Continuing the previous blog published on 10^th September 2025. Below are some important events in the history of Occupational Safety & Health

• 1700 – Ramazzini publishes his treatise on occupational disease
• 1842 – Right to strike upheld by the Massachusetts Supreme Court (US)
• 1864 – Pennsylvania Mine Safety Act passed & Issuance of First Accident Insurance Policy in North America
• 1867 – Massachusetts instituted the first factory inspection
• 1869 – The Railroad air brake was invented
• 1877 – Massachusetts passed a law requiring the guarding of dangerous machinery and the authority for factory inspection enforcement
• 1878 – First recorded call by labour for federal occupational safety & health law (US)
• 1881 – The American Federation of Labour (AFL) was founded
• 1885 – The American Public Health Association was founded
• 1886 – First US Commission of Labour appointed
• 1896 – The National Fire Protection Association was founded
• 1902 – The United States Public Health Service was established
• 1902 – Maryland passed the first US workers’ compensation law
• 1907 – 362 miners died in a mine disaster, Monongah, West Virginia
• 1909 – Bureau of Labour study on Phossy jaw released
• 1910 – The US Bureau of Mines was established
• 1910 – First National Conference on Industrial Diseases
• 1911 – The American Society of Safety Engineers was established
• 1913 – The US Department of Labour was established
• 1913 – The National Safety Council was established
• 1916 – The US Supreme Court declared workers’ compensation laws to be constitutional
• 1921 – The International Labour Organisation set up a safety service
• 1930 to 1936 – Nearly 2000 Workers died while constructing a tunnel at Gauley Bridge, West Virginia
• 1934 – The US Bureau of Labour Standards was created
• 1937 – Congress of Industrial Organisations (CIO) was founded
• 1952 – Coal Mine Safety Act passed
• 1954 – The Atomic Energy Act became law
• 1966 – The Metal & Non-metallic Mines Safety Act was passed
• 1969 – Construction Safety Act was passed
• 1971 – National Institute for Occupational Safety & Health (NIOSH) was formed
• 1972 – OSHA Training Institute established to instruct OSHA inspectors and the public
• 1972 – The OSHA Standard for Asbestos was issued; the OSHA Construction Safety Standard
• 1974 – OSHA adopted health standards for 14 Carcinogens
• 1974 – OSHA Vinyl Chloride standard
• 1977 – OSHA Diving standard
• 1978 – New Directions Grants program to foster development of occupational safety & health training and education for employers & workers
• 1980 – Fire Protection standard updated, and rules established for fire brigades responsible for putting out nearly 95% of worksite fires
• 1981 – Hearing conservation standard
• 1984 – Ethylene Oxide rule issued by OSHA
• 1987 – Farmworkers standard issued; Benzene standard issued
• 1989 – Hazardous waste operations and emergency response standard
• 1989 – Lockout/Tagout of hazardous energy sources standard issued
• 1989 – Excavation & Trenching Operations Standard
• 1992 – Process Safety Management of Highly Hazardous Chemicals standard adopted
• 1994 – First Expert Advisor software, GoCad, issued to assist employers in complying with OSHA’s cadmium standard
• 1994 – Asbestos standard updated to cut permissible exposures in half
• 1996 – Scaffold standard published
• 1997 – Methylene Chloride standard issued
• 1997 – California adopts the Ergonomic standard
• 2001 – Recordkeeping rule revised to improve the system
• 2002 – OSHA instituted a new recordkeeping guideline and reporting forms
• 2003 – Ergonomics guidelines issued for the nursing home industry
• 2003 – Final rule established criteria for recording work-related hearing loss
• 2004 – OSHA unveils its National Emergency Management Plan
• 2004 – Ergonomics guidelines published for retail grocery stores
• 2004 – Ergonomics guidelines announced for the poultry processing industry
• 2004 – OSHA issues Fire Protection in Shipyard Employment Standard
• 2009 – OSHA issues standard to facilitate Hazard Communication – Global Harmonisation System
• 2010 – OSHA holds National Action Summit on Health & Safety for Latino Workers
• 2010 – OSHA issues regulation for Falls in General Industry
• 2010 – OSHA initiates an Injury and Illness Prevention Program Initiative
• 2010 – A new standard on Cranes and Derricks was issued.