Today Speaker Sheldon Silver appointed Assemblyman Rory I. Lancman of Queens as chair of the Subcommittee on Workplace Safety. Functioning as a subcommittee of the Labor Committee, chaired by Assemblywoman Susan John, the Subcommittee on Workplace Safety's oversight and legislative focus is on ensuring a safe and healthy work environment for New York's nearly nine million public and private sector employees.

"I look forward to working with Speaker Silver, Chairperson John and my colleagues on the Labor Committee to advance the health and safety of working New Yorkers," said Assemblyman Lancman. "Hard economic times have too often correlated with a 'race to the bottom' when it comes to workplace safety, but we will be diligent and proactive in protecting our working men and women from dangerous working conditions."

Speaker Sheldon Silver stated, "As Chair of the Subcommittee on Workplace Safety, Assemblyman Lancman will work closely with the Assembly Labor Committee to ensure all workers in New York have an adequate, hazard-free workplace. He has worked to inform immigrant workers of their rights by bringing translators into multilingual communities, and fought against proposed cuts to Medicaid that could have devastated nursing care. I congratulate him on this appointment, and look forward to working with him as he leads this important subcommittee."

Assembly Labor Committee chairperson Susan John stated, "I look forward to working closely with Assemblyman Lancman to make sure that all New Yorkers work in a safe, clean and healthy environment."