Working Well

Conversations at the intersection of health and work

Working Well webinar series

Working Well is a bi-monthly webinar series that highlights unique and shared challenges impacting workers across industries. Join safety professionals, policymakers, and experts in occupational health, safety, and well-being as we discuss the topics that matter the most to workers.

Every other month on the third Tuesday, Working Well will bring you the latest on emerging issues and pressing concerns in workplace safety; we'll introduce you to experts on topics at the intersection of work, health and life; and we'll connect you to ideas and information you can use in the workplace. Working Well addresses worker safety and health topics from a Total Worker Health® approach, which emphasizes hazard-free work for all and prioritizes designing work for optimal well-being.


Upcoming webinars in the 2024-2025 Working Well series

Person working on a smoky street.

Too hot to work: How to protect workers from extreme heat and poor air quality

Virtual Webinar
Tuesday, October 15, 2024 - Noon to 1:00 p.m.
Registration is free and open to all

Extreme heat events have claimed more lives in the United States over the past 10 years than any other weather-related event. Climate models predict that climate change will lead to an increase in extreme heat events and associated air pollution episodes. During wildfire smoke or extreme heat events, people may also be exposed to increased levels of harmful air pollutants such as ozone, particulate matter, and allergens such as pollen. Heat and air pollution tax human health in distinct ways and the ways we protect workers during heat and air pollution events are also distinct.  

In this session, participants will explore what science tells us about the synergistic effects of extreme heat and poor air quality and how to prevent exposure to these hazards effectively.

Meet the presenters

Richie Evoy

Richie Evoy, Lead Wildland Firefighter Researcher at CDC/NIOSH Western States 

Lieutenant Richard Evoy is an officer in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and works for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Western States Division (WSD) in Denver, CO. He is the lead researcher for wildland firefighter safety and health program at WSD. He received his PhD in Public Health from Oregon State University, a Master of Public Health from Columbia University, and a Bachelor of Science in Human Physiology from Seattle Pacific University. Prior to joining NIOSH, his dissertation focused on the impact of heat, air pollution, and wildfire smoke on outdoor workers and adult asthmatics in Oregon.

Pablo Palmández

Pablo H. Palmández, Agricultural Research and Safety Extensionist, Pacific NW Agriculture and Safety Health Center, University of Washington 

Pablo Palmández has been an Agricultural Research and Safety Extensionist with the PNASH Center since 2007. Mr. Palmández works within the farm community, linking farmers and farmworkers with PNASH’s expertise in agricultural research and safety. Mr. Palmández grew up in a rural coastal agricultural community in the Mexican Pacific Northwest, rising through his academic merit to study integrated pest management. Mr. Palmández combines his scientific, agricultural, and cultural background to provide leadership and education in the Yakima agricultural community.

Kate Suisman

Kate Suisman, Attorney, Northwest Workers’ Justice Project

Suisman represents workers in employment cases including wage theft and retaliation. She also coordinates two policy groups: the Oregon Coalition to Stop Wage Theft and Safe Jobs Oregon which focuses on worker safety and the National Coalition for Worker Justice, which focuses on advocacy to federal worker enforcement agencies. Before joining the Northwest Workers’ Justice Project, Kate worked to fight wage theft within the day labor community at the Voz Workers’ Rights Education Project in Portland. In her previous work, she served as a law clerk in a trial court in Manhattan and as Chief of Staff to a New York City Council member. Kate has a BA in Spanish Literature from Reed College and a JD from the City University of New York’s Public Interest Law School.

Randall Westmoreland

Randall Westmoreland, Industrial Hygienist, Oregon OSHA 

Randall Westmoreland is an Industrial Hygienist with the State of Oregon and has worked for OSHA for over 16 years. While the bulk of his career has been focused on serving businesses as a safety and health consultant, his doctorate is focused on researching the mediating and moderating factors of worker well-being and the relationships between such factors and measured outcomes. Burnout, as a variable, is one such phenomenon that has garnered contemporary attention. In contrast, supporting a worker's sense of accomplishment and autonomy can moderate independent antecedents that lead to burnout.


Oregon state capital

Protecting Oregon's Workforce: Policy Landscape for Workers and Employers

Webinar
Tuesday, December 17, 2024
Noon - 1:00 p.m.
Registration is free and open to all

Oregon is recognized as a national leader in developing innovative legislation and policies that protect the health and safety rights of workers. This webinar will kick off a series of focused discussions that will explore the intended and unintended consequences of recent Oregon laws such as paid family leave, hospital staffing requirements, and overtime for agriculture workers.

Participants will learn about the legal landscape for workers and employers in Oregon from local and national experts. Oregon is consistently recognized by Oxfam’s Best States to Work Index. Learn from the lead researcher on the Oxfam team about how these rankings are established and tested. Learn from Oregon’s Labor Commissioner about how Oregon balances the safety and rights workers and employers in innovative ways. Download Oxfam's Best and Worst States to Work in the US 2024.

Meet the presenters

Christina Stephenson

Christina Stephenson, Commissioner of the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries

Christina Stephenson is Oregon's 11th Labor Commissioner. Born and raised in rural Oregon, her work ethic was formed by watching her parents grow and sustain a small business for several decades. Christina went on to own and operate her own business - a law practice where she represented workers who have experienced discrimination or harassment in the workplace and helped businesses comply with Oregon's workplace laws. Now, her mission is to ensure Oregon workers have access to their civil rights and that Oregon businesses have access to the skilled workforce they need. In her spare time, Christina enjoys hiking, spending time with family and friends, and volunteering at local organizations. 

Kaitlyn Henderson

Kaitlyn Henderson, Ph.D., Senior Researcher, Oxfam

Kaitlyn Henderson is a senior researcher at Oxfam and the staff-elected member of Oxfam’s Board of Directors. Among other projects, Dr. Henderson is the lead researcher and author of Oxfam’s Best States to Work Index, a look at how states treat workers and working families in the US. This index captures 25 policies across three themes – wages, worker protections, and rights to organize – and includes all 50 states plus Washington, DC and Puerto Rico. There were special editions of the index released in 2020 focused on COVID and in 2021 focused on working women. Previously, Dr. Henderson was a Brent Scowcroft Award Fellow with the Aspen Strategy Group, which focused on national security and foreign policy through Track II diplomacy. Dr. Henderson completed her PhD in modern Latin American history at Tulane University, where she received the Peter T. Cominos Memorial Award for her dissertation work. 


Learn more about our work

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Newsletter

Explore professional development opportunities, the latest updates from the Oregon Healthy Workforce Center and the Occupational Public Health Program, a research snapshot, and upcoming occupational health-focused events.

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Blog

The Oregon and the Workplace blog features the latest from OccHealthSci research, professional development opportunities, and valuable insights from disciplines associated with occupational health, safety, and well-being.

OccHealthSci staff member Shaun McGillis recording a podcast.

Podcast

The What's Work Got to Do with It podcast, produced by OccHealthSci, brings together occupational health, safety, and well-being experts to discuss the latest topics relating to worker health, well-being, and safety in Oregon and beyond.