Our Mission is Safety
The National Safety Council eliminates preventable deaths at work, in homes and communities, and on the road through leadership, research, education and advocacy.
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September 2019
Kina Hart
Kina Hart needed a job after her sophomore year of college to earn money to continue her education. She decided to work at a fish processing plant in Alaska for the summer, along with her best friend.
The women arrived in Alaska in June 1990. After a few days, Kina started to become anxious – she had not started earning a paycheck because fish were not coming up the river yet. She went to the foreman’s office and convinced him that she could do any job he could give her. He told Kina she could work on the cleanup crew the next day.
It forever changed Kina’s life.
Just four days after arriving in Alaska – and 40 minutes into her first day on the cleanup crew – Kina became entangled in a conveyor belt. Her left arm had been pulled in near the end roller and crushed. Panic, fear and pain quickly set in. The conveyor belt continued to pull until Kina’s left arm was torn from her body.
Kina survived. Nearly 30 years later, Kina is happily married and living in Washington state with her husband and six children. She started out as a science teacher but now works full time as a safety awareness advocate, speaking about workplace safety. She often volunteers at local high schools near where she is speaking, conducting safety presentations for young adults getting ready to go out into the workforce.
She has dedicated her life to motivating people to make safety a personal responsibility. In the case of her own workplace incident, Kina says no training took place, and the conveyor belt she was cleaning was not locked out. She says she ignored her gut instinct that what she was doing was dangerous.
Kina tells people to listen to that instinct because it’s there for a reason. She says we all need to be our own safety advocates – not only for ourselves but also for our loved ones – and that safety is something we should not hand over to someone else.
NSC believes in creating a workplace culture with safety as a core value and a shared responsibility from the C-suite to the front lines. We seek to better understand why workers get hurt and how to make sure they return home safely every day. Learn more about NSC workplace safety initiatives.
Check to Protect is funded through the generosity of our philanthropic partners FCA, Toyota, Nissan, Ford and Volvo.
A member of Blount Island Marine Corps Base in Jacksonville, FL.
More than one in five vehicles has an open safety recall. Does yours?
That is the question the National Safety Council asked vehicle owners while promoting the Check to Protect® campaign this summer. NSC visited military bases and NASCAR races to let people know how easy it is to check their recall status at CheckToProtect.org – and how important it is to schedule a free repair if a safety recall does exist.
During a one-week span in July, the Check to Protect team spread the word along Florida’s Atlantic coast and achieved the following results:
The Check to Protect team would love to work with your organization to spread the word about safety recalls and canvass vehicles when possible. Please let us know if you can help us tackle this emerging safety issue. Make sure to check your own vehicle’s recall status at CheckToProtect.org as well.
For more information about the campaign and ways to work with NSC, please contact Tom Musick at [email protected].
2019 Green Cross for Safety award winners
Get well-deserved recognition for your safety programs and the people who run them. Awards are given annually in three categories:
ADVOCATE: Recognizes a community partnership, program, individual or coalition that has made a significant impact on a safety issue by advocating to raise awareness or change policy
EXCELLENCE: Recognizes a corporation, coalition or organization for its relentless pursuit of safety
INNOVATION: Recognizes a researcher, corporation or organization that has successfully addressed a long-held challenge in safety with a new or novel approach
The finalists and award winners for the three 2020 Green Cross for Safety Awards will be celebrated at the Green Cross for Safety Awards celebration on May 14, 2020 in Chicago.
Learn more and submit your nominations at greencross.nsc.org.
To explore how your company can align itself with NSC by supporting the 2020 Green Cross for Safety Awards celebration, please contact Jamie Arquilla at [email protected].
As the leading provider of environmental and regulated waste management solutions, Stericycle was among the first corporations to step up and commit monetary and in-kind support to raise awareness about the opioid crisis. In 2017, Stericycle sponsored the Chicago launch event for Prescribed to Death: A Memorial to the Victims of the Opioid Crisis and the subsequent seven-stop tour to create awareness and educate the public. The memorial has reached over 9,800 visitors and earned 3 billion media impressions. Stericycle’s Seal&Send envelopes, provided at no charge to memorial visitors, gave people a practical and tangible way to take action by removing unused medicines from their homes.
Reaching the general public is just a start in combating the opioid crisis. Research from NORC at the University of Chicago indicates 75 percent of people with substance use disorders are in the workforce. Moreover, U.S. employers are spending billions on managing opioid use. To take a step further in decreasing preventable deaths from opioid overdose, Stericycle once again joined NSC to launch the Opioids at Work Employer Toolkit at the 2019 NSC Congress & Expo in San Diego. The toolkit will assist employers with implementing a robust drug-free workplace policy, including educational resources for HR professionals, supervisors and employees such as the Substance Use Cost Calculator, posters, safety talks and case studies on how other employers are addressing the issue.
“We are pleased to join NSC in launching this toolkit to support workplaces from across the country during this public health crisis,” said Cindy Miller, president and CEO of Stericycle. “Substance use and substance use disorders affect employees, workplaces, families and communities now, more than ever. Employers have the unique opportunity to identify early warning signs and connect employees to the support they need. We are proud to provide a simple, yet innovative solution for business leaders who are taking steps to help combat the ongoing opioid epidemic in America.”
Download the Opioids at Work Employer Toolkit.
Every day, the National Safety Council carries out vital mission programs that save lives and prevent injuries at work, in homes and communities, and on the road. We are relentless in our efforts to identify emerging risks to human safety and create effective solutions for individuals, employers and community leaders.
Our donors, advocates and volunteers help us expand our reach and make even greater strides toward creating a safer world for each other. From sharing your story as a Survivor Advocate to hosting a fundraiser, there are many ways you can engage with NSC.
To learn more about how you can make a difference, please email [email protected].
The National Safety Council eliminates preventable deaths at work, in homes and communities, and on the road through leadership, research, education and advocacy. Donate to our cause.
The National Safety Council is a nonprofit, 501(c)(3) organization.