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Debbie Berkowitz

@debbieberkowitz

Worker safety policy expert. Former OSHA COS and Senior Policy Advisor 2009-2015. Fellow at Georgetown’s Kalmanovitz Initiative for Labor and the Working Poor.

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10.11.2024
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Latest posts by Debbie Berkowitz @debbieberkowitz

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Manufacturing jobs fell again, down 12,000 between January and February 2026. Since January 2025, the manufacturing sector has lost 100,000 jobs. I repeat: The manufacturing sector lost 100k jobs since Trump took office.

#EconSky #NumbersDay

06.03.2026 14:19 👍 32 🔁 18 💬 3 📌 5

Shame on Indiana. Walking away from protecting the most vulnerable in our society- our kids.

06.03.2026 00:44 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
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Free and fair elections are the cornerstone of our democracy. But right now, they’re under attack.

Several Republican-controlled states have redrawn their congressional maps to give themselves an unfair advantage in the midterm elections.

05.03.2026 13:17 👍 17859 🔁 6277 💬 512 📌 258
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Workplace Amputations Are on the Rise - Public Health Watch Over a decade, an average of seven U.S. workers a day suffered workplace accidents that caused or led to amputations. Those numbers are expected to go up with reduced federal oversight under the Trump...

The danger of this Administration turning its back on workers and trying to strip protections for workers in the most dangerous jobs. publichealthwatch.org/2026/03/04/w...

04.03.2026 17:58 👍 3 🔁 9 💬 0 📌 0
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Engineered stone workers get lung transplants as industry pushes Congress for legal shield Silicosis is a public health problem unfolding for engineered stone fabricators across America, and questions are mounting about who is ultimately responsible if workers get sick

More than 500 workers in California, most of them Latino, have been diagnosed with silicosis linked to engineered stone fabrication. 54 have had lung transplants and 29 have died. Meanwhile the industry is lobbying Congress to exempt them from lawsuits.
www.investigatetv.com/2026/03/02/e...

02.03.2026 23:07 👍 8 🔁 5 💬 0 📌 0
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Trump’s vicious attacks on judges fuel his bid for unchecked power | Steven Greenhouse The president and his aides vilify the judiciary with brutal rhetoric, hoping to delegitimize a co-equal branch of government

Trump’s vicious attacks on judges—calling them evil, fools, disloyal, lunatics and monsters—are unprecedented.

Those ugly attacks are right out of Authoritarian Playbook 101—an effort to delegitimize the judiciary & destroy our system of checks & balances www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

24.02.2026 15:13 👍 6 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 1
A headline from USA Today reads: Mom with detained son is Schumer's guest to Trump State of the Union

A headline from USA Today reads: Mom with detained son is Schumer's guest to Trump State of the Union

NEWS: Raiza Contreras, a Bronx mother whose family has been ripped apart by ICE, will be my guest at the State of the Union.

23.02.2026 18:45 👍 413 🔁 98 💬 46 📌 6

“America’s labor movement has been going through a transition over the last decade that is far more layered and nuanced — and that holds more potential for future growth — than the BLS annual membership survey reveals.” New leaders & organizational forms having an impact— @lanewindham.bsky.social

21.02.2026 16:15 👍 10 🔁 7 💬 0 📌 1

“I’m going to impose even higher tariff taxes on Americans” is the worst message Trump could have come up with - a political dagger for Republicans in the midterms.

20.02.2026 19:15 👍 9 🔁 4 💬 0 📌 0
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Six who died at Colorado dairy were exposed to toxic gas, coroner's report finds The autopsy reports gave no indication of the circumstances of the deaths, describing only an industrial accident in a confined space at a dairy farm.

Today is the deadline for OSHA to issue citations to hold the employer accountable for failing to follow recognized safety precautions to protect workers from the toxic gas . Will they?Six who died at Colorado dairy were exposed to toxic gas, coroner's report finds www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news...

20.02.2026 17:29 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0
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NEW: Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer’s husband has been barred from entering Labor Department HQ after two female staffers accused him of sexual assault inside the building, according to NYT. One alleged incident was captured on security cameras and is now part of a criminal investigation.

19.02.2026 23:00 👍 12014 🔁 4759 💬 1295 📌 570
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Workplace Inspections by OSHA Dropped Over a Six-Month Period of 2025

Trump kills.

#OSHA workplace inspections down 20% last year. With less enforcement and weaker deterrence, more workers will get sick, injured and killed.

www.nytimes.com/2026/02/18/u...

19.02.2026 14:08 👍 23 🔁 13 💬 2 📌 1

a government for, by and of degenerates

19.02.2026 22:11 👍 7285 🔁 1516 💬 164 📌 47
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Labor Secretary’s Husband Barred From the Department After Sexual Assault Reports

And the scandals at the Department of Labor keep on coming.

The husband of Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez DeRemer's barred from the Department of Labor building after being accused of sexually assaulting women in the building.

Only the best....

www.nytimes.com/2026/02/19/b...

19.02.2026 23:12 👍 1 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0
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Workplace Inspections by OSHA Dropped Over a Six-Month Period of 2025

Workplace Inspections by OSHA Dropped Over a Six-Month Period of 2025 www.nytimes.com/2026/02/18/u...

18.02.2026 23:35 👍 0 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0

Endangering our children is not an answer to labor shortage. Where is the safety data that says these jobs are safe for kids?

17.02.2026 16:51 👍 1 🔁 1 💬 2 📌 0
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Why the biggest campaign buzzword ‘tapped into a broader political hunger’ “Affordability” is shaping the political conversation like never before as wages struggle to keep up with cost increases.

www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

16.02.2026 21:22 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

A travesty.

16.02.2026 16:33 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

This was totally against every policy enshrined in how OSHA is to operate to assure enforcement is based on evidence and not political pressure - Federal OSHA dismissed the citation without investigating whether the violation existed. All to bow to the billionaire class. Thanks for writing this.

16.02.2026 16:06 👍 3 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0
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And in related news…

14.02.2026 15:45 👍 8 🔁 3 💬 2 📌 0
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The vast majority of voters support the policies to restrict and restrain ICE that Democrats are demanding, and voters blame Republicans for the shutdown because of their unwillingness to support these essential changes.

13.02.2026 20:40 👍 12 🔁 4 💬 1 📌 0
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Wrong, wrong, wrong.

13.02.2026 04:18 👍 21 🔁 4 💬 3 📌 1
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Shock Poll: Americans Miss Joe Biden’s Economy Here’s what they’re worried about.

Jonathan V Last: "In 2023, the economy added 3 million jobs. In 2024, still under Biden, it added 2.2 million jobs. In 2025, under Trump, it added just 181,000 jobs. This is a story about an economy getting throttled by one man's capricious, destructive governance."

11.02.2026 22:51 👍 702 🔁 270 💬 16 📌 8
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Homeland Security Hires Labor Dept. Aide Whose Posts Raised Alarms

Career communications staff at the Dept of Labor were ignored and many resigned when a 21 year old starting posting white nationalist meme. Now he is going to DHS. This is who prospers under the clicktatorship.
www.nytimes.com/2026/02/11/u...

11.02.2026 14:39 👍 446 🔁 176 💬 5 📌 4
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OSHA Enforcement Staff at Record Low: Inspector General - Confined Space The DOL Inspector General has issued a report outlining serious challenges for OSHA and MSHA. Neither agency has enough inspectors.

The Department of Labor's Inspector General warns that #OSHA enforcement staff is at an all-time low, threatening the health and lives of American workers. jordanbarab.com/confinedspac...

11.02.2026 14:04 👍 16 🔁 18 💬 0 📌 2
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TikTok on Payday’s Reporting Gets 21,000 Likes in Brasil, But Blocked by Trump Regs in U.S. TikToks made in Brasil are now banned under new rules implemented by the Trump Administration.

Trump's friend, Larry Ellison, is censoring TikTok to ban material Trump might not like paydayreport.com/tiktok-on-pa... Good thing we stood up to China!

11.02.2026 02:27 👍 53 🔁 25 💬 0 📌 0
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Volkswagen workers' victory represents rare union breakthrough for South Workers at Volkswagen's Chattanooga, Tenn., factory won 20% raises in their first UAW contract.

Volkswagen workers' recent deal winning 20% raises and lower health care costs comes amid a precarious labor market. "If VW had [refused to negotiate] ... that would have been a very negative signal about this moment."

@sharblock.bsky.social in @axios.com
www.axios.com/2026/02/05/t...

09.02.2026 15:40 👍 4 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0
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Elon Musk’s “Vegas Loop,” a network of underground tunnels to ferry passengers in Teslas, was under fresh scrutiny this week from Nevada lawmakers who raised concern about alleged workplace safety and environmental violations. yhoo.it/4tlHXpR

07.02.2026 02:20 👍 1 🔁 1 💬 0 📌 0