Press Release

Program Only Second in State to Win Honor

PITTSBURGH, May 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- MSA (NYSE: MSA) announced today that its employee Wellness Program has received the "Gold Well Workplace Award" from the Wellness Councils of America. MSA is the first company headquartered in Pittsburgh, and just the second company in Pennsylvania to be recognized in this fashion by demonstrating outstanding quality and excellence in worksite health promotion.

Similar to the Malcolm Baldrige Award for Performance Excellence, the Well Workplace Awards program recognizes organizations on four levels: Bronze - which MSA received in 2006, Silver, Gold and Platinum. Since the inception of the program in 1991, approximately 700 corporations, healthcare systems, public agencies, and educational institutions employing over 2.25 million people have met the rigid worksite wellness criteria and have been recognized as some of America's Healthiest Companies.

    In particular, the Gold Award recognizes those organizations that:
    --  Have made wellness a way of life,
    --  Have incorporated wellness into the culture of the workplace, and
    --  Have developed a comprehensive Wellness program designed to engage all
        associates in maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

Available to all MSA associates in North America, the MSA Wellness Program was launched in 2003 and has since been implemented at 13 sites across the region. The program provides associates with opportunities to improve their health by encouraging a healthy lifestyle. The MSA Wellness Program offers lunchtime focus groups, health risk awareness classes, walking programs, and financial reimbursement for health club memberships, weight loss and smoking cessation programs, massage therapy, in-home fitness equipment and the like.

"We are very proud to be recognized as one of 'America's Healthiest Companies,'" said Paul Uhler, Vice President, Global Human Resources and Corporate Communications. "Our Wellness Program continues to generate interest and participation as many of our associates are now taking advantage of this great resource to improve their lifestyles. It's our people that drive our business success and allow us to achieve our mission to protect life, and that's why we will continue to invest in the health of our workforce. Establishing and maintaining a program of this caliber is something we will remain committed to for years to come."

About MSA:

Established in 1914, MSA is a global leader in the development, manufacture and supply of safety products that protect people's health and safety. Many MSA products typically integrate any combination of electronics, mechanical systems and advanced materials to protect users against hazardous or life-threatening situations. The company's comprehensive line of products is used by workers around the world in the fire service, oil, gas and petrochemical industry, homeland security, construction, mining and other industries, as well as the military. Principal products include self-contained breathing apparatus, gas masks, gas detection instruments, head protection, ballistic body armor, fall protection devices and thermal imaging cameras. The company also provides a broad range of consumer and contractor safety products through retail channels. These products are marketed and sold under the MSA Safety Works brand. MSA has annual sales of approximately $1 billion, manufacturing operations in the United States, Europe, Asia and Latin America, and more than 40 international locations. Additional information is available on the company's Web site at www.msanet.com.

SOURCE MSA 05/14/2009
CONTACT: Mark Deasy of MSA, +1-412-967-3357/ Web Site:
http://www.msanet.com (MSA)