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Annual Conference, Virginia Safety Association, Norfolk, VA, May 7, 1970
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Annual Conference, Virginia Safety Association, Norfolk, VA, May 7, 1970
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Gerald R. Ford Congressional Papers
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The original documents are located in Box D29, folder "Annual Conference, Virginia
Safety Association, Norfolk, VA, May 7, 1970" of the Ford Congressional Papers: Press
Secretary and Speech File at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Copyright Notice
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of
photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. The Council donated to the United
States of America his copyrights in all of his unpublished writings in National Archives collections.
Works prepared by U.S. Government employees as part of their official duties are in the public
domain. The copyrights to materials written by other individuals or organizations are presumed to
remain with them. If you think any of the information displayed in the PDF is subject to a valid
copyright claim, please contact the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.
Construction tapily
KEYNOTE ADDRESS, ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE
VIRGINIA SAFETY ASSOCIATION, NORFOLK,
VIRGINIA, 10 A.M. THURSDAY, MAY 7, 1970.
Safety
SAFETY IS "IN." IT BECAME THE
11-mmy
IN" THING LONG BEFORE THE NATION AWOKE TO
well
THE DANGERS OF POLLUTION AND THE IMBALANCES
IN OUR ECOLOGY
hill your parents
IT CAME DRAMATICALLY TO THE FORE
Personal
AS AN "IN" THING IN 1966, WHEN THE NATIONAL
HIGHWAY SAFETY ACT WAS WRITTEN INTO LAW.
IT IS THE "IN" THING NOW AND IT WILL
CONTINUE TO BE "IN" THROUGHOUT THE DECADE
OF THE SEVENTIES.
I COME TO YOU FROM CONGRESS,
WHERE THERE IS A DEEP AWARENESS OF SAFETY
PROBLEMS AND STRONG SUPPORT FOR NEW MEASURES
AIMED AT STRENGTHENING STANDARDS OF SAFETY
IN ALL AREAS OF AMERICAN LIFE.
SOME OF THESE MEASURES ARE
FORD & LIBRARY GENALD
EXCITING, LIKE THE NEW AIR BAG WHICH IS
2
BEING DEVELOPED TO PROVIDE AN AUTOMATIC
BARRIER AGAINST DEATH IN HIGH SPEED
AUTOMOBILE CRASHES. OTHERS ARE LESS
EXCITING BUT NEVERTHELESS IMPORTANT.
CONGRESSIONAL CONCERN IS FOCUSED
TODAY NOT ONLY ON OUR HIGHWAYS AND
COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENT, BUT ALSO ON THE
NEEDLESS TOLL OF DEATH AND INJURY IN THE
WORKPLACES OF THE NATION.
AS PRESIDENT NIXON HAS SAID, THE
SAME TECHNOLOGICAL PROGRESS "WHICH IMPROVES
OUR LIVES CAN ALSO BE THE SOURCE OF
UNPLEASANTNESS AND PAIN. FOR MAN'S LIVELY
CAPACITY TO INNOVATE IS NOT ALWAYS MATCHED
BY HIS ABILITY TO PROTECT HIMSELF AGAINST
THE UNFORESEEN CONSEQUENCES OF THE CHANGES
HE CREATES."
I THINK A NEW AGE OF SAFETY IS
DAWNING IN AMERICA. THAT IS WHAT IT ALL
ADDS UP TO WHEN YOU CONSIDER THE CONCERN
..3..
OVER HAZARDS AT WORK AS WELL AS ON THE
NATION'S HIGHWAYS.
PEOPLE HAVE SUDDENLY BECOME MORE
AWARE OF OUR WORK HAZARDS AND MORE
SUPPORTIVE OF SOUND SAFETY PROGRAMS TO
ELIMINATE OR REDUCE THEM. THE REASON IS
BECAUSE THE NUMBER OF WORK DEATHS AND
INJURIES IS NOTHING SHORT OF APPALLING.
MORE THAN 14,000 WORKERS DIE ON THE JOB
EACH YEAR, AND THERE ARE MORE THAN 2.5 MILLION
DISABLING INJURIES. WORK INJURIES RESULT
IN 2.5 MILLION MAN-DAYS OF LOST PRODUCTION --
WHICH IS 10 TIMES THE NUMBER LOST DUE TO
STRIKES.
IN 1968 THERE OCCURRED WHAT WE
ALL RECOGNIZE AS THE SECOND REASON FOR
MOUNTING PUBLIC CONCERN OVER PREVENTABLE
WORK HAZARDS. THAT WAS THE COAL MINE
EXPLOSION IN FARMINGTON, W. VA. THAT
DISASTER WAS THE STRAW THAT BROKE THE
4
CAMEL'S BACK. IT IS TO THAT TRAGEDY THAT
WE CAN ATTRIBUTE THE STRONG NATIONWIDE
SUPPORT FOR PRESIDENT NIXON'S JOB SAFETY
PROPOSALS AND FOR QUICK ACTION IN THE
CONGRESS.
PRESIDENT NIXON SEIZED UPON THE
TEMPER OF THE TIMES AND SENT CONGRESS HIS
COMPREHENSIVE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND
HEALTH ACT OF 1969. THAT LEGISLATION NOW
IS BEFORE THE CONGRESS AND IS MOVING FROM
THE SUBCOMMITTEE TO FULL COMMITTEE
CONSIDERATION IN BOTH THE HOUSE AND THE
SENATE.
ON AUGUST 9, 1969, CONGRESS
MADE ITS FIRST MAJOR RESPONSE TO
OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AS AN "IN" THING AND
SENT THE PRESIDENT LEGISLATION ON
CONSTRUCTION SAFETY.
THAT MEASURE PLUGGED THE LAST
GAP IN PROTECTING WORKERS ENGAGED ON
5
GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS. FOR MANY YEARS,
EMPLOYES AND THEIR WORKERS ENGAGED IN
PRODUCING GOODS AND EQUIPMENT FOR THE
GOVERNMENT WERE COVERED BY THE WALSH-HEALEY
ACT. A FEW YEARS AGO, THOSE WHO PERFORMED
SERVICES FOR THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WERE
COVERED BY THE SERVICE CONTRACTS ACT.
NOW, UNDER THE CONSTRUCTION SAFETY ACT,
ALL THOSE EMPLOYED ON FEDERAL OR FEDERALLY-
FINANCED CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS EXCEEDING
$2,000 ARE PROTECTED FROM CONDITIONS WHICH
ARE UNSANITARY, HAZARDOUS OR IN ANY WAY
DANGEROUS TO THE EMPLOYES HEALTH OR
SAFETY.
BUT THE NATION STILL NEEDS A
COMPREHENSIVE OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND
SAFETY LAW. PROTECTION IS NOW SCATTERED
AND SPOTTY.
THIS MORNING I AM PLEASED TO
GERALD FORD FIBRARY
REPORT TO YOU THAT LABOR SECRETARY SHULTZ
6
AND OTHER LABOR DEPARTMENT OFFICIALS
HAVE WORKED WITH MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE
EDUCATION AND LABOR COMMITTEE TO STRENGTHEN
THE ADMINISTRATIONS ORIGINAL OCCUPATIONAL
HEALTH AND SAFETY PROPOSAL.
A MAJOR PROVISION OF THE BILL
CALLS FOR A FIVE-MAN NATIONAL OCCUPATIONAL
SAFETY AND HEALTH BOARD TO PROMULGATE
NATIONAL STANDARDS. THESE FIVE MEN WOULD
BE EXPERTS IN THE FIELD. ALL MUST BE
TECHNICALLY COMPETENT.
THE NEW BILL ALSO ALLOWS THE
SECRETARY OF LABOR TO BRING VIOLATION
CASES INTO COURT AND GIVES HIM UNUSUAL
AUTHORITY FOR INSPECTION AND INVESTIGATION.
IN CASES OF IMMINENT DANGER TO EMPLOYES,
THE SECRETARY MAY PETITION THE FEDERAL
DISTRICT COURT FOR A TEMPORARY RESTRAINING
ORDER. THE COURTS ARE ALSO GIVEN
LIBRARY
JURISDICTION TO ASSESS CIVIL PENALTIES
7
FOR WILLFUL VIOLATIONS AND TO DEBAR
GOVERNMENT CONTRACTORS.
THE REVISED BILL COVERS SMALL AS
WELL AS LARGE EMPLOYERS.
THE NEW MEASURE CONT.INUES
PREVIOUS PROVISIONS FOR FEDERAL GRANTS
TO THE STATES OF UP TO 90 PER CENT FOR
STATE PLANNING OF IMPROVED STANDARDS AND
ENFORCEMENT AND UP TO 50 PER CENT FOR THE
ADMINISTRATION OF PROGRAMS.
STATES WOULD BE PERMITTED TO
SUBMIT PLANS TO THE SECRETARY. WHERE THE
SECRETARY APPROVES THE STATE PLANS, THE
STATES WOULD ENFORCE THEIR OWN STANDARDS --
PROVIDED THEY ARE AS EFFECTIVE AS THE
FEDERAL STANDARDS. THE SECRETARY WOULD
BE AUTHORIZED TO MONITOR STATE PLANS FOR
SUCH FEDERAL-STATE COOPERATION. STATE
STANDARDS PROVIDING STRONGER PROTECTION
TO WORKERS WOULD PREVAIL OVER FEDERAL
STANDARDS.
8
IN ADDITION, THE BILL WOULD
FINANCE UP TO 50 PER CENT OF THE STATE'S
COST OF MAINTAINING AN EFFECTIVE SAFETY
AND HEALTH STATISTICS PROGRAM AS PART OF
A BROADLY-BASED FEDERAL SYSTEM.
LET ME EMPHASIZE THAT THE
STANDARDS PROMULGATED UNDER THE NEW
OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY ACT WOULD
SUPPLANT ALL OF THOSE ISSUED UNDER THE
THREE EXISTING LAWS I HAVE CITED -- THE
WALSH-HEALEY ACT, THE SERVICE CONTRACTS
ACT, AND THE NEW CONSTRUCTION SAFETY ACT.
WITH THE ENACTMENT OF THIS
COMPREHENSIVE HEALTH AND SAFETY
LEGISLATION -- STILL UNDER NEGOTIATION
IN CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES -- I BELIEVE
WE WILL HAVE AN EFFECTIVE, BROADLY-BASED
FEDERAL-STATE SYSTEM OF OCCUPATIONAL
FORD
SAFETY AND HEALTH PROTECTION FOR AMERICAN
LIBRARY
WORKERS.
9
IT COVERS ALL EMPLOYERS WITHIN
REACH OF THE INTERSTATE COMMERCE CLAUSE.
IT SEEKS TO UTILIZE EXPERTISE WHEREVER
IT EXISTS. IT WILL, I BELIEVE, BE A
COMPLETE RESPONSE TO THE GREAT NEED TO
PROTECT TODAY'S WORKERS AGAINST THE
HAZARDS OF OUR RAPIDLY CHANGING TECHNOLOGY.
THERE ARE, OF COURSE, OTHER
GREAT CHALLENGES FACING US IN THE DECADE
OF THE SEVENTIES.
ON OUR HIGHWAYS WE ARE CONFRONTED
WITH A CHALLENGE EVEN MORE ELEMENTAL THAN
THE POLLUTION OF OUR ENVIRONMENT AND THE
TECHNOLOGICAL HAZARDS DEALT WITH BY
AMERICA'S WORKERS.
THAT CHALLENGE IS ONE OF SURVIVAL --
NO LESS.
EVEN FOR SAFETY PROFESSIONALS LIKE
YOURSELVES THE "PROMISE" OF THE SEVENTIES
IS A SHOCK WHEN SEEN IN ITS TOTAL MENACE.
10
THE MENACE IS THAT WE BEGIN THE
DECADE OF THE SEVENTIES KNOWING 50,000
OF US WILL DIE ON THE HIGHWAY IN THIS
FIRST YEAR.
HALF A MILLION OF US WILL DIE
IN A HIGHWAY CRASH BEFORE THE DECADE ENDS.
THIRTY MILLION WILL SUFFER A
CRIPPLING OR DISFIGURING INJURY.
THE REST, ALTHOUGH SURVIVING
PHYSICALLY, WILL BEAR THE COST OF REPLACING
AN ENORMOUS COLLECTION OF WRECKAGE HEAPED
UPON THE ROADWAY -- MORE THAN
$150 BILLION WORTH.
SURVIVAL -- YOURS AND MINE -- MAY
WELL DEPEND ON HOW WELL THE NATIONAL
HIGHWAY SAFETY BUREAU AND THE AMERICAN
AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY TEAM UP IN A
PARTNERSHIP EFFORT.
BEFORE I TELL YOU ABOUT THE
GERALD R.FORD
NATIONAL HIGHWAY SAFETY BUREAUS TOP
..11..
PRIORITIES FOR THE SEVENTIES, LET ME REPORT
ON WHAT RRANSPORTATION SECRETARY JOHN
VOLPE'S SURVEY TEAMS HAVE FOUND IN RECENT
MONTHS REGARDING HIGHWAY SAFETY.
POINT NUMBER ONE. THE
COLLAPSIBLE STEERING WHEEL. USE OF IT
HAS BROUGHT NOT JUST A DRAMATIC REDUCTION
IN IMPALEMENTS, IT HAS REDUCED IT TO ZERO!
POINT NUMBER TWO. THE SEAT BELT
AND THE SHOULDER HARNES. WHERE BOTH HAVE
BEEN USED THERE HAS NOT BEEN A SINGLE
TRAFFIC FATALITY IN CRASHES AT SPEEDS UP
TO 60 MILES PER HOUR. WHAT THAT MEANS
IS THAT THERE ARE 25,000 DEATHS IN THIS
COUNTRY THAT ARE ABSOLUTELY UNNECESSARY
EACH YEAR.
QUESTION. HOW DO YOU GET
PEOPLE TO USE SEAT BELTS? MAYBE YOU CAN
ANSWER THAT QUESTION BETTER THAN 1. I CAN
ONLY SAY I THINK A MASSIVE CAMPAIGN OF
12
RADIO AND TELEVISION SPOT ANNOUNCEMENTS
SIMILAR TO THE OTHER PUBLIC SERVICE
COMMERCIALS WOULD BE HELPFUL. I SALUTE
ACTOR JACK WEBB FOR DOING A FINE JOB IN
THIS CONNECTION ON RADIO. BUT MUCH MORE
COULD BE DONE, I BELIEVE. THE MESSAGE
SHOULD BE: TAKE A MINUTE TO SAVE A LIFE.
LET ME TELL YOU NOW ABOUT THE
NATIONAL HIGHWAY SAFETY BUREAU'S EFFORTS
TO REMAKE THE MENACE OF THE SEVENTIES INTO
A PROMISE THAT MAY REDUCE ANNUAL HIGHWAY
DEATHS BY AT LEAST 50 PER CENT.
THE NUMBER ONE EFFORT WILL BE
MADE IN THE BUREAU'S NEW OFFICE OF ALCOHOL
COUNTERMEASURES.
THE CAMPAIGN CALLS FOR IDENTIFYING
ALL OF THE DRIVERS WHO ARE HABITUAL, HEAVY
DRINKERS. NOT THE 80 PER CENT WHO ARE
SOCIAL DRINKERS, BUT THE FELLOWS WHO TAKE
FORD LIBRARY
TO THE HIGHWAYS WITH BLOOD ALCOHOL LEVELS
13
OF 0.1 PER CENT AND OVER. EVERY YEAR THEY
ACCOUNT FOR NEARLY ONE HALF OF ALL
HIGHWAY DEATHS -- MAKING STATISTICS OF
SOME 25,000 OF THEIR FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORS.
THESE ARE 5 PER CENT OF THE NATION'S
DRIVERS, THESE HEAVY DRINKERS. AND WE GIVE
THIS MINORITY THE FREEDOM TO KILL US ON
ANY HIGHWAY WHERE WE HAVE THE MISFORTUNE TO
MEET THEM.
SO THE PROGRAM WILL BE, IN THE
NEAR FUTURE, TO IDENTIFY EVERY ONE OF THESE
DRIVERS AND THEN REMOVE THEM FROM THE
HIGHWAY THROUGH MORE SELECTIVE LICENSING
AND STIFFER ENFORCEMENT.
THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY SAFETY
BUREAU'S SECOND HIGHEST PRIORITY IS A
REGULATION REQUIRING A PASSIVE OCCUPANT
RESTRAINT SYSTEM, LIKE AN AIR BAG, IN EVERY
VEHICLE ON THE HIGHWAY.
I'M SURE THE PROFESSIONALS
14
HERE KNOW ABOUT THE AIR BAG. CRASH IMPACT
CAUSES ALMOST INSTANTANEOUS INFLATION OF
A PROTECTIVE, CONTOURED BALLOON WHICH
ENFOLDS DRIVER AND OCCUPANTS OF A MOTOR
VEHICLE FOR THE BRIEF, CRUCIAL SECONDS
DURING CRASH. THEN, ALMOST AS QUICKLY,
THE OCCUPANTS AND DRIVER ARE FREE AGAIN.
SUCH RESTRAINTS ARE ALREADY CAPABLE
OF GIVING INJURY-FREE SERVICE IN 50 TO
60-MILE COLLISIONS.
THE AIR BAG IS A BREAKTHROUGH.
IT IS AN EXCITING DEVELOPMENT. ITS
PROBLEMS ARE ALL BUT LICKED, AND SO I
CAN REPORT TO YOU THAT THE AIR BAG IS ON
THE WAY. IN FACT, THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY
SAFETY BUREAU PLANS TO PUT THIS LIFE-SAVER
TO WORK IN 1972 MODELS.
THE PAYOFF IN LIVES SAVED,
GERALD LIDERAY FORD
INJURIES AVOIDED, CAN ONLY BE ESTIMATED
BECAUSE IT WILL TAKE 10 YEARS TO GET AIR BAGS
15
INTO 80 PER CENT OF ALL VEHICLES OPERATING.
THAT ASSUMES INSTALLATION IN NEW CARS
ONLY. THE PICTURE WOULD CHANGE IF
RETROFIT BECOMES POSSIBLE.
THIRD AND LAST OF THE NATIONAL
HIGHWAY SAFETY BUREAU'S TOP PRIORITIES
IS THE EXPERIMENTAL SAFETY VEHICLE.
SECRETARY VOLPE ANNOUNCED IN
MARCH THAT THE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
HAD SETTLED UPON THE PERFORMANCE
SPECIFICATIONS FOR TWO EXPERIMENTAL
VEHICLES AND HAD ASKED FOR MANUFACTURERS'
BIDS.
HE WILL ACCEPT THE TWO BEST
PROPOSALS AND WILL BUILD TWO PROTOTYPES
IN THE 4,000-POUND FAMILY SEDAN CLASS.
THE BETTER OF THE TWO WILL BE PICKED AFTER
FORD
COMPETITIVE TESTS, AND THEN 10 TO 12 TEST
CARS WILL BE PATTERNED AFTER IT. ALL OF
GERAL
LIBRARY
THESE MODELS WILL BE TESTED AND DEMONSTRATED
16
FOR A LONG LIST OF SAFETY-RELATED
PERFORMANCES.
THE IDEA IS TO POINT THE WAY
TOWARD SAFER AND BETTER AUTOMOBILES --
WILL
MASS-PRODUCED CARS -- WHICHA HANDLE BETTER,
REPAIR MORE EASILY, AND DAMAGE LESS THAN
TODAY'S COMPETITORS.
IF THE BUREAU GETS THE RESULTS
INTENDED, AMERICAN MOTORISTS WILL BE
CHOOSING FROM PRODUCTION MODELS WHICH ARE
NOT ONLY HIGHLY CRASH PROTECTIVE BUT ARE
FAR MORE RESISTANT TO SWERVE AND ROLL-OVER
AND RESPOND FAR BETTER TO THE OPERATOR'S
CONTROL AND DEFENSIVE EFFORTS.
I HAVE REPORTED TO YOU ON THE
PENDING COMPREHENSIVE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY
AND HEALTH ACT, AND I HAVE TOUCHED ON THE
TOP THREE PRIORITIES OF THE NATIONAL
FORD LIBRARY
HIGHWAY SAFETY BUREAU. NOW I POSE THE
QUESTION: WHAT WILL THE SEVENTIES BRING?
17
SURVIVAL OR STATISTICS.
I AM BETTING ON THE SIDE OF
SURVIVAL. THERE IS A SENSE OF URGENCY IN
THE FIELD OF SAFETY WHICH IS SHARED BY
BOTH GOVERNMENT AND INDUSTRY, BY THE LAW
ENFORCEMENT ESTABLISHMENT, BY THE
LAW-MAKING AUTHORITY AT EVERY LEVEL, AND
BY YOU IN THE SAFETY ORGANIZATIONS.
WHAT I HAVE TRIED TO OUTLINE FOR
YOU TODAY IS THE MEASURE OF SUCCESS I
SEE ON THE HORIZON -- THE MEASURE OF
SUCCESS WHICH PROMPTS ME TO CALL THE
SEVENTIES THE NEW AGE OF SAFETY.
NOW WE MUST COMMIT THE NATION
FOR THE YEARS AHEAD, SO THAT WHAT WE
ACCOMPLISH CANNOT GALLOP AWAY FROM US
AGAIN -- NEXT YEAR, THE YEAR AFTER, OR
EVER AGAIN. WE MUST COMMIT OURSELVES TO
FORD
LIBRARY
THE LONG PULL -- TO PROTECT OUR MOTORISTS
AND TO PROTECT OUR WORKERS. AND IN THE
18
END WE MUST SELL TO THEM THAT MEASURE OF
CONTROL WHICH WILL PERMIT THEM TO SURVIVE --
IN THE SEVENTIES. I THINK WE CAN DO THE JOB.
-- END --
GERALD R. LIBRARY FORD
Distribution 20 copies Mr. Ford
m Office Copy
KEYNOTE ADDRESS, BY REP. GERALD R. FORD, R-MICH.
BEFORE THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE VIRGINIA SAFETY ASSOCIATION
AT NORFOLK, VIRGINIA
AT 10 A.M. THURSDAY, MAY 7, 1970
FOR RELEASE ON DELIVERY
Safety is "in." It became the "in" thing long before the Nation awoke to
the dangers of pollution and the imbalances in our ecology.
It came dramatically to the fore as an "in" thing in 1966, when the National
Highway Safety Act was written into law. It is the "in" thing now and it will
continue to be "in" throughout the Decade of the Seventies.
I come to you from Congress, where there is a deep awareness of safety
problems and strong support for new measures aimed at strengthening standards of
safety in all areas of American life.
Some of these measures are exciting, like the new air bag which is being
developed to provide an automatic barrier against death in high speed automobile
crashes. Others are less exciting but nevertheless important.
Congressional concern is focused today not only on our highways and
community environment, but also on the needless toll of death and injury in the
workplaces of the Nation.
As President Nixon has said, the same technological progress "which improves
our lives can also be the source of unpleasantness and pain. For man's lively
capacity to innovate is not always matched by his ability to
protect himself
against the unforeseen consequences of the changes he creates."
I think a New Age of Safety is dawning in America. That is what it all
adds up to when you consider the concern over hazards at work as well as on the
Nation's highways.
People have suddenly become more aware of our work hazards and more
supportive of sound safety programs to eliminate or reduce them. The reason is
because the number of work deaths and injuries is nothing short of appalling. More
than 14,000 workers die on the job each year, and there are more than 2.5 million
disabling injuries. Work injuries result in 2.5 million man-days of lost
production--which is 10 times the number lost due to strikes.
In 1968 there occurred what we all recognize as the second reason for
mounting public concern over preventable work hazards. That was the coal mine
explosion in Farmington, W. Va. That disaster was the straw that broke the
(more)
-2-
camel's back. It is to that tragedy that we can attribute the strong nationwide
support for President Nixon's job safety proposals and for quick action in the
Congress.
President Nixon seized upon the temper of the times and sent Congress his
comprehensive Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1969. That legislation now is
before the Congress and is moving from the subcommittee to full committee consider-
ation in both the House and the Senate.
On August 9, 1969, Congress made its first major response to occupational
safety as an "in" thing and sent the President legislation on Construction Safety.
That measure plugged the last gap in protecting workers engaged on Government
contracts. For many years, employes and their workers engaged in producing goods
and equipment for the Government were covered by the Walsh-Healey Act. A few
years ago, those who performed services for the Federal Government were covered by
the Service Contracts Act. Now, under the Construction Safety Act, all those
employed on Federal or Federally-financed construction contracts exceeding $2,000
are protected from conditions which are unsanitary, hazardous or in any way
dangerous to the employes' health or safety.
But the Nation still needs a comprehensive occupational health and safety
law. Protection is now scattered and spotty.
This morning I am pleased to report to you that Labor Secretary Shultz and
other Labor Department officials have worked with members of the House Education
and Labor Committee to strengthen the Administration's original occupational health
and safety proposal.
A major provision of the bill calls for a five-man National Occupational
Safety and Health Board to promulgate national standards. These five men would be
experts in the field. All must be technically competent.
The new bill also allows the Secretary of Labor to bring violation cases
into court and gives him unusual authority for inspection and investigation. In
cases of imminent danger to employes, the Secretary may petition the Federal
district court for a temporary restraining order. The courts are also given
jurisdiction to assess civil penalties for willful violations and to debar
Government contractors.
The revised bill covers small as well as large employers.
The new measure continues previous provisions for Federal grants to the
states of up to 90 per cent for State planning of improved standards and enforce-
ment and up to 50 per cent for the administration of programs.
(more)
-3-
States would be permitted to submit plans to the Secretary. Where the
Secretary approves the State plans, the States would enforce their own standards--
provided they are as effective as the Federal standards. The Secretary would be
authorized to monitor State plans for such Federal-State cooperation. State
standards providing stronger protection to workers would prevail over Federal
standards.
In addition, the bill would finance up to 50 per cent of the State's cost
of maintaining an effective safety and health statistics program as part of a
broadly-based Federal system.
Let me emphasize that the standards promulgated under the new occupational
health and safety act would supplant all of those issued under the three existing
laws I have cited--the Walsh-Healey Act, the Service Contracts Act, and the new
Construction Safety Act.
With the enactment of this comprehensive health and safety legislation--
still under negotiation in congressional committees-I believe we will have an
effective, broadly-based Federal-State system of occupational safety and health
protection for American workers.
It covers all employers within reach of the Interstate Commerce clause. It
seeks to utilize expertise wherever it exists. It will, I believe, be a complete
response to the great need to protect today's workers against the hazards of our
rapidly changing technology.
There are, of course, other great challenges facing us in the Decade of the
Seventies.
On our highways we are confronted with a challenge even more elemental than
the pollution of our environment and the technological hazards dealt with by
America's workers.
That challenge is one of survival--no less.
Even for safety professionals like yourselves the "promise" of the Seventies
is a shock when seen in its total menace.
The menace is that we begin the Decade of the Seventies knowing 50,000 of
us will die on the highway in this first year.
Half a million of us will die in a highway crash before the decade ends.
Thirty million will suffer a crippling or disfiguring injury.
The rest, although surviving physically, will bear the cost of replacing an
enormous collection of wreckage heaped upon the roadway--more than $150 billion
worth.
(more)
-4-
Survival--yours and mine--may well depend on how well the National Highway
Safety Bureau and the American automotive industry team up in a partnership effort.
Before I tell you about the National Highway Safety Bureau's top priorities for
the Seventies, let me report on what Transportation Secretary John Volpe's survey
teams have found in recent months regarding highway safety.
Point Number One. The collapsible steering wheel. Use of it has brought
not just a dramatic reduction in impalements; it has reduced it to ZERO!
Point Number Two. The seat belt and the shoulder harness. Where both have
been used there has not been a single traffic fatality in crashes at speeds up to
60 miles per hour. What that means is that there are 25,000 deaths in this country
that are absolutely unnecessary each year.
Question. How do you get people to use seat belts? Maybe you can answer
that question better than I. I can only say I think a massive campaign of radio and
television spot announcements similar to the other public service commercials would
be helpful. I salute actor Jack Webb for doing a fine job in this connection on
radio. But much more could be done, I believe. The message should be: Take a
minute to save a life.
Let me tell you now about the National Highway Safety Bureau's efforts to
remake the menace of the Seventies into a promise that may reduce annual highway
deaths by at least 50 per cent.
The Number One Effort will be made in the bureau's new Office of Alcohol
Countermeasures.
The campaign calls for identifying all of the drivers who are habitual,
heavy drinkers. Not the 80 per cent who are social drinkers, but the fellows who
take to the highways with blood alcohol levels of 0.1 per cent and over. Every year
they account for nearly one half of all highway deaths--making statistics of some
25,000 of their friends and neighbors. These are 5 per cent of the Nation's
drivers, these heavy drinkers. And we give this minority the freedom to kill us
on any highway where we have the misfortune to meet them.
So the program will be, in the near future, to identify every one of these
drivers and then remove them from the highway through more selective licensing and
stiffer enforcement.
The National Highway Safety Bureau's second highest priority is a regulation
requiring a Passive Occupant Restraint System, like an air bag, in every vehicle
on the highway.
(more)
-5-
I'm sure the professionals here know about the air bag. Crash impact
causes almost instantaneous inflation of a protective, contoured balloon which
enfolds driver and occupants of a motor vehicle for the brief, crucial seconds
during crash. Then, almost as quickly, the occupants and driver are free again.
Such restraints are already capable of giving injury-free service in
50 to 60-mile collisions.
The air bag is a breakthrough. It is an exciting development. Its problems
are all but licked, and so I can report to you that the air bag is on the way. In
fact, the National Highway Safety Bureau plans to put this life-saver to work in
1972 models.
The payoff in lives saved, injuries avoided, can only be estimated because
it will take 10 years to get air bags into 80 per cent of all vehicles operating.
That assumes installation in new cars only. The picture would change if retrofit
becomes possible.
Third and last of the National Highway Safety Bureau's top priorities is
the Experimental Safety Vehicle.
Secretary Volpe announced in March that the Department of Transportation
had settled upon the performance specifications for two experimental vehicles and
had asked for manufacturers' bids.
He will accept the two best proposals and will build two prototypes in the
,000-pound family sedan class. The better of the two will be picked after
competitive tests, and then 10 to 12 test cars will be patterned after it. All of
these models will be tested and demonstrated for a long list of safety-related
performances.
The idea is to point the way toward safer and better automobiles--
mass-produced cars-which will handle better, repair more easily, and damage less
than today's competitors.
If the bureau gets the results intended, American motorists will be choosing
from production models which are not only highly crash protective but are far more
resistant to swerve and roll-over and respond far better to the operator's control
and defensive efforts.
I have reported to you on the pending comprehensive Occupational Safety and
Health Act, and I have touched on the top three priorities of the National Highway
Safety Bureau. Now I pose the question: What will the Seventies bring? Survival
or statistics?
(more)
-6-
I am betting on the side of survival. There is a sense of urgency in the
field of safety which is shared by both Government and industry, by the law
enforcement establishment, by the law-making authority at every level, and by you
in the safety organizations.
What I have tried to outline for you today is the measure of success I see
on the horizon--the measure of success which prompts me to call the Seventies the
New Age of Safety.
Now we must commit the Nation for the years ahead, so that what we
accomplish cannot gallop away from us again--next year, the year after, or ever
again. We must commit ourselves to the long pull--to protect our motorists and to
protect our workers. And in the end we must sell to them that measure of control
which will permit them to survive-in the Seventies. I think we can do the job.
# # #
20 copies Mr. Ford only
Office Copy
KEYNOTE ADDRESS, BY REP. GERALD R. FORD, R-MICH.
BEFORE THE ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE VIRGINIA SAFETY ASSOCIATION
AT NORFOLK, VIRGINIA
AT 10 A.M. THURSDAY, MAY 7, 1970
FOR RELEASE ON DELIVERY
Safety is "in." It became the "in" thing long before the Nation awoke to
the dangers of pollution and the imbalances in our ecology.
It came dramatically to the fore as an "in" thing in 1966, when the National
Highway Safety Act was written into law. It is the "in" thing now and it will
continue to be "in" throughout the Decade of the Seventies.
I come to you from Congress, where there is a deep awareness of safety
problems and strong support for new measures aimed at strengthening standards of
safety in all areas of American life.
Some of these measures are exciting, like the new air bag which is being
developed to provide an automatic barrier against death in high speed automobile
crashes. Others are less exciting but nevertheless important.
Congressional concern is focused today not only on our highways and
community environment, but also on the needless toll of death and injury in the
workplaces of the Nation.
As President Nixon has said, the same technological progress "which improves
our lives can also be the source of unpleasantness and pain. For man's lively
capacity to innovate is not always matched by his ability to protect himself
against the unforeseen consequences of the changes he creates."
I think a New Age of Safety is dawning in America. That is what it all
adds up to when you consider the concern over hazards at work as well as on the
Nation's highways.
People have suddenly become more aware of our work hazards and more
supportive of sound safety programs to eliminate or reduce them. The reason is
because the number of work deaths and injuries is nothing short of appalling. More
than 14,000 workers die on the job each year, and there are more than 2.5 million
disabling injuries. Work injuries result in 2.5 million man-days of lost
production -which is 10 times the number lost due to strikes.
In 1968 there occurred what we all recognize as the second reason for
mounting public concern over preventable work hazards. That was the coal mine
explosion in Farmington, W. Va. That disaster was the straw that broke the
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-2-
camel's back. It is to that tragedy that we can attribute the strong nationwide
support for President Nixon's job safety proposals and for quick action in the
Congress.
President Nixon seized upon the temper of the times and sent Congress his
comprehensive Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1969. That legislation now is
before the Congress and is moving from the subcommittee to full committee consider-
ation in both the House and the Senate.
On August 9, 1969, Congress made its first major response to occupational
safety as an "in" thing and sent the President legislation on Construction Safety.
That measure plugged the last gap in protecting workers engaged on Government
contracts. For many years, employes and their workers engaged in producing goods
and equipment for the Government were covered by the Walsh-Healey Act. A few
years ago, those who performed services for the Federal Government were covered by
the Service Contracts Act. Now, under the Construction Safety Act, all those
employed on Federal or Federally-financed construction contracts exceeding $2,000
are protected from conditions which are unsanitary, hazardous or in any way
dangerous to the employes' health or safety.
But the Nation still needs a comprehensive occupational health and safety
law. Protection is now scattered and spotty.
This morning I am pleased to report to you that Labor Secretary Shultz and
other Labor Department officials have worked with members of the House Education
and Labor Committee to strengthen the Administration's original occupational health
and safety proposal.
A major provision of the bill calls for a five-man National Occupational
Safety and Health Board to promulgate national standards. These five men would be
experts in the field. All must be technically competent.
The new bill also allows the Secretary of Labor to bring violation cases
into court and gives him unusual authority for inspection and investigation. In
cases of imminent danger to employes, the Secretary may petition the Federal
district court for a temporary restraining order. The courts are also given
jurisdiction to assess civil penalties for willful violations and to debar
Government contractors.
The revised bill covers small as well as large employers.
The new measure continues previous provisions for Federal grants to the
states of up to 90 per cent for State planning of improved standards and enforce-
ment and up to 50 per cent for the administration of programs.
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-3-
States would be permitted to submit plans to the Secretary. Where the
Secretary approves the State plans, the States would enforce their own standards--
provided they are as effective as the Federal standards. The Secretary would be
authorized to monitor State plans for such Federal-State cooperation. State
standards providing stronger protection to workers would prevail over Federal
standards.
In addition, the bill would finance up to 50 per cent of the State's cost
of maintaining an effective safety and health statistics program as part of a
broadly-based Federal system.
Let me emphasize that the standards promulgated under the new occupational
health and safety act would supplant all of those issued under the three existing
laws I have cited--the Walsh-Healey Act, the Service Contracts Act, and the new
Construction Safety Act.
With the enactment of this comprehensive health and safety legislation--
still under negotiation in congressional committees--I believe we will have an
effective, broadly-based Federal-State system of occupational safety and health
protection for American workers.
It covers all employers within reach of the Interstate Commerce clause. It
seeks to utilize expertise wherever it exists. It will, I believe, be a complete
response to the great need to protect today's workers against the hazards of our
rapidly changing technology.
There are, of course, other great challenges facing us in the Decade of the
Seventies.
On our highways we are confronted with a challenge even more elemental than
the pollution of our environment and the technological hazards dealt with by
America's workers.
That challenge is one of survival--no less.
Even for safety professionals like yourselves the "promise" of the Seventies
is a shock when seen in its total menace.
The menace is that we begin the Decade of the Seventies knowing 50,000 of
us will die on the highway in this first year.
Half a million of us will die in a highway crash before the decade ends.
Thirty million will suffer a crippling or disfiguring injury.
The rest, although surviving physically, will bear the cost of replacing an
enormous collection of wreckage heaped upon the roadway--more than $150 billion
worth.
(more)
-4-
Survival--yours and mine -may well depend on how well the National Highway
Safety Bureau and the American automotive industry team up in a partnership effort.
Before I tell you about the National Highway Safety Bureau's top priorities for
the Seventies, let me report on what Transportation Secretary John Volpe's survey
teams have found in recent months regarding highway safety.
Point Number One. The collapsible steering wheel. Use of it has brought
not just a dramatic reduction in impalements; it has reduced it to ZERO!
Point Number Two. The seat belt and the shoulder harness. Where both have
been used there has not been a single traffic fatality in crashes at speeds up to
60 miles per hour. What that means is that there are 25,000 deaths in this country
that are absolutely unnecessary each year.
Question. How do you get people to use seat belts? Maybe you can answer
that question better than I. I can only say I think a massive campaign of radio and
television spot announcements similar to the other public service commercials would
be helpful. I salute actor Jack Webb for doing a fine job in this connection on
radio. But much more could be done, I believe. The message should be: Take a
minute to save a life.
Let me tell you now about the National Highway Safety Bureau's efforts to
remake the menace of the Seventies into a promise that may reduce annual highway
deaths by at least 50 per cent.
The Number One Effort will be made in the bureau's new Office of Alcohol
Countermeasures.
The campaign calls for identifying all of the drivers who are habitual,
heavy drinkers. Not the 80 per cent who are social drinkers, but the fellows who
take to the highways with blood alcohol levels of 0.1 per cent and over. Every year
they account for nearly one half of all highway deaths--making statistics of some
25,000 of their friends and neighbors. These are 5 per cent of the Nation's
drivers, these heavy drinkers. And we give this minority the freedom to kill us
on any highway where we have the misfortune to meet them.
So the program will be, in the near future, to identify every one of these
drivers and then remove them from the highway through more selective licensing and
stiffer enforcement.
The National Highway Safety Bureau's second highest priority is a regulation
requiring a Passive Occupant Restraint System, like an air bag, in every vehicle
on the highway.
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-5-
I'm sure the professionals here know about the air bag. Crash impact
causes almost instantaneous inflation of a protective, contoured balloon which
enfolds driver and occupants of a motor vehicle for the brief, crucial seconds
during crash. Then, almost as quickly, the occupants and driver are free again.
Such restraints are already capable of giving injury-free service in
50 to 60-mile collisions.
The air bag is a breakthrough. It is an exciting development. Its problems
are all but licked, and so I can report to you that the air bag is on the way. In
fact, the National Highway Safety Bureau plans to put this life-saver to work in
1972 models.
The payoff in lives saved, injuries avoided, can only be estimated because
it will take 10 years to get air bags into 80 per cent of all vehicles operating.
That assumes installation in new cars only. The picture would change if retrofit
becomes possible.
Third and last of the National Highway Safety Bureau's top priorities is
the Experimental Safety Vehicle.
Secretary Volpe announced in March that the Department of Transportation
had settled upon the performance specifications for two experimental vehicles and
had asked for manufacturers' bids.
He will accept the two best proposals and will build two prototypes in the
,000-pound family sedan class. The better of the two will be picked after
competitive tests, and then 10 to 12 test cars will be patterned after it. All of
these models will be tested and demonstrated for a long list of safety-related
performances.
The idea is to point the way toward safer and better automobiles--
mass-produced cars-which will handle better, repair more easily, and damage less
than today's competitors.
If the bureau gets the results intended, American motorists will be choosing
from production models which are not only highly crash protective but are far more
resistant to swerve and roll-over and respond far better to the operator's control
and defensive efforts.
I have reported to you on the pending comprehensive Occupational Safety and
Health Act, and I have touched on the top three priorities of the National Highway
Safety Bureau. Now I pose the question: What will the Seventies bring? Survival
or statistics?
(more)
-6-
I am betting on the side of survival. There is a sense of urgency in the
field of safety which is shared by both Government and industry, by the law
enforcement establishment, by the law-making authority at every level, and by you
in the safety organizations.
What I have tried to outline for you today is the measure of success I see
on the horizon--the measure of success which prompts me to call the Seventies the
New Age of Safety.
Now we must commit the Nation for the years ahead, so that what we
accomplish cannot gallop away from us again--next year, the year after, or ever
again. We must commit ourselves to the long pull--to protect our motorists and to
protect our workers. And in the end we must sell to them that measure of control
which will permit them to survive--in the Seventies. I think we can do the job.
# # #