Federal Government Recognizes Health and Safety Professionals as “Essential”
The government recently updated its essential critical infrastructure workforce advisory list to include occupational health and safety workers.
The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) finally heard the calls from the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) to update the language of its “Essential Critical Infrastructure Workforce” advisory list. The guidance now explicitly incorporates occupational health and safety workers, as was the AIHA’s recommendation.
The CISA guidance is used in a number of settings across the nation including state, local, tribal and territorial officials to help protect public health and safety during the COVID-19 pandemic. Version 3.0 of the guidance includes “workers who anticipate, recognize, evaluate, and control workplace conditions that may cause workers illness or injury” as essential critical infrastructure workers. AIHA requested that this language be added since occupational health and safety professionals help protect workers and their communities.
You can find more information about CISA and the Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers guidance at CISA’s website.