NYSNA Statement on Layoffs at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

The New York State Nurses Association released this statement in response to the mass layoffs at NIOSH: 

The planned mass layoffs at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), one of the most important parts of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), is another disturbing move in this administration’s onslaught on public health and safety. NYSNA nurses and healthcare professionals, along with millions of workers across the U.S., have turned to NIOSH as a vital resource, particularly during moments of crisis. NIOSH ensured the safety of healthcare workers’ personal protective equipment throughout the COVID-19 pandemic; and NIOSH’s staff, research and expertise in conjunction with the World Trade Center Health Program saved millions of lives in the aftermath of 9/11. For more than 50 years, NIOSH has made nurses, firefighters, coal miners, construction workers, and all workers safer and healthier.   

The decimation of NIOSH will undoubtedly have tragic and preventable social, health, and economic implications for years to come. The Trump administration's attack on NIOSH puts frontline workers and our patients at risk. We will continue to fight against these dangerous attacks and fight for worker health and safety because the future of our patients and communities depends upon it.