Rep. Summer Lee Honored with ISEA’s 2024 Legislative Leadership Award for Worker Safety and Health Initiatives
**For Immediate Release**
Rep. Summer Lee Honored with ISEA’s 2024 Legislative Leadership Award for Worker Safety and Health Initiatives
Washington, D.C. – May 5, 2025 – The International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA), the leading trade association for personal protective equipment (PPE), presented Congresswoman Summer Lee (PA-12) with the prestigious 2024 ISEA Legislative Leadership Award. This annual award honors members of Congress who demonstrate exceptional leadership in advancing worker safety and health initiatives.
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Rep. Lee was recognized for her impactful advocacy to increase the capacity of the Respirator Approval Program (RAP) at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health’s (NIOSH) National Personal Protective Technologies Lab (NPPTL). The Trump administration recently suspended the program, and mass layoffs across the federal government, especially at the Department of Health and Human Services and at NIOSH, are having devastating consequences.
Rep. Lee’s efforts would both enable innovative solutions to reach end-users in a timely manner and advance essential research on at-home respirator fit testing and improved fit capabilities through mobile app technology.
“I’m truly honored to receive the 2024 legislative leadership award from ISEA. At its core, this work is about people—our workers, their families, and the communities they support,” said Congresswoman Lee. “Every worker deserves to feel safe on the job and to come home healthy at the end of the day. Personal protective equipment, especially innovative solutions like those approved by NIOSH, plays a critical role in making that a reality. I’ll continue fighting to ensure workers have the equipment they need to do their jobs without compromising their health.”
“Representative Lee has been a dedicated and highly effective voice in Congress for her constituents and the millions of workers who rely on certified safety equipment every day,” said Greg Martin, Senior Vice President and Chief Product & Technology Officer at MSA Safety and a member of ISEA’s Board of Trustees. MSA Safety’s Murrysville plant is located in Rep. Lee’s District.
Martin continued, “From one of her first visits to the NIOSH lab, she understood the value of its research and certification work. When asked to support increased federal funding, she didn’t hesitate—and now, as that same lab faces layoffs and program suspensions, she’s one of the loudest voices fighting to reverse the damage.”
“Representative Lee’s dedication to worker safety reflects her deep commitment to ensuring that the millions of Americans who rely on respiratory protection—whether at work, at home during the pandemic, or in response to wildfire smoke—have access to NIOSH-approved respirators,” said Cam Mackey, President and CEO of ISEA. “Her leadership in bolstering NIOSH’s capacity underscores the critical importance of innovation in personal protective technologies, which not only safeguard workers but also their families and communities.”
Representative Lee’s commitment to advancing safety aligns with ISEA’s mission to promote, protect, and enhance the health and safety of workers worldwide. Her efforts ensure that innovative PPE solutions can address the evolving challenges faced by workers in every industry.
For more information about the ISEA Annual Meeting and Awards Celebration, visit ISEA’s website or contact Nicole Randall at nrandall@safetyequipment.org.
Congresswoman Summer Lee serves on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and the Committee on Education and Workforce. Since taking office in January 2023, she has delivered historic levels of federal investment totaling over $2.4 Billion brought back to Western PA, including over $580 million for infrastructure, over $110 million for affordable transit, over $500 million to keep clean energy manufacturing at home in Pennsylvania, and over $55 million on clean energy efforts in and around schools to help keep our kids and communities safe. These investments will help improve Western Pennsylvania’s infrastructure and transit, ensure cleaner air and drinking water, lower housing costs, fund research institutions, fuel clean manufacturing, fund STEM innovation and entrepreneurship, boost workforce development, and create thousands of good paying union jobs. Lee and her team have also delivered casework and constituent services to over 3,000 constituents with issues ranging from helping our seniors and disabled community access Medicare and social security to helping folks secure housing and helping families with immigration support and passports.