Prior to the 1880s, little is known about safety conditions in the workplace. In 1893 Congress passed the Safety Appliance Act, which mandated the use of newly developed equipment that decreased the risk of train-related accidents and deaths. For the railroads, this not only improved safety but also increased productivity. It was the first federal law intended primarily to improve work safety, and by 1900, accidents to trainmen had dramatically decreased.
In 1913, the National Safety Council was founded for companies to share information. By the 1960s, rising injury rates and economic expansion became the catalyst for establishing OSHA. Although controversial at times, OSHA and other agencies have helped to educate and provide resources to companies which have contributed to the continuing workplace accidents after 1970.