☕NIOSH Under Attack Again

NIOSH Faces 80% Budget Cut—Here’s What EHS Pros Need to Know

Author

Dan Abbotoy
June 16, 2025

Good morning! We hope you had a great weekend—and a chance to celebrate the dads, father figures, and mentors who’ve helped shape the way we lead, protect, and show up for others. 💙

As we head into a new week, we’re bringing you the latest tools, updates, and insights to keep your safety game strong. Whether you’re out in the field or behind the scenes, your work matters—and we’re here to back you up.

Let’s get into it. 👇

THIS WEEK’S TIPS

This week’s safety upgrades:

  • NIOSH Update

  • Hands-On Training vs. Safety Meetings

  • Safety and Survival

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

This Weeks Professional Development Tip

NIOSH Faces 80% Budget Cut—Here’s What EHS Pros Need to Know

NIOSH, the agency behind vital workplace safety research and respirator approvals, is facing an 80% budget cut for FY 2026. A proposal from the Department of Health and Human Services would slash funding from $362.8 million to just $73.2 million, eliminating entire divisions like the National Personal Protective Technology Laboratory and NIOSH’s education and research centers. What’s left? Mostly mining and cancer registries. For EHS professionals, this isn’t just a bureaucratic shift—it’s a potential collapse of the scientific and technical backbone of workplace safety in the U.S. Congress still has to weigh in, but the time to pay attention is now.

Hands-On Training vs. Safety Meetings: Which Actually Changes Behavior?

When it comes to workplace safety, is a meeting enough—or do workers need to get their hands dirty? This Safety Knights deep dive, inspired by community member Kolby Burkhardt, unpacks the long-standing debate: hands-on training vs. safety meetings. While safety meetings are great for team awareness and quick updates, they often fall flat on retention and real-world application. Meanwhile, hands-on training boosts skill retention by up to 75%, making it essential for high-risk tasks. But the answer isn’t either/or—it’s both. Smart EHS pros use meetings to reinforce what was learned in the field. Want a safety culture that actually sticks? Combine strategy with sweat. Read more here.

POV: You’re the OSHA officer walking onto the jobsite…

And suddenly it’s a full-blown emergency.

Tools down. Radios chirping. People vanish like it's a magic trick. Not because there’s anything wrong (hopefully)... but because no one feels ready.

And that’s the real problem.

An OSHA visit shouldn’t feel like a surprise inspection in a high school locker. If it does, there’s a gap somewhere - in training, systems, culture, or all three.

⚙️ Origami Risk put together a killer e-book on this exact topic: 👉 4 Strategic Risk Transformations: Get it here.

Worth a read if you want to go from “panic mode” to proactive and ready.

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Why Small Business Safety Isn’t Optional—It’s Survival

In small businesses, safety isn’t a department—it’s personal. When one injury can ripple across the whole team (and the budget), prevention isn’t just smart—it’s mission-critical. This National Safety Month, a new report shows nearly 50% of injuries in small businesses were preventable. The fix? Not massive budgets, but small, intentional changes in how safety is built into everyday work. If you're the owner, manager, and safety lead rolled into one, this is your reminder: your culture is your policy. Read the full article to see how prevention pays off.

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Why Every Safety Pro Needs a Stronger Network (And Where to Start)

On Episode 255 of EHS On Tap, Branden Raczkowski—our Director of the Safety Knights—dives into why EHS professionals can't afford to silo themselves. From real talk about burnout to the power of sharing unfiltered experiences, Branden breaks down how building genuine connections can make you a better safety leader. If you're tired of surface-level conversations and want a community that actually gets it, this one's worth a listen.

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