Hannan, Daniel

Daniel Walsh Joseph Hannan was born in 1921 and began working at the US Steel Clairton Coke Works plant in Clairton, Pa., at the age of 18. In 1943, Hannan was assigned to the 518 Military Police Battalion and participated in the Normandy invasion in 1944. In 1945 his unit captured the Nazi concentration camp in Buchenwald, Germany. After the war he was awarded five battle stars, five campaign ribbons, a meritorious unit citation, as well as an honor by the French government for his participation in the invasion of Normandy. After being discharged from the army, Hannan became an activist for improving labor conditions at US Steel Clairton Coke Works plant. Hannan served as president for the local union 1557 United Steelworkers of America (USWA) from 1967 to 1973. As union president, he and other US Steel union representatives formed the Steelworkers Black Lung Committee and testified to the U.S. Congress on the health and safety of coke plant workers. These actions helped to enact the federal Occupational Safety and Health Act in 1970 under the Nixon administration. The following year Hannan was honored by the Pittsburgh Jaycees as their Man of the Year. In 1973, he was promoted to the USWA Safety and Health Deapartment and in 1979 won the National Safety Council award.