. The fire at Triangle Shirtwaist on March 25, 1911, saw 146 young women killed in less than 20 minutes.
The Politics of Labor Laws - While struggles around workers' rights have always been going on, it took the Industrial Revolution to really bring things to the fore and see big change. In the United States and Europe, massive movements for expanded workplace safety faced off against industry and government. In what proved to be a useful propaganda tool still used today, anything seen as advancing workers' rights was labeled socialism and demonized.
The Age of OSHA
In 1970, President Nixon signed legislation authorizing the creation of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA. Tasked with overseeing safety concerns across multiple industries, it sparked a new era in worker safety, but there are always new challenges. Key provisions have seen reductions in worker deaths and serious injuries. Here are some of the most important.- Machine Guarding - Limiting exposure to moving parts keeps fingers, eyes and bodies safer.
- Fall Protection - Requiring safety harnesses or appropriate railings or netting to prevent falls.
- Respiratory Protection - Ensuring harmful contaminants aren't breathed in by workers who are exposed to things from paint fumes to industrial solvents and harmful fibers.
- Asbestos Abatement - In addition to respiratory gear, limiting exposure to asbestos requires a specific regimen designed to keep it off of clothing and skin.
- Lockout and Tag-out Requirements - These provisions help ensure that machinery being worked on or in an unsafe state is not inadvertently turned on. Tag procedures require tracking of placement and removal.
- Electricity and Electrical Equipment - Reducing incidences of electrical shock through established procedures.
- Work Trucks and Company Vehicles - Standards for the safe operation of industrial work trucks and other vehicles that employees are required to operate.
- Scaffolding and Ladders - Compliance with these regulations gives workers confidence that the structures they are standing on will support them safely.
- Exposure to Radiation - Requires not only full safety apparatus but radiation level monitoring and exposure time restrictions.
- Lead Exposure - Although much has been done to remove lead from the workplace, there are still hazards requiring exposure regulations.