NSC Partners with Amazon to Battle MSDs in Unique Collaboration
The National Safety Council and Amazon have announced a five-year partnership that looks to prevent common musculoskeletal injuries.
- By Sydny Shepard
- Jun 10, 2021
Amazon is on a mission to become the “Earth’s Safest Place to Work.” On their long road to get there, the Fortune 100 company has partnered with the National Safety Council in a first-of-its-kind collaboration that will help to invent new ways to prevent common musculoskeletal injuries or MSDs, such as sprains and strains.
In a press conference announcing the partnership, Amazon and NSC outlined how the collaboration will work to prevent MSDs across a variety of industries. Amazon will be contributing $12 million, the largest corporate contribution in the history of NSC, to help fund the creation of an advisory council, pioneering research and the invention of new technology and processes.
Amazon and NSC are also calling on other industries and facilities to take the MSD Pledge, which will help to track proactive indicators of injuries to ensure proper risk mitigation and implement prevention strategies based on data, implement an MSD prevention program that includes educating employees and employers about injury prevention and embracing and driving forward innovative solutions to prevent MSDs.
“Nothing is more important than the safety of our employees, and this partnership will allow us to dive deep into the best way to reduce MSDs,” said Heather MacDougall, Amazon’s vice president of worldwide workplace health and safety in a press release. “National Safety Council has a long history of advancing safe practices in the workplace, and we look forward to working alongside them as well asa many other businesses, experts, and students around the world to innovate and solve for this important issue.”
The partnership is another step in Amazon’s long-term mission to improve worker safety, which includes an investment of over $300 million into safety projects in 2021, and a goal to cut its recordable incident rate by 50 percent by 2025.
“Going to work should be a positive, rewarding, and safe experience,” Lorraine Martin, president and CEO of National Safety Council said. “We are grateful for the generous support of Amazon to help companies around the world solve this important issue while fueling our nonprofit mission to keep employees safe in the workplace."
About the Author
Sydny Shepard is the former editor of Occupational Health & Safety.