In this podcast episode, we’re learning about the Radium Girls, the young women who painted luminous watch and instrument dials in the United States during the 1910s, 1920s and 1930s, and whose work became one of the most devastating workplace safety scandals in modern industrial history.

We’re exploring the discovery of radium, the glamour of the radium trend, the tragedy of radium jaw, the role of corporate silence, and the powerful legacy these women created for worker protection, occupational health and socially responsible leadership.

This episode is not only about the past, Goddess.

It is about the present responsibility of every organization that introduces new technology, new materials, new processes or difficult company news. It is about what leaders owe to employees when the truth is uncomfortable. It is about what you and I can do when something is marketed as innovative, magical, luxurious or revolutionary, while the risks remain unclear.

If this episode resonates with you, love, I would be happy to hear your opinion and, if applicable, your personal experience with workplace safety, corporate communication, trend culture or responsible innovation. You can e-mail me at coucou.goddess@gmail.com.

REFERENCES

• Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (2014) ‘Toxicological Profile for Radium’. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

• American Physical Society (2004) ‘December 1898: The Curies Discover Radium’, APS News.

• Britannica (2026) ‘Radium Girls: The Women Who Fought for Their Lives in a Killer Workplace’.

• Coursey, B.M. (2022) ‘The National Bureau of Standards and the Radium Dial Painters’, Journal of Research of the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

• Curie, M. (1911) ‘Radium and the New Concepts in Chemistry’, Nobel Lecture.

• Fröman, N. (1996) ‘Marie and Pierre Curie and the Discovery of Polonium and Radium’, NobelPrize.org.

• Martinez, N.E. (2021) ‘Radium Dial Workers: Back to the Future’, International Journal of Radiation Biology.

• Nobel Prize Outreach (2025) ‘Marie Curie: Women Who Changed Science’.

• Oak Ridge Associated Universities (2025) ‘Radium Girls: The Health Scandal of Radium Dial Painters in the 1920s and 1930s’.

• Roberts, W.C. (2017) ‘Facts and Ideas from Anywhere’, Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings.

• United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (2023) ‘Radium’.

• Zurich Municipal (2024) ‘How to Stay Safe on TikTok in a World of Viral Trends and Hidden Risks’.