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NSC Statement on President-Elect Biden’s COVID-19 Task Force

Having a workplace safety voice at the table alongside medical and health professionals is critical.

November 17, 2020

Itasca, IL – The National Safety Council urges President-elect Biden to ensure there is a workplace safety expert on his COVID-19 task force. With 157 million people in the workforce, employers play a pivotal role in curbing the spread of the virus, including through screening, testing and contact tracing. The importance of having a workplace safety voice at the table alongside medical and health professionals cannot be overstated.

The business community has not had a pandemic roadmap to follow, and employers have struggled because of it. Safety professionals have been thrust into roles for which they have limited training, resources and experience, and we owe them guidance for the next phase of the pandemic. NSC analysis of all 50 states’ actions to combat COVID-19 show that only nine states released comprehensive employer guidelines during the pandemic to help protect employees.

NSC and its partner organizations created SAFER – Safe Actions for Employee Returns – to help fill the gap, understanding that history will take into account how we cared for workers when it assesses our overall response. Guidance from a federal task force could help immensely. 

We are facing a safety crisis in COVID-19 that is unlike any other in modern history. Employers play a critical role in helping us effectively address it, so they must be involved in conversations at the highest levels. NSC supports the experts already appointed to the task force and believes it will be more complete if a workplace safety professional is included. 

About the National Safety Council
The National Safety Council is America’s leading nonprofit safety advocate – and has been for over 100 years. As a mission-based organization, we work to eliminate the leading causes of preventable death and injury, focusing our efforts on the workplace, roadway and impairment. We create a culture of safety to not only keep people safer at work, but also beyond the workplace so they can live their fullest lives.

Partner with NSC

With a century-long legacy, the National Safety Council is a global center for safety expertise. Let's work together to align resources. We look forward to learning about ways we can join efforts to expand safety everywhere!

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