The Emergency Response Team investigates all catastrophic injuries and workplace fatalities involving USW members and assists families and co-workers.

The ERT Mission is to offer victims, family members, witnesses and co-workers immediate aid, stress relief and grief counseling; to investigate causes of accidents; to provide legal information and assistance to families; to investigate, find and fix hazards and share the information with members, the local union and the health, safety and environmental staff; to support the local union; and to coordinate with regulators.