Never having had a manicure myself I can’t say that unsafe working conditions for nail salon workers was a big issue for me—or even something that had ever crossed my mind. But then I watched the latest video from Robert Greenwald’s Brave New Foundation which features stories of salon workers who have been working with toxic materials and have developed serious health issues as a consequence.
A new project of the 16 Deaths Per Day campaign, which aims to strengthen support for the Protecting America’s Workers Act (H.R. 2067), the video points out the sort-of unbelievable fact that federal regulations allow cosmetics manufacturers and nail salon owners to use unlimited amounts of virtually any ingredient in salon products, including chemicals linked to cancer, reproductive and developmental harm, hormone disruption and other adverse health effects.
All working people have the right to labor free from exposure to toxic chemicals in their workplaces. Everyone has the right to a safe and healthy working environment. Please sign this petition imploring Congress to support nail salon worker health by supporting safe cosmetics legislation. All the signatures gathered will be delivered to members of Congress.
