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The California
Department
of Industrial Relations at 75
When the
California Department of Industrial Relations
was formed in 1927, the minimum wage covered only women and
children, a worker’s chances of suffering a workplace fatality were
10 times greater than today, compulsory workers’ compensation was
just enacted and Sunday was the weekend.
Times have
changed. Nonetheless, the mission of the California Department of Industrial
Relations has remained remarkably consistent since 1927: to
promote, protect and improve the health, safety and economic well being
of wage earners in California, to improve their working conditions
and to advance their opportunities for profitable employment.
This
site offers the stories about how the California Department of Industrial
Relations remains true to its mission,
whether through Cal/OSHA’s rapid response team, available 24 hours
per day to investigate workplace fatalities or by the deputy labor commissioners,
industrial hygienists and safety engineers who inspect workplaces in the
construction, garment and agriculture industries, or through collaboration
with worker advocates, or by assisting employers committed to developing
model safety and health programs.
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