Occupational Medicine & Health Affairs
Open Access

Abstract

Abigail Adams penned a letter to her husband, John Adams, in 1776. In the letter, written 95 days before John Adams signed the Declaration of Independence, Abigail urged her husband to â�?�?remember the ladiesâ�? when declaring independent suffrage for human beings lacking the divine right of kings. She wrote in her letter: in the new code of laws which I suppose it will be necessary for you to make, I desire you would remember the ladies and be more generous and favorable to them than your ancestors.â�? Mrs. Adams First Lady when her husband was elected the 2nd President of the US and was also the mother of John Quincy Adams, the 5th President of the U S. She successfully ran the family farm while her husband was away, rising above the challenges of business, accomplishing child rearing and education, and combating their illness although she was not allowed to vote or own property min her lifetime. The concept of gender equity is therefore an old conundrum as old as our American Revolution, problem, but this problem has garnered significant attention in recent decades, both in individual nations and under international law. Many of the concerns expressed by Mrs. Adams are still relevant in contemporary discussions of gender equity. International and US regulations associated with gender equity have been in place for several decades, but implementation is slow. This presentation examines some occupational safety and health (OSH) problems that have still not been resolved regarding the role of women in paid work: because health at work impacts men and women differently and offers methods for implementing equitable occupational health programs under law, using due diligence and discrimination law as a guide. This presentation examines, how safety professionals implement gender equity within our safety compliance programs that effectively comply with laws promoting womenâ�?�?s rights?

Biography

Ilise L Feitshans is a Guest Researcher at National Centre for Research on the Work Environment, Copenhagen Denmark and Legal Advisor of The Greek National Platform on Nanomedicine. She is Executive Director of The Work Health and Survival Project.