1970

Ι

1971

Ι 1972 Ι 1973 Ι 1974 Ι 1975 Ι 1976 Ι

1977

Ι

197

At left are the current eight 8

locations of NIOSH facilities.

1970s

50 Years of

The 8 Locations of NIOSH

1972

• The first Criteria Document 

is published.

Criteria 

Documents 

are used for 

developing 

comprehensive 

workplace safety and health 

standards. 

• NIOSH supports training 

project grants that address 

the burden of OSH in the United 

States by training the next 

generation of OSH leaders.

1970

• March 10, 1970, the first Health 

Hazard Evaluation is conducted 

at the Sager Glove Corporation in 

Murray, Kentucky, where researchers 

study asbestos exposures. 

• NIOSH begins to certify respirators.

• December 29, 1970, 

the Occupational 

Safety and Health 

Act, creating NIOSH, 

is signed by President 

Richard Nixon. 

1973

• NIOSH is 

transferred into 

the Centers 

for Disease 

Control, which 

later becomes 

the Centers for Disease Control 

and Prevention (CDC).

1974

• NIOSH and OSHA develop 

the Standards Completion 

Program, which includes 

387 substance-specific draft 

standards. This leads to the 

NIOSH/OSHA Occupational 

Health Guidelines for Chemical 

Hazards. 

• The NIOSH Manual of 

Analytical Methods (NMAM)

is first published. The manual 

is a collection of methods 

for sampling and analyzing 

contaminants in workplace air, 

on surfaces, and in the blood 

and urine of workers.

1977

• First nine Education and Research Centers (ERCs)

awarded (Harvard University, University of Cincinnati, 

Johns Hopkins University, University of Texas Houston, 

University of Minnesota, University of North Carolina, 

University of Washington, University of Illinois at 

Chicago, and University of Arizona). ERCs help 

prepare the future OSH workforce to respond to new 

challenges posed by the changing nature of work. 

• Courts affirm authority to enter workplaces, 

look at medical records, and release research 

findings. 

• Occupational Diseases: A Guide to Their 

Recognition informs about how to detect 

workplace diseases. 

1971

• NIOSH begins in May 1971.

• First toxic substances list is 

published. 

1978

• The Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards is 

first published. The guide gives 

information for hundreds of 

chemicals/classes, helping users 

recognize and control chemical 

hazards in the workplace. 

1975

• First Current Intelligence Bulletins published.
1980

Ι

1981

Ι

1982 Ι 1983 Ι 1984 Ι 1985 Ι 1986 Ι 1987

Ι

1988

Ι

1989

1986

• Proposed National Strategies 

for the Prevention of Leading 

Work-Related Diseases and 

Injuries are published, focusing 

on actions to prevent occupational 

musculoskeletal injuries.

• NIOSH, OSHA, and EPA establish 

the ONE Committee to 

coordinate the agencies’ research 

efforts.

• Collaboration with ILO 

International Programme on 

Chemical Safety establishes 

hazard 

communication 

cards to give 

essential safety 

and health 

information in a 

clear and concise way to workers 

and OSH professionals. 

1980s

The 10 Sectors of NORA

The 

National 

Occupational 

Research Agenda 

(NORA) stimulates 

research and 

improved 

workplace practices.

Agriculture, 

Forestry and 

Fishing

Healthcare 

and Social 

Assistance

Oil and Gas 

Extraction

Public 

Safety

Wholesale 

and Retail 

Trade

Services Transportation, 

Warehousing,

and Utilities

Construction Manufacturing Mining

1980

• First state-based workplace health 

cooperative agreements are developed. 

1982

• The Fatality Assessment and 

Control Evaluation (FACE) program 

begins. Investigations 

conducted through 

the FACE program 

help identify factors 

that contribute 

to fatal injuries. 

This information is used to develop 

comprehensive recommendations 

for preventing similar deaths. NIOSH 

goes on to publish the first three FACE 

reports the same year. 

1985

• On the 15th anniversary of the 

OSH Act, the Office of Technology 

Assessment issues a report concluding 

that the Act helped to reduce 

exposures to vinyl chloride, cotton 

dust, and lead. 

• NIOSH publishes a research agenda

focusing on the top 10 most important 

topics for workplace health and safety 

at the time. This is considered to 

be the foundation of the National 

Occupational Research Agenda 

(NORA). 

1984

• First meeting of the NIOSH 

Board of Scientific Counselors

convenes. The committee gives 

advice on NIOSH’s workplace 

safety and health research and 

prevention programs.

1987

• Sentinel Event Notification System for 

Occupational Risk (SENSOR) program 

established. The program would go on 

to support changes in federal regulations 

to reduce pesticide-related health risks, 

improvements in training and certification 

for pesticide applicators, safer pest 

control in schools, and improved labels on 

pesticide products. 

• NIOSH publishes landmark studies 

showing hazards of exposure to asbestoscontaminated vermiculite and lung 

cancer mortality from Libby, Montana.

• Adult Blood Lead Epidemiology and 

Surveillance (ABLES) launched to help 

lower the proportion of persons who have 

elevated blood lead levels from work 

exposure.

1989

• The Alice Hamilton Award for 

Excellence in Science in Occupational 

Safety and Health

recognizes the scientific 

excellence of technical and 

instructional materials by 

NIOSH scientists and 

engineers in the areas of 

biological science, engineering and 

physical science, human studies, and 

educational materials.

• State FACE program established.
1994

• Certified Equipment List, a 

searchable database of all NIOSHapproved respirators, published. 

• NIOSH Lifting Equation (NLE)

published. It has 

contributed to improved 

risk assessments for 

manual-lifting jobs. In the 

late 2010s, the NLE was 

converted to an app. 

1990s

Coal Mining Fatalities

per 10,000 Workers, 1900–2020 1990

Ι

1991

Ι

1992 Ι 1993 Ι 1994 Ι 1995 Ι 1996 Ι 1997

Ι

1998

Ι

1999

50

45

40

35

30

25

20

15

10

5

0

Coal mining fatalities have declined from 

nearly 48 per 10,000 workers in 1907 to 

fewer than 1 per 10,000 workers in 2020.

1998

• Fire Fighter 

Fatality 

Investigation 

and 

Prevention 

Program established.

1993

• Preventing 

Homicide in the 

Workplace Alert 

released. 

1991

• Current Intelligence Bulletin, 

Environmental Tobacco Smoke 

in the Workplace: 

Lung Cancer and 

Other Health Effects

published, explaining 

effects of environmental 

tobacco smoke. 

• First Work-Related Lung Disease 

(WoRLD) Surveillance Report 

published (in 2008 it became an 

online surveillance system). 

1996

• Mine safety research 

authority is transferred 

to NIOSH following the 

elimination of the U.S. 

Bureau of Mines.

• Engineering Control Guidelines for Hot 

Mix Asphalt Pavers is published. This 

represents a new paradigm for conducting 

research by developing a partnership 

between labor, industry, and government. 

• Preventing Allergic Reactions to Natural 

Rubber Latex in the Workplace Alert is 

published, addressing reports of workers’ 

allergic reactions to latex. 

• NIOSH publishes “The Yellow Book,” 

or Musculoskeletal Disorders and 

Workplace Factors: A Critical Review 

of Epidemiologic Evidence for WorkRelated Musculoskeletal Disorders of the 

Neck, Upper Extremity, and Low Back.

1990

• Centers for Agricultural Disease 

and Injury Research, Education, 

and Prevention 

are established. The 

centers conduct 

research, education, 

and prevention 

projects to address 

the nation’s pressing agricultural, 

forestry, and fishing health and safety 

problems in their geographic regions. 

• National Center for Construction 

Safety and Health Research and 

Translation established.

1999

• NIOSH issues 

recommendations for 

preventing job-related 

stress.

• NIOSH issues 

recommendations 

for preventing 

work-related 

needlestick 

injuries.

1900

2020

1970

Source: U.S. Department of Labor
NIOSH often sends staff to respond to disasters and outbreaks. Pictured are the World Trade Center (2001), 

Hurricane Katrina (2005), the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (2010), and COVID-19 (2020–2021).

2000

Ι

2001

Ι

2002 Ι 2003 Ι 2004 Ι 2005 Ι 2006 Ι 2007

Ι

2008

Ι

2009

2004

• Research to Practice (r2p) initiative 

is established to speed the adoption 

of new research findings into practice 

to benefit workers.

• Nanotechnology Research Center

established.

2005

• NIOSH gives technical and 

humanitarian help after 

Hurricane Katrina. 

• “Hot spots” of rapidly progressive 

coal workers’ Black Lung in the 

U.S. are identified.

2006

• NIOSH funds Total Worker 

Health Centers of 

Excellence.

• After Sago mine disaster, the 

MINER Act calls for NIOSH to 

conduct mining research.

2000s

2001

• NIOSH provides 

technical assistance for 

responder safety and 

health in the World 

Trade Center rescue 

and recovery.

• NIOSH en Español website launches.

• NIOSH responds to Anthrax attacks.

• NIOSH creates a coordinated 

emergency preparedness and 

response program to improve its ability 

to respond to future emergencies and 

disasters.

• NIOSH designates the role of 

compensation analysis and support

from HHS in response to the Energy 

Employees Occupational Illness 

Compensation Program Act of 2000.

2002

• NIOSH scientists publish their research 

findings about a new lung disease 

found in workers at a 

series of microwavepopcorn plants 

(Identification of 

Flavoring-Related 

Lung Disease), giving 

comprehensive recommendations for 

preventing similar deaths. 

2003

• eNews, the NIOSH monthly newsletter, 

debuts.

• Steps to a Healthier U.S. Workforce 

Initiative is launched. This later became 

the Total Worker Health (TWH) 

program.

2007

• NIOSH Science Blog debuts.

2009

• A new sizing structure for fall arrest 

harnesses to better fit the diverse sizes 

and shapes of construction workers is 

released. 

• NIOSH publishes Approaches to Safe 

Nanotechnology, the 

first risk management 

guidance document 

on safe handling of 

engineered nanomaterials 

to incorporate information 

about hazard, exposure, and controls. 

• Oversight of the World Trade Center 

Health Registry is moved to NIOSH. 

• NIOSH responds to 2009 H1N1 

influenza pandemic.

• NIOSH jumps into social media and

joins Twitter. 

2008

• NIOSH-developed Coal 

Dust Explosibility Meter

released to allow mines to 

measure and remediate areas 

that need to be treated with 

rock dust to cut down on their explosibility.
Timeline by John Lechliter/NIOSH

2015

• National Center for Productive 

Aging and Work created.

• Center for Maritime Safety and 

Health Studies established.

2014

• NIOSH staff respond to the Ebola 

epidemic.

• Safe Skilled Ready Workforce 

program launches. 

• Center for Direct Reading and 

Sensor Technologies created.

2013

• First mobile application released, 

Ladder Safety App.

• Occupational Exposure 

to Carbon Nanotubes and 

Nanofibers CIB released.

• Center for Workers’ 

Compensation Studies begins.

2010s

2011

• James Zadroga 9/11 Health and 

Compensation Act of 

2010 signed into law 

1/02/2011, creating the 

World Trade Center 

Health Program.

• Emergency Responder Health 

Monitoring and Surveillance 

(ERHMSTM) framework published to help 

organizations monitor the health and 

safety of emergency responders.

• NIOSH research and assistance enables 

ILO standards for using digital chest 

radiographs in worker screening 

programs.

2010

• NIOSH gives technical assistance 

for responder safety and health in 

the Deepwater Horizon oil spill 

containment and cleanup.

• Center for Motor Vehicle Safety 

established.

• Prevention through Design (PtD): 

Plan for the National Initiative 

published. PtD was noted as the best 

way to prevent occupational injuries 

and illnesses. 

• New occupational health hazard, 

Indium Lung Disease, identified.

2016

• “Emission of Particulate Matter from 

a Desktop Three-Dimensional (3D) 

Printer” publishes.

• Criteria Document on diacetyl and 

2,3-pentanedione sets a diacetyl 

recommended exposure limit.

2020

• NIOSH responds to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

It is the longest response activation in NIOSH 

history.

• National Firefighter Registry aids studies 

of possible links between firefighter exposures 

and cancer.

2019

• Commercial Fishing Occupational 

Safety Research and Training Program 

established.

• Center for Work and Fatigue Research 

established.

• National robotics research funded through 

partnerships.

2012

• Start of the National Falls Prevention 

Campaign in Construction.

2017

• Award-winning video highlights NIOSH 

research with the ambulance industry

to increase ambulance safety through 

standards.

• Center for Occupational Robotics 

Research established.

2018

• Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and 

Nuclear (CBRN) Respiratory Protection 

Handbook to guide respirator selection and 

use is published.

• New tools developed to help identify 

dampness/mold in schools and buildings.

U.S. workers killed on the job fell from about 16 per 100,000 in 1970 

to fewer than 5 per 100,000 in 2018. Data: U.S. Bureau of Labor 

Statistics (BLS). Data from 1970s: BLS reports and OSHA estimations. 

Labor force data from the 1970s: from the U.S. Census.

ESTIMATED

U.S. Worker fatalities

from 1970 through 2018

2

01

0

Ι

2011

Ι

2012 Ι

2013 Ι 2014 Ι 2015 Ι 2016 Ι 2017 Ι 2018

Ι

2019

Ι

20

2

0

1970

1980

About 16 per 

100,000 killed

Fewer than 5 per 

100,000 killed

2018