Make Safety Smart Again- Put NIOSH Back Where It Belongs

email advocacy

Email Subject:

Dear [Your Elected Official],

I’m writing to express deep concern over the recent mass layoffs at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and to urge you to support immediate action to restore its funding and workforce.
NIOSH plays a vital role in protecting the health and safety of American workers. Its research directly informs national standards on respiratory protection, chemical exposures, stress-related health impacts, and workplace illnesses such as silicosis and coal workers’ pneumoconiosis. These are not abstract issues—they affect millions of workers every day in industries that power our economy.
The recent elimination of a large portion of NIOSH’s staff and programs will have immediate and long-term consequences. It undermines critical research, weakens emergency response capabilities, and creates a gap in evidence-based guidance that employers and safety professionals rely on to protect workers.
As a safety professional, I’ve seen firsthand the impact NIOSH’s work has on real-world safety outcomes. Whether it’s supporting health hazard evaluations, driving innovations in personal protective equipment, or advancing education and training, NIOSH has been a cornerstone of public service and scientific excellence.
We need you to fight to:
<ol>
<li>Restore NIOSH funding and staffing to pre-layoff levels.</li>
<li>Recognize NIOSH as an essential component of our national workforce health and safety infrastructure.</li>
<li>Ensure long-term, stable funding to protect the future of occupational health in the U.S.</li>
</ol>
Worker safety is not optional. NIOSH is not expendable. I respectfully urge you to speak out and take legislative action to protect the people who keep this country running.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]

[Your City & State]

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Summary

You gotta fight… for your right… to worker safety. The cuts to NIOSH aren’t just budget lines—they're a gut punch to the very foundation of occupational health in this country. We're talking about the researchers behind respiratory protection. The experts tracking black lung in coal miners. The people asking, what happens when stress and chemical exposures collide? The team behind HHE investigations that actually keep workplaces safe. Now? Almost entirely gone. This isn’t just “concerning.” It’s a seismic shift—and the ripple effects are coming straight for every EHS professional, every worker, and every business that cares about keeping people healthy and productive. But here’s the thing: we’re not sitting this one out. Safety Knights was built to back EHS pros, and that mission doesn’t disappear when times get tough. It gets LOUDER. So here’s what you can do right now: Use this to contact your legislators. There’s a letter template ready to go—just add your info and hit send. Tell them NIOSH isn’t optional. It’s essential to the health of workers and the health of our economy.

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Your State Senator and State Representative Federal Senator and Federal Representative State Governor State Lt. Governor County Council City Mayor City Council