MS Essential Workers’ Justice Project

On October 28, 2020, the Mississippi Workers Center for Human Rights, was awarded an Innovation Fund Grant through the Workers Lab.

This valuable resource will help the Center to launch an exciting new project to address workers health needs in the Mississippi Delta.

Our goal is to improve health and safety for Black and brown essential workers in the Mississippi Delta by establishing a first of its kind occupational health clinic and learning center to addresses the significant gaps in access to occupational health services for workers.

The pandemic has further unveiled what has always been present in the Delta; occupational segregation and anti-Blackness have forced Black and brown workers into the most dangerous and dirtiest jobs, increasing their risk for injury and/or work-related illness or death. MS has no state OSHA or Department of Labor and given the overall decline in workplace safety enforcement, our project has the potential to positively improve working conditions for some of the most vulnerable workers in the state.

This project is being implemented in partnership with the National Employment Law Project (NELP)

Goals:

The establishment of a full service occupational safety and health clinic and training center in the Mississippi Delta, offering the following services:

  • Health screenings and examinations

  • Treatment and Follow up

  • Safety & Health/Prevention trainings for workers –

  • Annual medical exams and nutrition counseling

  • Mental Health services

  • Family medical services