David Michaels
@drdavidmichaels.bsky.social
Epidemiologist, Professor GW School of Public Health; Longest serving OSHA head (2009-17); former Asst Secretary of Energy for Environment, Safety, & Health; Author: Triumph of Doubt: Dark Money and the Science of Deception. http://drdavidmichaels.com
Pinned
I'm new to Bluesky so a little about me: I teach at the George Washington University School of Public Health. My expertise and passion is worker safety.
I ran the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) 2009-2017, and was the longest serving administrator in OSHA's history. 1/
I ran the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) 2009-2017, and was the longest serving administrator in OSHA's history. 1/
Reposted by David Michaels
Devastating. www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
How Trump Broke Corporate America’s Most Valuable Consultant
Businesses are begging the White House and RFK Jr. to rethink their massive cuts to Niosh, a workplace research agency that saves the US billions of dollars a year.
www.bloomberg.com
December 31, 2025 at 12:27 AM
Devastating. www.bloomberg.com/news/feature...
Reposted by David Michaels
I was one of the 10 experts the NYT asked to review the test results
December 30, 2025 at 2:26 AM
I was one of the 10 experts the NYT asked to review the test results
Reposted by David Michaels
If the US invested in child care and had national policies like paid leave comparable to other industrialized countries, we would generate $775 billion of economic activity a year. The question should not be, “how can we afford to do this?” The question is, “how can we afford not to?” Let’s do this.
December 25, 2025 at 3:36 AM
If the US invested in child care and had national policies like paid leave comparable to other industrialized countries, we would generate $775 billion of economic activity a year. The question should not be, “how can we afford to do this?” The question is, “how can we afford not to?” Let’s do this.
Reposted by David Michaels
How workers died last week: Logging, construction, gas explosion, truck repair, avalanche, mining, stabbing, shootings and vehicle incidents. On average, over 100 workers are killed every week in the United States due to traumatic injuries suffered at work. jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...
No Happy New Year: The Weekly Toll - Confined Space
On average, over 100 workers are killed every week in the United States due to traumatic injuries suffered at work. How a few died last week.
jordanbarab.com
December 29, 2025 at 9:59 PM
How workers died last week: Logging, construction, gas explosion, truck repair, avalanche, mining, stabbing, shootings and vehicle incidents. On average, over 100 workers are killed every week in the United States due to traumatic injuries suffered at work. jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...
Reposted by David Michaels
55 years ago today, Richard Nixon signed the Occupational Safety and Health Act giving American workers the right to a safe workplace.
www.politico.com/story/2018/1...
www.politico.com/story/2018/1...
Nixon signs workplace safety bill, Dec. 29, 1970
The bill created OSHA.
www.politico.com
December 29, 2025 at 8:17 PM
55 years ago today, Richard Nixon signed the Occupational Safety and Health Act giving American workers the right to a safe workplace.
www.politico.com/story/2018/1...
www.politico.com/story/2018/1...
Science-for-Hire alert.
The insurance industry uses the tobacco playbook to lowball payments to residents whose houses are contaminated by toxic chemicals following LA fires.
Thanks @rukminicallimachi.bsky.social, Blacki Migliozzi, @nytimes.com for powerful, heartbreaking investgative reporting.
The insurance industry uses the tobacco playbook to lowball payments to residents whose houses are contaminated by toxic chemicals following LA fires.
Thanks @rukminicallimachi.bsky.social, Blacki Migliozzi, @nytimes.com for powerful, heartbreaking investgative reporting.
Insurers Said They Could Return Home. Our Tests Found Neurotoxins in Their Bodies. (Gift Article)
A Times investigation has found that insurers are driving families into homes contaminated by smoke. Lab results show how one family was exposed to neurotoxins and carcinogens.
www.nytimes.com
December 29, 2025 at 7:36 PM
Science-for-Hire alert.
The insurance industry uses the tobacco playbook to lowball payments to residents whose houses are contaminated by toxic chemicals following LA fires.
Thanks @rukminicallimachi.bsky.social, Blacki Migliozzi, @nytimes.com for powerful, heartbreaking investgative reporting.
The insurance industry uses the tobacco playbook to lowball payments to residents whose houses are contaminated by toxic chemicals following LA fires.
Thanks @rukminicallimachi.bsky.social, Blacki Migliozzi, @nytimes.com for powerful, heartbreaking investgative reporting.
Reposted by David Michaels
This month's 11th Hour column in the print New Republic is about Trump's threatened sale of the Wilbur J. Cohen Federal Building, the "Sistine Chapel of the New Deal." We have since learned Trump is preparing to bypass the GSA and demolish it before sale. Please spread the word.
December 26, 2025 at 5:29 PM
This month's 11th Hour column in the print New Republic is about Trump's threatened sale of the Wilbur J. Cohen Federal Building, the "Sistine Chapel of the New Deal." We have since learned Trump is preparing to bypass the GSA and demolish it before sale. Please spread the word.
Reposted by David Michaels
Important piece by @noamscheiber.bsky.social on why tech workers exercise voice and organized even in tough times. Hint: They realize they are more like each other than their boss. www.nytimes.com/2025/12/26/b...
Despite Crackdown on Activism, Tech Employees Are Still Picking Fights
www.nytimes.com
December 26, 2025 at 4:51 PM
Important piece by @noamscheiber.bsky.social on why tech workers exercise voice and organized even in tough times. Hint: They realize they are more like each other than their boss. www.nytimes.com/2025/12/26/b...
When Jim Gallogly took over LyondellBasell it was in bankruptcy proceedings. But instead of focusing solely on profits, he took a different approach:
"Safety's a religion to me. It turns out that if you operate really, really well, you're doing a lot of things right, and that begins with safety."
"Safety's a religion to me. It turns out that if you operate really, really well, you're doing a lot of things right, and that begins with safety."
The Struggle to Keep America’s Workers Safe - What’s News - WSJ Podcasts
For over 100 years, keeping Americans safe on the job has challenged the country's free-market economy. Businesses often preferred to regulate their workplaces without government oversight. But that t...
www.wsj.com
December 23, 2025 at 6:19 PM
When Jim Gallogly took over LyondellBasell it was in bankruptcy proceedings. But instead of focusing solely on profits, he took a different approach:
"Safety's a religion to me. It turns out that if you operate really, really well, you're doing a lot of things right, and that begins with safety."
"Safety's a religion to me. It turns out that if you operate really, really well, you're doing a lot of things right, and that begins with safety."
Reposted by David Michaels
How workers died last week: Trench collapse, skid steer, fork lift, coal mining, fall, shootings and vehicle incidents. On average, over 100 workers are killed every week in the United States due to traumatic injuries suffered at work.
jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...
jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...
Weekly Toll - Confined Space
On average, over 100 workers are killed every week in the United States due to traumatic injuries suffered at work. Here are how a few died last week.
jordanbarab.com
December 23, 2025 at 2:20 PM
How workers died last week: Trench collapse, skid steer, fork lift, coal mining, fall, shootings and vehicle incidents. On average, over 100 workers are killed every week in the United States due to traumatic injuries suffered at work.
jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...
jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...
The Trump administration had adopted policies condemning a sizable group of its core MAGA supporters — miners, firemen, manufacturing workers — to slow deaths from diseases that cut off their ability to breathe.
Make America Healthy Again? More like how many people can we kill?
Thanks, Tom Edsall.
Make America Healthy Again? More like how many people can we kill?
Thanks, Tom Edsall.
Opinion | Trump’s War on Public Health Is a Battle to the Death
www.nytimes.com
December 23, 2025 at 2:07 PM
The Trump administration had adopted policies condemning a sizable group of its core MAGA supporters — miners, firemen, manufacturing workers — to slow deaths from diseases that cut off their ability to breathe.
Make America Healthy Again? More like how many people can we kill?
Thanks, Tom Edsall.
Make America Healthy Again? More like how many people can we kill?
Thanks, Tom Edsall.
Reposted by David Michaels
My latest is about regulatory cost-benefit analysis and how conservatives fell out of love with it. (Spoiler alert: It wasn’t because they started liking regulations.)
newrepublic.com/article/2046...
newrepublic.com/article/2046...
The Peak of Trump’s Fact-Free Vendetta Against Regulation
Conservatives once promoted cost-benefit analysis to check the administrative state—until it got better at measuring the huge benefits of regulation.
newrepublic.com
December 22, 2025 at 3:50 PM
My latest is about regulatory cost-benefit analysis and how conservatives fell out of love with it. (Spoiler alert: It wasn’t because they started liking regulations.)
newrepublic.com/article/2046...
newrepublic.com/article/2046...
Reposted by David Michaels
Perfect visual and choice. @juliesulabor.bsky.social doesn't just talk about working people-she fights for them with relentless creativity. I've seen her integrity and ingenuity firsthand. This is the team Mayor-elect @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social is building and it's exactly what NYC needs. Let's go!
December 19, 2025 at 11:47 PM
Perfect visual and choice. @juliesulabor.bsky.social doesn't just talk about working people-she fights for them with relentless creativity. I've seen her integrity and ingenuity firsthand. This is the team Mayor-elect @zohrankmamdani.bsky.social is building and it's exactly what NYC needs. Let's go!
Reposted by David Michaels
This is the 5th worker killed in a trench collapse over the past month. This was a Texas public employee who is not covered by #OSHA, so there will be no investigation, no citation, no penalty. But the Mayor & County Judge have expressed condolences, so there's that. www.kcbd.com/2025/12/17/s...
Spur city employee killed in utility trench cave-in
An employee for the city of Spur died in a cave-in at a utility trench on Wednesday afternoon, according to a report from The Texas Spur.
www.kcbd.com
December 19, 2025 at 9:39 PM
This is the 5th worker killed in a trench collapse over the past month. This was a Texas public employee who is not covered by #OSHA, so there will be no investigation, no citation, no penalty. But the Mayor & County Judge have expressed condolences, so there's that. www.kcbd.com/2025/12/17/s...
Fabulous Appointment!
@juliesulabor.bsky.social brings tremendous experience, expertise, and passion to NYC, where she will advance her life's mission of improving the lives of working people.
@juliesulabor.bsky.social brings tremendous experience, expertise, and passion to NYC, where she will advance her life's mission of improving the lives of working people.
December 19, 2025 at 8:18 PM
Fabulous Appointment!
@juliesulabor.bsky.social brings tremendous experience, expertise, and passion to NYC, where she will advance her life's mission of improving the lives of working people.
@juliesulabor.bsky.social brings tremendous experience, expertise, and passion to NYC, where she will advance her life's mission of improving the lives of working people.
Reposted by David Michaels
This has flown below the radar, but it’s a low-key outrage that Trump’s FDA has withdrawn the rule to regulate asbestos in talc products. It’s the opposite of making America healthy.
www.notus.org/health-scien...
www.notus.org/health-scien...
All Talc, No Action: Washington Goes Soft on Asbestos Testing
The FDA on Nov. 28 withdrew a proposed rule to test talcum powder in cosmetics for traces of asbestos.
www.notus.org
December 16, 2025 at 11:16 AM
This has flown below the radar, but it’s a low-key outrage that Trump’s FDA has withdrawn the rule to regulate asbestos in talc products. It’s the opposite of making America healthy.
www.notus.org/health-scien...
www.notus.org/health-scien...
Wondering what’s happening to the Washington Post?
The @WashingtonPost.com's editorial section is becoming more and more anti-union. And they are relying on some unsavory sources to try to make their points.
jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...
jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...
Washington Post's Road to Anti-Union Perdition - Confined Space
The Washington Post has never been very union-friendly, but their editorial page has outdone itself lately.
jordanbarab.com
December 15, 2025 at 10:11 PM
Wondering what’s happening to the Washington Post?
Reposted by David Michaels
My overdue annual holiday post about the best labor and workplace safety & health books. Use them as ideas for loved ones or yourselves. Sorry, I'm a bit late this year, so this goes out to those of you panicking about not completing your Holiday shopping yet. jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...
2025 Holiday Book List - Confined Space
Looking for a good book for a holiday present or that will interest you, entertain you, and fire you up? Well, you've come to the right place.
jordanbarab.com
December 11, 2025 at 9:55 PM
My overdue annual holiday post about the best labor and workplace safety & health books. Use them as ideas for loved ones or yourselves. Sorry, I'm a bit late this year, so this goes out to those of you panicking about not completing your Holiday shopping yet. jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...
Reposted by David Michaels
A planned rule to set new silica exposure limits—and finally address Appalachia’s devastating black lung crisis—has been under continued assault by coal bosses and the Trump admin. Now, it looks like it’s off the table entirely.
New for @inthesetimes.com: inthesetimes.com/article/the-...
New for @inthesetimes.com: inthesetimes.com/article/the-...
The Trump Administration Ramps Up Its War On Coal Miners
A planned rule to set new silica exposure limits—and address Appalachia’s ongoing black lung crisis—has been under continued assault. Now, it looks like it's off the table.
inthesetimes.com
December 11, 2025 at 11:06 PM
A planned rule to set new silica exposure limits—and finally address Appalachia’s devastating black lung crisis—has been under continued assault by coal bosses and the Trump admin. Now, it looks like it’s off the table entirely.
New for @inthesetimes.com: inthesetimes.com/article/the-...
New for @inthesetimes.com: inthesetimes.com/article/the-...
Don't turn away - read this now.
Read to the end. NPR asked why the Trump team ended a low-cost program that cured millions of tropical diseases w drugs donated by pharma. The spokesperson replied with an NPR headline—“Farewell to USAID”—and said: “What do you think farewell meant?” www.npr.org/sections/goa...
The fight to beat neglected tropical diseases was going well. 2025 could change that
The campaign to prevent and treat these diseases has seen great success thanks to a USAID program. Now that program is gone.
www.npr.org
December 11, 2025 at 5:53 PM
Don't turn away - read this now.
Reposted by David Michaels
"The memo largely codifies the unequal relationship between regulatory benefit-cost analysis and executive review.... If high-quality analysis suggests that deregulation is costly, and it often will, the memo effectively instructs OIRA to turn a blind eye." www.theregreview.org/2025/12/10/s...
Another Blow to Regulatory Benefit-Cost Analysis | The Regulatory Review
The Trump Administration’s weakening of regulatory benefit-cost analysis vests unequal power in executive review.
www.theregreview.org
December 11, 2025 at 2:26 PM
"The memo largely codifies the unequal relationship between regulatory benefit-cost analysis and executive review.... If high-quality analysis suggests that deregulation is costly, and it often will, the memo effectively instructs OIRA to turn a blind eye." www.theregreview.org/2025/12/10/s...
Within the scientific community, the idea there is a safe threshold for carcinogenic exposures is not widely accepted.
But the idea of a threshold is a holy grail for industry, because if you can claim a threshold, then you don’t need to protect people at levels below that threshold.
Hiroko Tabuchi
But the idea of a threshold is a holy grail for industry, because if you can claim a threshold, then you don’t need to protect people at levels below that threshold.
Hiroko Tabuchi
Starting With Formaldehyde, Trump Administration Reassesses Chemical Risks
www.nytimes.com
December 10, 2025 at 7:30 PM
Within the scientific community, the idea there is a safe threshold for carcinogenic exposures is not widely accepted.
But the idea of a threshold is a holy grail for industry, because if you can claim a threshold, then you don’t need to protect people at levels below that threshold.
Hiroko Tabuchi
But the idea of a threshold is a holy grail for industry, because if you can claim a threshold, then you don’t need to protect people at levels below that threshold.
Hiroko Tabuchi
Reposted by David Michaels
So glad I got to chat with Beth Macy about PAPER GIRL for @pghreviewofbooks.bsky.social. Talking to Beth is like talking to a neighbor back home. <3
"What has happened to home? What has happened to us? And where do we go from here?"
Neema Avashia interviews Beth Macy on her latest release, “Paper Girl: A Memoir of Home and Family in Fractured America.” @avashianeema.bsky.social @bethmacy.bsky.social pghrev.com/talking-abou...
Neema Avashia interviews Beth Macy on her latest release, “Paper Girl: A Memoir of Home and Family in Fractured America.” @avashianeema.bsky.social @bethmacy.bsky.social pghrev.com/talking-abou...
Talking about Empathy with Beth Macy - Pittsburgh Review of Books
I’ve known about Beth Macy for a very long time. A number of her books take place in the geography of my childhood. She is friends with some of my dearest
pghrev.com
December 10, 2025 at 1:59 AM
So glad I got to chat with Beth Macy about PAPER GIRL for @pghreviewofbooks.bsky.social. Talking to Beth is like talking to a neighbor back home. <3
Reposted by David Michaels
My latest on the Cohen Building: How Trump is preparing to demolish it BEFORE selling the land, plus that time during the Cold War when Cohen employees got the Shahn murals covered up.
newrepublic.com/article/2042...
newrepublic.com/article/2042...
Can the “Sistine Chapel of the New Deal” Be Saved From Trump?
Precious murals by Ben Shahn, Philip Guston, and others are even more endangered than we knew.
newrepublic.com
December 10, 2025 at 1:54 PM
My latest on the Cohen Building: How Trump is preparing to demolish it BEFORE selling the land, plus that time during the Cold War when Cohen employees got the Shahn murals covered up.
newrepublic.com/article/2042...
newrepublic.com/article/2042...