The National Safety Council has named Amazon, Emergent BioSolutions, the New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services and Puget Sound Energy as recipients of its 2025 Green Cross for Safety awards. Presented at the 26th annual Green Cross Celebration sponsored by U.S. Steel, these honors recognize leadership in safety advocacy, excellence and innovation amid persistent workplace and public health threats. The event also raised over $788,000 to support safety and worker wellbeing initiatives.
Safety Advocacy Targets Opioid Overdoses in Workplaces
Amazon and Emergent BioSolutions earned the Safety Advocate award, sponsored by First Student, for advancing access to naloxone, the overdose-reversal drug, during the ongoing national opioid crisis. Amazon equipped its North American operations facilities with naloxone, responding to calls from authorities and public health leaders. By the end of 2025, more than 1,200 sites will carry the medication, with training extended to all 36,000 first aid, AED and CPR-certified employees there. The company advocated for corporate adoption through White House appearances, NSC Congress panels and Wall Street Journal coverage.
Emergent BioSolutions complemented this effort after over-the-counter approval of NARCAN Nasal Spray. The firm installed over 40 opioid emergency wall units in its facilities, distributed 1,300 cartons to staff and launched the Ready to Rescue campaign. This distributed more than 2,700 kits with educational resources at colleges and public venues. Such measures aim to normalize naloxone alongside standard emergency tools like AEDs in offices, stores, airlines and job sites, potentially saving lives where overdoses occur unexpectedly.
Safety Excellence Drives Massive Fleet Modernization
The New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services received the Safety Excellence award, sponsored by Amazon, for transforming the nation's largest municipal fleet of over 28,500 vehicles plus 10,000 contracted school buses. Since adopting the Safe Fleet Transition Plan in 2017—aligned with New York City's pioneering 2014 Vision Zero initiative to eliminate traffic deaths—DCAS partnered with the US DOT Volpe Center to update the plan in 2019 and 2025. These efforts delivered over 100,000 safety upgrades by January 2025.
Key advancements include the country's largest rollout of active Intelligent Speed Assistance, which caps vehicle speeds at limits or agency-set thresholds, and the first citywide mandate for truck sideguards to prevent underride crashes. Additional features address truck blind spots through visual awareness tech and telematics for real-time monitoring. This systematic approach demonstrates how policy-backed technology integration reduces crash risks in dense urban environments, setting a model for other municipalities.
Safety Innovation Prevents Wind Turbine Hazards
Puget Sound Energy won the Safety Innovation award, sponsored by Centuri, for deploying miniaturized SYTIS TC-90 infrared cameras with anomaly-detection software in wind turbine nacelles and electrical enclosures. This remote monitoring detects heat issues early, alerting technicians via email and minimizing hazardous tower climbs or live panel exposures that risk fires or arc blasts. After initial nacelle success, the utility expanded to field converters, shifting from scheduled to condition-based maintenance.
Wind energy's growth amplifies these electrical risks, where early intervention preserves equipment and protects workers. Puget Sound Energy's application highlights how compact sensor tech transforms predictive maintenance across renewables, reducing downtime and averting catastrophes.
NSC CEO Lorraine Martin praised the winners for their far-reaching impact on workplaces and communities. More details on the awards appear at nsc.org/awards.
