In this Lifelines series, we aim to get you up to speed on important health and safety-related headlines you may have missed. 

Senate Repeals Fair Pay and Safe Work Executive Order

We warned about this possibility in our March article, “How Deregulation Can Endanger Worker Safety and Weaken Fair Contracting,” but the Fair Pay and Safe Work executive order has officially been repealed. The executive order’s goal was to make it harder for contractors with frequent safety and health, wage and hour and collective bargaining violations to win federal contracts.

Now, contractors will no longer have to disclose labor law violations as part of the bidding process. This forces LIUNA signatory contractors to compete with low-bid contractors who don’t make worker safety and health a part of doing business.

Fortunately, LIUNA District Councils, Local Unions, signatory contractors and other affiliates don’t have to rely solely on federal regulations and executive orders to create a fair bidding process. They can advocate for both public and private owners to include strong responsible bidder language and choose to prequalify contractors with exemplary safety records.

Defect Causes Recall of 80,000 EpiPens

If you or a loved one are among the 3.6 million Americans who rely on EpiPens to prevent life-threatening allergic reactions, you may need a replacement device. Mylan, the company who sells EpiPens, recalled 80,000 units distributed between December 2015 and July 2016 after several units failed to deliver their dose. To see if your EpiPen is affected and get a free replacement, contact your local pharmacy or call Mylan at 800-796-9526.

Thyroid Cancer Is on the Rise and Researchers May Know Why

While some health care experts have pointed to better diagnosis methods to explain rising rates of thyroid cancer, researchers now think flame retardants could also be to blame. Flame retardant materials in furniture, electronics and other products we use every day have the potential to disrupt thyroid production. Though more studies are needed, this news could help us better understand thyroid cancer, which has a very high fatality rate compared to many other cancers.

[Nick Fox]