Sunday, November 20, 2005

Sure Glad We Got Rid Of That Ergonomics Standard

How would the American business community feel if they knew that one of President Bush's first major actions was to effectively give them a $16 billion tax increase?

Employers spent $50.8 billion in 2003 on wage payments and medical care for workers hurt on the job, according to the Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety in its Workplace Safety Index. $13.4 billion of that total -- the largest contributor -- was overexertion-related injuries caused by excessive lifting, pushing, pulling, holding, carrying or throwing of an object. Another $3 billion blamed on repetitive motion injuries. Almost half of corporate Chief Financial Officers mentioned overexertion and repetitive motion as their number one cause of workers compensation loss.

Most of these injuries would have been covered by the ergonomics standard, issued in 2000 and repealed in March 2001 by the Republican Congress and Bush administration.

Good work guys.