American Indian and Alaska Native Worker Initiative

For Everyone

Key points

  • The NIOSH American Indian and Alaska Native Worker initiative provides occupational safety and health support to tribal communities.
  • There are 2.7 million American Indian and Alaska Native workers in the U.S. workforce.
American Indian/Alaska Native construction workers on the Fort Hall Indian Reservation. Photo by NIOSH

Background

An Indigenous Navajo business owner, standing in a garage workshop.
An Indigenous Navajo business owner.

In 2013, NIOSH launched the American Indian and Alaska Native Initiative. NIOSH works with tribal communities and other partners to determine how best to provide occupational safety and health support to tribal communities.

The primary goal of the initiative is to build and strengthen tribal occupational safety and health capacity. Activities are coordinated with the CDC's Tribal Affairs.

As sovereign nations, American Indian and Alaska Native tribes maintain a government-to-government relationship with the United States. There are currently 575 federally recognized tribes across the United States. Over 5.4 million American Indian and Alaska Natives live across the United States and 22% live on reservations.1

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Content Source
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
About This Page
Published: May 15, 2024
Updated: May 2, 2024

This page was last updated on this date. Updates may include minor edits, image changes, or other modifications to page content.

Reviewed: May 2, 2024

The information on this page was last reviewed by subject matter experts to ensure accuracy.

  1. https://www.census.gov/newsroom/facts-for-features/2015/cb15-ff22.html