The system known as workers' compensation was formally initiated in the early twentieth century. Maryland was the first state to create a workers' compensation program, and dozens of additional states soon followed suit. Originally, this program was known to many as "workman's comp" or "workman comp." However, as the gender dynamic of the workforce in the United States changed as many women entered the workplace for the first time in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, most state programs changed their official names to "workers' compensation" in order to reflect the growing gender diversity of the American workplace. Today, some form of workers' compensation is available in all fifty states. Although many critics have lambasted the fairness and efficiency of the workers' compensation system, the social safety net that workers' compensation provides helps many employees get back on their feet, restore their health, and return to a productive role as quickly as possible.