Imagine suiting up for a shift underground or rushing into a burning building — only to learn the scientists who studied your hazards have been laid off.
That’s exactly what a new report from Sen. Patty Murray reveals. Ninety researchers at Neogen’s Spokane lab lost their jobs overnight — part of 900 layoffs nationwide.
Murray’s investigation details how these Spokane experts built respirators that miners trust and mapped wildfire smoke dangers for firefighters — work that helped drive injury rates from 10.9 per 100 workers in 1972 to just 2.4 in 2023.
Now, protective standards have stalled, and counterfeit gear is flooding the market.
And Spokane is only the beginning — labs in Cincinnati, Morgantown and Pittsburgh face similar cuts, threatening every plumber, farmworker and first responder across America.
If these closures spread, who will keep your family safe on the job?
Click play to listen to the report from AURN White House Correspondent Ebony McMorris. For more news, follow @E_N_McMorris & @aurnonline.
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