David Michaels (epidemiologist)
| David Michaels | |
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| Former Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health | |
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In office December 8, 2009 – January 10, 2017 |
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| Preceded by | Jordan Barab (acting) |
| Succeeded by | Dorothy Dougherty (acting) |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
October 11, 1954 New York, New York |
| Profession | Epidemiologist |
David Michaels is an epidemiologist and Professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health (EOH) at the Milken Institute School of Public Health of the George Washington University.
Until January 2017, he served as the Assistant Secretary of Labor for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Nominated by President Barack Obama and unanimously confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Michaels began serving in the post in December 2009 as OSHA’s 12th Assistant Secretary. He is the longest serving Assistant Secretary in OSHA's history.
As Assistant Secretary, Michaels worked to strengthen the agency's enforcement in high risk industries, improve OSHA's whistleblower protection program, promote common sense worker protection programs and standards, expand compliance assistance provided to small employers, and increase outreach to the vulnerable populations who are at greatest risk for work-related injury and illness. He also increased OSHA's focus and capabilities in the areas of data analysis and program evaluation.
Michaels served as the United States Department of Energy's Assistant Secretary for Environment, Safety and Health from 1998 through January 2001. In this position, he had primary responsibility for protecting the health and safety of workers, the neighboring communities and the environment surrounding the nation's nuclear weapons facilities. Michaels developed the initiative to compensate workers in the nuclear weapons complex who developed cancer or lung disease as a result of exposure to radiation, beryllium, silica, or other hazards. That initiative resulted in the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program, which has provided over $13 billion in benefits to sick workers and the families of deceased workers since its inception in 2001.
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