Daniel Akaka: “on November 14, 2000, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued its final ergonomics program…”

“on November 14, 2000, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued its final ergonomics program standard. This program will spare 460,000 workers from painful injuries and save approximately $9.1 billion each year. This new standard took effect on January 16, 2001, and will be phased-in over four years. While OSHA has issued its final ergonomics program standard and this new standard has taken effect, some of my colleagues are still trying to eliminate this rule. They may claim that it is unwise to issue such a standard because it is based on unsound science and has been rushed through the regulatory process. Nothing could be further from the truth. Mr. President, I am here today to remind my colleagues that OSHA worked on developing ergonomic standards for over 10 years. It is not something new. It has been around since world War II, where the designers of our small plane cockpits took into consideration the placement of cockpit controls for our pilots. We, in Congress, must not forget our commitment to America's workers. We must reduce the numbers of injuries suffered by our workers. We cannot continue to look the other way when each year more than 600,000 workers suffer serious injuries, such as back injuries, carpal tunnel syndrome, and tendinitis, as a result of ergonomic hazards.”