The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the Occupational Safety an Health Administration (OSHA) were established by the Occupational Safety and Health Act passed by congress in 1970. NIOSH is a part of the Center for Disease Control (CDC) and is the only federally funded and controlled division responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work related illnesses and injuries.

It is important to understand the OSHA and NIOSH are two separate agencies. OSHA is housed under the Department of Labor and is responsible for the development and enforcement of workplace health and safety regulations. NIOSH on the other hand is in the Department of Health and Human Services and is a research agency.

NIOSH was created when the US Secretary of Labor was directed by congress through section 2B (5,6) of the OSH Act to "provide for research in the field of occupational safety and health, including the psychological involved, and by developing innovative methods, techniques, and approaches for dealing with occupational safety and health problems: by exploring ways to discover latent diseases, establishing causal connections

NIOSH Alerts briefly present new information about occupational illnesses, injuries and deaths. They generally ask for immediate action on the part of the employer, employee and safety and health professionals to reduce the risks and implement controls with regards to the hazard addressed by the alert. An example is an Alert from December of 1999 entitled "Preventing Injuries and Deaths of Workers Who Operate or Work Near Forklifts". In the report, NIOSH states that over 1021 deaths have occurred as a result of forklifts in the past 10 years. Of that, 22% occurred as a result of a forklift overturning. NIOSH give the current OSHA regulations, and manufacturer recommendations for safe operation. It then give specific case data to drvie the point home to the reader. After they have the readers attention NIOSH give its recommendations to increase safety, which include

· Evaluate the hazards of new technologies and work practices.

Approaches Control Technology and PPE

· Do not jump from an overturning forklift.

As a federal agency NIOSH has given itself both a vision and a mission statement. It's vision is "Delivering on the Nations promise: safety and health at work for all people through research and prevention". The mission of NIOSH is to "provide national and world leadership to prevent work-related illness, injury and death by gathering information, conducting scientific studies and translating the knowledge gained into products and services".

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Approximate Word count = 1511
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)