Firefighter Occupational Health and Safety Data Privacy: An Analysis of Statutory, Regulatory, and Contractual Governance Mechanisms

Despite interest in collecting occupational health and safety data to protect high-risk workers such as firefighters, there is limited research on public policies governing this data. We reviewed policies impacting firefighter occupational health and safety data. We identified laws, regulations, and union contracts at the federal level, and in Maryland and Virginia. We collected data using secondary sources and Westlaw (March-May 2023). We reviewed 20 laws and regulations: nine federal, three in Maryland, and eight in Virginia, and 11 union contracts. We developed a framework for evaluating each policy: permissiveness of data collection, data use/purpose, storage conditions, and sharing/access privileges. We found few policies directly related to occupational health and safety data privacy, and only two fire service-specific laws. Union protections varied, with many limiting data access, while others authorized electronic surveillance. The current legal structure provides some protection, but additional policymaking is needed to further safeguard firefighter data.