The Leader - Health Issue - Winter 2016 by VPPPA

VOLUME 3, ISSUE 1, WINTER 2016

HEALTH ISSUE

Obesity in the Workplace— Let’s Talk about it

infographic corner

According to the Pew Research Center, nearly half (49

percent) of Americans say they have tried According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one in every three American adults is now considered obese, which is defined as having a body mass index (BMI) of 30 or higher, and another

40 percent are overweight.

The CDC notes that the rise in the obesity rate has implications for the overall health of Americans and the

U.S. health care system.

marijuana, and

12 percent in the past year, which the 2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health reports is the most commonly used illicit drug in the U.S. The government survey showed that

18.9 million Americans 12

or older (7.3 percent) had used marijuana in the prior month.

According to the most recent statistics from the American Diabetes Association, 29.1 million Americans, or

The burden on the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s medical resources and the direct and indirect financial costs are estimated at about

9.3

$147 billion

Of that 29.1 million,

a year and rising.

percent of the population, have diabetes. 8.1 million are undiagnosed. THE LEADER

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LEADER THE

VOL 3. ISSUE 1

WINTER 2016

cover

CONTENTS

Obesity in the Workplace— Let’s Talk about it The baby boomers know. They remember a slimmer America. They remember a workforce of healthier people. They remember the oddity of obesity in our society and our workforce. Now, there is a new workforce of younger people who know nothing but the “normality” of obesity in school children and in people walking the malls, the perpetual and never achieved goal of dieting, the constant barrage of ads recommending ways to lose weight and eat “healthy.” The truth is, obesity affects the way we work, how we work and how much work we can do. Obesity affects the safety of the worker and fellow workers. It is an issue that must be addressed by each person, by society and by workplaces.

features

What will Legal Marijuana Cost Employers? Some 23 states have legalized medical marijuana, four plus the District of Columbia have legalized the drug for recreational use, and more are likely to follow. Both kinds of legalization have given rise to a powerful commercial industry that is pursuing more customers to make more money. This creates two sets of problems for employers: increased marijuana use—and all the costs this brings in the form of accidents and lost productivity—and costly litigation. How can companies with workers in multiple states comply with conflicting laws from state to state? How can employers in

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legalization states comply with federal law that maintains marijuana is illegal no matter what states say?

Remaining Drug-Free in Colorado—How a VPP Site is Handling Marijuana Legalization The legalization of marijuana in the state of Colorado changed the construction industry. Some companies have determined that they will not allow the legalization to affect the corporate drug policies, while others have felt the pressure of recruiting with a shortage of trade workers and have modified their drug policies.

How Can a Mediator Affect your Site?

Cooperative safety programs are built on communication and trust. Through initiatives like the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP), worksites experience unparalleled involvement from labor as sites develop employee-driven safety and health management systems. However, sometimes safety concerns are brought into the debate over other topics. Before communication breaks down entirely, bringing in an impartial mediator can help parties find the primary sources of disagreement and find compromise that begins to rebuild trust.

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features continued

VPPPA National Board of Directors Chairperson Mike Maddox, NuStar Energy, LP

Diabetes Impact in the Workplace

Vice Chairperson Mike Guillory, SGE, The Brock Group

If you happen to be one of the 29.1 million Americans with diabetes, it may not matter to you that it is one of the most common chronic health conditions in the United States; it already is a very real part of life every day at work, home and play. But what if you are one of the 8.1 million undiagnosed cases and you are going to work? Are you in even more danger?

Maintaining Health and Wellness at Big Cajun II Safety, health and wellness are key elements of NRG’s “STRIVE” values: Safety, Teamwork, Respect, Integrity, Value Creation and Exemplary Leadership. In these values, safety always comes first as the company and the plant embrace safety with an ultimate goal of zero injuries and a focus on preventative practices. As part of their commitment to this goal, Big Cajun II promotes safe and healthful work environments by communicating about safety and health issues, utilizing safe

Treasurer Chris Adolfson, Idaho National Laboratory

work practices and providing ongoing safety and health training and resources for all employees.

Chemical Hazards and the Workplace

Thousands of workers use a variety of chemicals each day in their workplaces and at home. At work, chemicals are used for a number of processes throughout the day, and at times can be very hazardous due to the demands of the processes involved. Many people are aware that some chemicals can cause acute and chronic short and/or long-term health problems. Acute problems happen immediately after an exposure while chronic, long-term health problems come from repeated chemical exposure over a period of days, weeks, months or even years. As a result of long-term exposure, chronic health problems may not be seen for years because of the time required for damage to develop.

Secretary Terry Schulte, NuStar Energy, LP Director from a Site With a Collective Bargaining Agent Don Johnson, Phillips 66 Director from a Site Without a Collective Bargaining Agent Rob Henson, LyondellBasell Director from a DOE-VPP Site Stacy Thursby, Washington Closure Hanford Director from a VPP Contractor/ Construction Site Richard McConnell, Austin Industrial at LyondellBasell Director-at-Large Bill Harkins, Chevron Phillips Chemical Company Director-at-Large J.A. Rodriguez, Jr., CSP, SGE , Raytheon Technical Services Company LLC Director-at-Large Kristyn Grow, CSP, CHMM, SGE Cintas Corporation Director-at-Large Kimberly Watson, Southwire Director-at-Large Bill Linneweh, Hendrickson Editor Sarah Neely, VPPPA, Inc.

sections INFOGRAPHIC CORNER

GLOBAL SAFETY AND HEALTH WATCH

WASHINGTON UPDATE

Look for these topics highlighted in the top right corner of each section. G overnment

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global safety and health watch

Planes, Trains and Automobiles BY: BENJAMIN MASSOUD, COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR, VPPPA, INC.

e begrudgingly put up with the various annoyances of travel to get where we need to go. Delayed flights, undeniably frustrating, but in the whole scheme of things, not too harmful. Bumper-to-bumper traffic for a long stretch? We could all learn to be more patient. But when traveling has the potential to affect health, that’s when action needs to be taken, especially when it’s preventable. Of all the potential travel hazards we worry about—inexperienced drivers, inclement weather, faulty mechanics—one would never think that simply remaining seated could possibly be the most harmful. Deep vein thrombosis (DVT), a blood clot that forms in a vein deep in the body, usually in the lower leg or thigh, can pose a serious health risk to long-distance travelers. Caused by sitting still for a long period of time, DVT is experienced mostly by flight passengers but can also be developed riding in cars, buses and trains. If not treated promptly, a deep vein thrombosis can break loose and travel to the lungs and block bloodflow, causing a pulmonary embolism (PE). Common symptoms of DVT include warmth and tenderness over the vein, pain or swelling in the part of the body affected and skin redness, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). If DVT develops into a PE, unexplained shortness of breath, chest pain, faster than normal heartbeat, lightheadedness or fainting can occur. To treat DVT and to avoid

developing a PE, it’s imperative to seek immediate treatment. Anticoagulants, or blood thinners, are often prescribed as treatment, more specifically warfarin and heparin. These medications decrease blood’s ability to clot and also stop existing blood clots from getting bigger. According to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), treatment typically lasts about six months, but varies from case-to-case. Up to 900,000 people in the U.S. could be affected by DVT each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Furthermore, each year, 60,000 to 100,000 people die of DVT/PE. Older-aged travelers, obese travelers and those that have suffered a recent injury are more at risk. However, for some, it’s totally out of their control; those with genetic risk factors, known as inherited thrombophilias, can also develop DVT. Longdistance travelers who are at risk for DVT are recommended to talk with their doctor about precautionary measures including taking medication and wearing properly-fitted medical compression stockings. Because movement is crucial in avoiding DVT, it’s important to occasionally stand up and walk around during a long flight. If you’re not permitted to stand at a given time, or are stuck in traffic on the road, the CDC advises passengers exercise their calf muscles and stretch their legs while seated. Raising and lowering the heels while keeping the toes on the floor (and vice versa), and tightening and releasing leg muscles are beneficial exercises. Most long-distance travelers don’t enjoy making pit stops on the way to their destination; the focus is on getting from point A to point B in the shortest amount of time. But the next time you’re on the road, you may want to focus more on your health and incorporate more of those stops. That may not make the ride quicker, but it will likely make it safer.

References: • wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/page/dvt • www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/ topics/dvt/treatment • www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ deepveinthrombosis.html#summary

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washington update

BY CHARLIE DOSS, FORMERLY THE GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS MANAGER, VPPPA, INC.

Supplements Responsible for 23,000 ER Visits Annually A study led by experts from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has found that dietary supplements, including vitamin, mineral and herbal supplements, are responsible for approximately 23,000 emergency room (ER) visits in the U.S., annually. These ER visits resulted in an estimated 2,152 hospitalizations each year. Unsupervised children accounted for 21.2 percent of visits. However, the largest cohort was 20–34 year olds. Outside of children, approximately two-thirds of ER trips were attributed to herbal or complementary supplements, many taken for weight loss or improved energy. These were often responsible for events including chest pain and heart palpitations. For those age 65 and older, the most common reason for the visits was choking or pill-induced dysphagia (difficulty swallowing). The supplement industry is valued at $35 billion per year, and more than half of U.S. adults take supplements. Under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, supplements are not regulated in the same manner as other drugs, which face much stricter testing and approval requirements. The research was funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Safety Provisions in Transportation Bill In December 2015, President Obama signed a five-year bill for transportation funding, the first long-term bill of this type in a decade. In addition to allocating billions for maintaining the nation’s roads and railways, the legislation also includes some safetyrelated provisions. The maximum penalty the National Highway Safety Administration (NHTSA) can assess on manufacturers increased from $35 million to $105 million. Additionally, the rail liability cap for incidents grew from $200 million to $295 million with annual adjustments for inflation put in place, and was applied retroactively to include the May 12,

2015, Amtrak derailment. Another change requires information on hazardous materials transported through a jurisdiction be shared with first responders before a shipment’s arrival. Currently, sharing that information is only required after an incident involving the materials occurs.

FAA to Require Drone Registration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has created an online registration process for small unmanned aircraft (UAS) weighing more than 0.55 pounds/250 grams and less than 55 pounds/about 25 kilograms. Owners of such aircraft have until February 19, 2016 to register. Any UAS purchased after December 21, 2015 must have been registered prior to its first flight. Online registration can be found at www.faa.gov/uas/registration.

NTSB Warns of Oversize Load Vehicle Crashes National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has put out a safety alert for motor carriers in the wake of partial bridge collapses caused by oversize load vehicle crashes. The agency stresses that obtaining proper permits and reviewing routes that oversize loads will be traveling can prevent further deaths, injuries and destruction of infrastructure. Further information on the alert can be found at www.ntsb.gov/news/ press-releases/Pages/PR20151209.aspx.

Long-Haul Trucking Safety Report from NIOSH A National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) study analyzing long-haul truck drivers in the U.S. has found cause for concern in an industry that employs 1.7 million people. While only 2.6 percent of drivers surveyed experienced a crash in 2010, nearly one quarter reported a near-miss within just the past week. Nearly five percent reported injuries unrelated to crashes, of which more than two-thirds were not reported to employers. Three-quarters found their schedules to be unrealistic in their expectations at least some of the time. Additionally, approximately one quarter of drivers admitted to continuing to drive when fatigue, weather or traffic conditions should require them to stop. More information can be found at: www.cdc.gov/ niosh/updates/upd-12-11-15.html.

Hoverboard Safety Investigation The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has launched a probe into reports of hoverboards, self-balancing motorized scooters, catching fire due to their lithium batteries. The agency has warned consumers to take caution when purchasing and using the devices. Their popularity has led to many competing products coming to market quickly to take advantage without proper testing. Three major U.S. airlines have already banned the devices from being transported on their aircraft due to the potential risk of fire. CPSC asks consumers to be sure the products they purchase have been properly tested with the batteries that come with the device. THE LEADER

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BY SUE RUSCHE AND KEVIN SABET, PHD NATIONAL FAMILIES IN ACTION, ATLANTA, GA

SUMMARIZED BY SARAH NEELY VPPPA COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER

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An extended, free version of this white paper can be found on the home page of the National Families in Action website: www.nationalfamilies.org/. Hard copies are also available. The original white paper covers additional areas including productivity and flexibility factors in addition to extended discussion of the topics discussed on the following pages. Summarized with the permission of Sue Rusche, President and CEO, National Families in Action.

WHAT WILL

LEGAL MARIJUANA

COST

EMPLOYERS? Some 23 states have legalized medical marijuana, and four plus the District of Columbia have legalized the drug for recreational use and more are likely to follow. Both kinds of legalization have given rise to a powerful commercial industry that is pursuing more customers to make more money. This creates two sets of problems for employers: increased marijuana useâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and all the costs this brings in the form of accidents and lost productivityâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;and costly litigation.

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t is impossible to predict how much use will go up since no modern jurisdiction has ever allowed for-profit companies to produce and promote recreational marijuana before Colorado, Washington, Alaska, Oregon and the District of Columbia did so. But at least we have experience with marijuana use and the workplace. Fifteen percent of past-month users admit in the National Survey on Drug Use and Health that at some point within the last 30 days, they didn’t show up for work because they “just didn’t want to be there.” That is far more than for the population overall (7.4 percent) or for alcohol users (7.9 percent).1 The new and potentially more troubling problem is marijuana-related litigation that could undermine labor flexibility and efforts to keep the workplace drug-free, in some cases possibly even with regard to safetysensitive positions. The crux of the problem is that even though legalization advocates claim they want to “regulate marijuana like alcohol,” in reality they are writing laws that give marijuana and marijuana use protected status in the workplace—status that has

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never been afforded to other addictive drugs, such as alcohol, other intoxicants or tobacco. In short, employers face a multitude of complications in states that partially or fully legalize marijuana. How can companies with workers in multiple states comply with conflicting laws from state to state? How can employers in legalization states comply with federal law that maintains marijuana is illegal no matter what states say? How can employers accommodate medical marijuana use if a drug test reveals an employee’s protected status as per some state laws and the employee demands accommodation of his or her medical use? How much is it going to cost employers to sort all this out through litigation? On the one hand, they face costs to defend their obligation under federal laws to maintain safe environments and drug-free workplaces. On the other, they face costs to respond to lawsuits from employees and the general public if they knowingly jeopardize public safety through negligent hiring or discrimination as pressure to accept marijuana use by employees intensifies. This white paper examines the complexities employers are facing, or will face, as marijuana

is legalized for medical or recreational use in various states. As litigation in these states unfolds and begins to build case law, we ask several questions employers must answer now and in the future, questions that involve litigation, safety and compliance.

Litigation There is no doubt employers will face increasing litigation costs as employees try to assert rights to use marijuana on the job or after hours, even though research suggests they may be impaired at work the next day.2 The U.S. Supreme Court held in Gonzales v. Raich that possession of marijuana is illegal under the U.S. Controlled Substances Act whether or not a state legalizes the drug for medical use. Further, in Casias v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., the Sixth Circuit held that “private employees are not protected from disciplinary action as a result of their use of medical marijuana, nor are private employers required to accommodate the use of medical marijuana in the workplace.”3 Since 2008, California, Montana, Oregon and Washington state supreme courts have upheld employers’ rights to terminate medical

marijuana users who fail drug tests.4 However, all of these findings have been based on the fact that marijuana is illegal under federal law no matter what states do. Members of Congress have introduced bills to remove marijuana from the U.S. Controlled Substances Act to allow states to “experiment” with marijuana policy. Should this happen, the basis for these decisions will no longer be valid.

Does firing an employee who tests positive for marijuana violate antidiscrimination laws? A new case in New Mexico seeks protective status for medical marijuana use based on that state’s Human Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination against people with serious illnesses. A woman with a state-issued medical marijuana card lost her job when she failed a drug test at Presbyterian Health Services.

Are employees who use marijuana off the clock impaired when they come to work? Some studies indicate they are, but no scientific measure of impairment similar to that of alcohol has been established, and experts predict none will be.5 How long employees who use marijuana during off hours are impaired is a critical, unresolved question. Litigants maintain they are not impaired, but some research suggests otherwise. Typical marijuana smokers experience a “high” that lasts about two hours. Behavioral and physiological effects generally return to baseline three to five hours after use begins but some memory impairments, such as the ability to filter out irrelevant information and the speed with which people process information, can last up to 24 hours after use.6

Must employers pay for employees’ medical marijuana if they are injured on the job? In New Mexico, the answer is now “yes.” By declining to hear an appeal in October 2014, the New Mexico Supreme Court allowed a landmark case to stand. In Vialpando v. Ben’s Automotive Services, employee Gregory Vialpando suffered an accident that severely injured his back in 2000. Thirteen years later, he filed an application with a workers’ compensation judge claiming that his former employer should pay the cost of the medical marijuana he uses for pain as part of his workers’ compensation benefits. The workers’ comp judge ruled that New Mexico’s medical marijuana program constituted

“reasonable and necessary medical care,” and that Ben’s Automotive Services must reimburse Mr. Vialpando for his medical marijuana through its insurance company, Redwood Fire Casualty. Both companies argued in lower courts that buying marijuana for Mr. Vialpando would force them to break federal law. The New Mexico Court of Appeals disagreed, and the state Supreme Court allowed that decision to stand.7 Unless or until appealed to federal courts, this means New Mexico employers must cover medical marijuana costs for employees who use it due to job-related injuries. It should be noted here that in the 1980s, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved two medicines made of synthetic THC for treating chemotherapyrelated nausea and AIDS wasting. Further, cannabinoids, alone or in combination, extracted from marijuana and purified, are currently in clinical trials in the U.S. Such medicines are perfectly appropriate for employers to include in their formularies because they have met the rigorous safety and efficacy requirements of the FDA.

Must employers pay unemployment compensation to employees fired for failing a marijuana drug test? Another decision handed down by the Michigan Court of Appeals in late October 2014 found that employees approved by the state to use medical marijuana are entitled to unemployment compensation if they were fired for failing a drug test.8

How long employees who use marijuana during off hours are impaired is a critical, unresolved question. Litigants maintain they are not impaired, but some research suggests otherwise. Typical marijuana smokers experience a “high” that lasts about two hours. Behavioral and physiological effects generally return to baseline three to five hours after use begins but some memory impairments, such as the ability to filter out irrelevant information and the speed with which people process information, can last up to 24 hours after use.6

Safety Various federal laws require all employers to provide a safe and healthy work environment, and those with certain safety-sensitive jobs or who have federal contracts or grants, to maintain a drug-free workplace. Employers whose businesses are related to public safety and security must be able to ensure their employees are not impaired while at work. Otherwise, employers face litigation of a different sort: lawsuits caused by impaired employees that involve injuries or deaths among fellow employees or the general public. The need for drug testing to keep employees drug-free originated from an aircraft accident on the USS Nimitz in 1981 that killed 14 people, injured 48, destroyed 7 planes and damaged 11 more at a cost of $150 million. Marijuana was a contributing factor: six of those who died had metabolites of the drug in their bodies. THE LEADER

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Most of the new marijuana legalization laws have not been tested. Employers are in for several years of legal challenges on many different fronts as legalization advocates attempt to assert heretofore prohibited “rights” in the workplace. An emerging marijuana industry will intensify such efforts, as it tries to expand the market to increase its profits.

A Department of Defense (DOD) survey of military personnel the year before had shown that 28 percent of service members used an illegal drug in the past 30 days; in some units, use was as high as 38 percent. The military began developing and implementing drug-testing programs to reduce use among service members. By 1985, past-30-day drug-use among military personnel had dropped to 10 percent; by 1988, to 5 percent. Based on this unfolding success in the military, President Reagan issued an executive order that mandated drug testing for all federal civilian employees in 1986.9 Two years later, Congress passed legislation requiring contractors and grantees that receive federal money to maintain drug-free workplaces. The Drug Free Workplace Act does not require drug testing; however, various federal agencies do. For example, the DOD and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) require drug testing for employees in safety-sensitive jobs in the military and the transportation industry.10

Must employers required by DOT and other agencies to drug-test workers in safety-sensitive jobs, exempt those using medical marijuana? This is a question currently being litigated in New Jersey. New Jersey Transit is required by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to randomly drug test all employees in safetysensitive positions to ensure they are drug-free. Charlie Davis was bumped from his desk-job at New Jersey Transit and applied for a position as block operator in the transit company’s railroad division. A few months earlier, he obtained a state-issued medical marijuana card to use the drug for relief of leg pain he suffered. When he applied for the block operator position, he had to take a drug test, which came back positive. He had told the medical officer he might fail the drug test and had shown her his medical marijuana card, but it was too late. As per its policy, the company suspended him without pay and sent him to rehab, which it financed. New Jersey’s medical marijuana law specifically states that nothing in the act requires employers to accommodate the medical use of marijuana in any workplace. Nonetheless, Mr. Davis is suing the company for discrimination. Advocates are challenging the very precept of a drug-free workplace. Once they persuade a state to legalize marijuana, they insist that

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now that the drug is legal, employees should be able to use medical marijuana every day11 and recreational marijuana off the clock throughout the week. A handful of well-funded national organizations are not just working to get rid of marijuana laws. They are also helping marijuana users file lawsuits to expand the right to use the drug before and after work, even in workplaces required by federal law to drug test employees in safety-sensitive positions.12 Alaska proponents placed a provision in their 2014 recreational marijuana legalization initiative stating that employers would not have to accommodate marijuana. That was one of the main talking points they used to persuade voters to adopt the measure. But less than a week after the initiative passed, sponsors began expressing “concerns over workers being unfairly punished for using marijuana recreationally,” saying that “they [the sponsors] hope a dialogue can be started about how to protect workers’ freedoms outside of the workplace.”13

How can employers ensure safety if they must show impairment rather than the presence of marijuana in the body? Proponents have put language in some state laws that require employers to demonstrate impairment,14 rather than the presence of marijuana in one’s system, before taking action against the employee. Again, with no scientifically acceptable test available to determine when an employee is impaired by marijuana and no agreement on what level of THC in the blood denotes impairment, proponents are opening another battle in their war against drug testing, this one, at least at present, unwinnable from the employers’ perspective. Challenges to drug-free workplace programs, if successful, will endanger all kinds of workers, thinkers as well as doers, who must be clearheaded on the job to avoid accidents or mistakes that can hurt fellow workers and the general public. Construction industry workers, heavy equipment operators, utility company linemen and linewomen, nuclear power plant workers, security-industry employees, accountants, stockbrokers and a host of others face elevated risks to safety from fellow marijuana-impaired employees. Until scientists determine what level of THC in the brain and body denotes impairment and invent a test to detect it, the solution for employers remains a positive drug test, ensuring abstinence.

Compliance How can employers with employees in multiple states comply with marijuana laws that differ from state to state and with federal law? It is clear that employers should have a standard drug testing policy regardless of differing state laws. In Seafreeze Cold Storage v. Teamsters Local No. 117, a union employee who tested positive for marijuana after a random drug test was not terminated because there was no drug testing policy in place. Since the employee, then, could only be terminated for “just cause,” and the employer could not prove impairment, the employee was not fired. But this gets complicated when state laws differ on employee protections. In Connecticut, Maine, Rhode Island and Illinois, for example, employers cannot terminate an employee simply for being a medical marijuana patient. So there is a potential scenario where one employee of a multi-state business would be allowed to work while holding a medical marijuana card, while another employee of that same business in a different state would not be allowed to do so. And if the protected employee tests positive for marijuana, even more complications arise.

What Can Employers Do? Most of the new marijuana legalization laws have not been tested. Employers are in for several years of legal challenges on many different fronts as legalization advocates attempt to assert heretofore prohibited “rights” in the workplace. An emerging marijuana industry will intensify such efforts as it tries to expand the market to increase its profits. To protect themselves, employers must keep abreast of changing laws and the changing marijuana landscape as new marijuana products and services are developed that threaten workers, their families and the public. A good place to start is National Families in Action’s The MarijuanaReport.org, which tracks daily marijuana news nationwide and publishes “The Marijuana Report,” a weekly e-newsletter featuring the top stories posted to the website the previous week. Remember that no matter how many states legalize some form of marijuana, the drug is still illegal under federal law. Case law creating safe and drug-free workplaces that protect employers as well as employees and the general public, has been developed over more than a quarter of a century. Unless Congress changes

federal law, it will take many years to undo this case law. This gives employers time to bring their policies up-to-date while the legalization battles are fought on several fronts.

Take Action to Protect your Workplace Become aware of the safety risks associated with marijuana use and develop strategies to control the risk. At some companies, the risks will be greater due to the nature of the work being performed. Employers whose workers operate motor vehicles or machinery and those who must rely on employees’ clear-headedness, coordination and concentration, could face an increased risk of injury or costly mistakes if their employees are under the influence of marijuana. Impaired workers who operate heavy machinery or handle hazardous materials could cause even more serious harm: they may be more likely to jeopardize the health and safety of coworkers and the public. Once risks are identified, employers are expected to minimize risk under the general duty of care requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Act. Make management decisions about how to handle various scenarios that could arise as new situations unfold in the future. Revise your drugfree workplace policy accordingly. Be flexible and adapt your policy to changing circumstances. Train your managers about your new policies and subsequent changes you may have to make depending on the shifting marijuana landscape. Have your managers inform your workforce about each change, explain why each is necessary, and explain how each protects workers, their families and the public.

References:

1. The specific wording of the question is, “During the past 30 days, that is from [DATEFILL] up to and including today, how many whole days of work did you miss because you just didn’t want to be there.” 2. Leirer VO1, Yesavage JA, Morrow DG. Marijuana carry-over effects on aircraft pilot performance. Aviat Space Environ Med. 1991 Mar;62(3):221-7. 3–4. Barbara L. Johnson, Edward Cadagin, and Peggah Sadeghzadeh. “Out of Joint: How the Growing Disconnect Between Federal and State Marijuana Laws Impacts Employers.” Daily Labor Report: The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc., 2013. 5. Says Dr. Robert DuPont, MD, “The science on this issue is clear: it is not possible to identify a valid impairment standard for marijuana or any other drug equivalent to the 0.02 g/dl limit for alcohol.”

www.stopdruggeddriving.org/pdfs/ HCommentaryMarijuanaandDruggedDriving 61013.pdf. Accessed December 5, 2014. 6. See National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Marijuana. www.nhtsa. gov/people/injury/research/job185drugs/ cannabis.htm. Accessed November, 2014. 7. Milan Simonich. “Insurer, business must cover medical pot for injured worker.” The New Mexican, October 6, 2014. www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_ news/insurer-business-must-covermedicalpot-for-injured-worker/article_1b550cc81be4-5873-a033-c807b7edb865.html. Accessed December 5, 2014. 8. Bill Laitner, “Appeals Court: Medical Pot Users Can Get Unemployment,” Detroit Free Press, October 24, 2014. www.freep.com/ story/news/local/michigan/2014/10/24/ medical-marijuanamichigan-unemploymentcompensation/17866619/. Accessed December 5, 2014. 9. Office of the Under Secretary for Personnel and Readiness, “Military Drug Program Historical Timeline.” prhome.defense.gov/ MilitaryDeputy/PRRO/DDRP/Timeline.aspx. Accessed December 5, 2014. 10. National Drug Screen Manual, www.nationaldrugscreen.com/ dfmanualcompliance.html. Accessed December 5, 2014. 11. Indeed, Americans for Safe Access bases its advocacy on the belief that “safe access to medical cannabis is a human right” and vows to achieve safe and legal access to medical marijuana for all Americans. www.safeaccessnow.org/about_asa. Accessed December 5, 2014. 12. The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORMLhttp://norml.org/), the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA-www. drugpolicy.org/), and the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP-www.mpp.org/) are the three largest national organizations advocating for the full legalization of marijuana and, eventually, all illicit drugs. Accessed December 5, 2014. 13. “Municipalities have authority to ban pot businesses,” Anchorage KTUU TV, November 6, 2014. www.ktuu.com/news/news/ municipalities-have-authority-toban-potbusinesses/29593820. 14. Arizona and Delaware, for example, bar employers from discriminating against medical marijuana users solely based on use. Employers in these states can only act on a positive drug test if the employee “used, possessed or was impaired by marijuana on the premises of the place of employment or during the hours of employment” or failing to do so would jeopardize an employer’s “monetary or licensing related benefit under federal law or regulations.” See ARS 36-2813 and Del. Code Title 16, § 4905A. Accessed December 5, 2014.

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REMAINING

DRUG-FREE IN COLORADO How a VPP Site is Handling Marijuana Legalization

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BY A VPPPA-MEMBER SITE IN COLORADO

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Some of the lesser-known aspects of the laws include that it is illegal to purchase, possess or use marijuana if you are under the age of 21 (similar to alcohol), it is illegal to use marijuana in public and it is illegal for the marijuana to leave the state.

For legal reasons and to protect anonymity, the name of the VPPPA-member site that contributed this article is not being revealed, nor is its author. Many VPP sites are grappling with the issue of legal marijuana and maintaining safety in the workplace but none more so than the four states and the District of Columbia where recreational use has been legalized. The federal government is handling this issue in a simple way: marijuana use is still illegal at the federal level, therefore; it is still illegal for employees to use the drug under any circumstances. This approach may work for some companies, especially those employing workers in safety-sensitive positions. The issue remains that marijuana use is legal on a state level and any instances of litigation brought to a state court are going to be subject to state laws and likely subject to multiple appeals. Additionally, finding people who are drug-free in a state where marijuana has been legalized is proving to be a challenge for sites committed to maintaining a drug-free workplace.

he legalization of marijuana in the state of Colorado changed the construction industry. Some companies have determined that they will not allow the legalization to affect the corporate drug policies, while others have felt the pressure of recruiting with a shortage of trade workers, and have modified their drug policies. During the initial time of legalization, many employers were unsure if they would have to modify their policies. There were many cases of employees stating that they had the “right” to use marijuana because it was legal and that it was “none of the company’s business what they do in their free time.” There was a surge of new residents to the state. The tax revenue looked great. The money was promised to schools and that seemed to

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make everyone feel better about the changes being made. However, it was not all as depicted on the news. While the general news seems to depict a free-for-all, there are some modified laws associated with the legalization. Some of the lesser-known aspects of the laws include that it is illegal to purchase, possess or use marijuana if you are under the age of 21 (similar to alcohol), it is illegal to use marijuana in public and it is illegal for the marijuana to leave the state. Even with these rules in place, many employers felt that they were exposing their employees to unnecessary risks during this time of transition. Many were unsure if they could hold their drug policies in place, if they would have to allow marijuana within their tolerances or if the medicinal marijuana would have to be allowed. Within construction, this proved to be a potential game-changer. Most general contractors and major subcontractors are notorious for a no-tolerance policy when it comes to drugs. What these companies do for a living is extremely dangerous and the overall consensus was that it would further endanger employees if drugs were a factor. Furthermore, the most “readily available” technology for drug screening has been urine analysis (UA). Most drugs can be detected long after the “high” through a UA. This is especially true for marijuana. While watching the legalization process unfold, these were factors that our corporation had to consider. Our ownership strongly believed that marijuana would not be legalized, and then believed that because it was still against federal law, we did not have to acknowledge the legalization. However, many

employees expressed their distaste for this policy remaining in place. Last year, a major company in the state was sued by an employee who had failed a drug test for marijuana. The employee had a prescription for medicinal marijuana and the employer had a “no-tolerance” policy. Employers held their breath as his case was heard by the Supreme Court. It was determined by the Supreme Court that while marijuana is legal in Colorado, you can still be fired for using it. This empowered organizations to decide how to proceed with their drug enforcement policies. Marijuana is still against federal law. As a federal contractor and an OSHA VPP site, our organization decided to maintain its drug policies and to not make any alterations after the legalization of marijuana. While this has been a challenge from a recruiting point of view, the organization has determined that they do not want to endanger their employees or lose their federal contracts. Because of the potential issues that we could face in recruiting and retention, there have been some policy changes within human resources. Drug testing policies may not have changed, but the organization has implemented a strong employee assistance program to assist employees with counseling or other needs should they feel that they are suffering from addiction to marijuana. Additionally, the organization now works closely with a clinic in order to utilize a saliva test to find out if the employee is high at work or if the identified marijuana is from previous use. Through statistics in our state, we have seen an increase in crime, an increase in homelessness, an increase in “no-longerseeking-work,” unemployment numbers and an increase in suicide attempts. For these reasons, we have increased our benefits to our employees for mental health and we have increased our “wellness program” benefits to encourage healthy lifestyles. We have encompassed spouses and children into the eligibility for these programs as a belief that home-life and work-life are related. A healthy lifestyle at home leads to a healthy lifestyle at work. During this period of change, it has been critical to keep workers informed on what the organization’s policies are and why these decisions have been made. Through consistent communication utilizing the

organization’s newsletter, through benefit explanations from human resources and through communication in orientation and site specific orientation, the policies are being reiterated in order to ensure that employees are well informed that the organization does not allow marijuana use. Currently, pressure is coming from other states as well. Colorado has been sued by Oklahoma and Nebraska because of the legalization and the increased “bootlegging” that they have seen. Although the Supreme Court has not yet heard the case, the potential of additional inter-state feuding could add pressure to employers and to the government to clearly outline the policies associated with the legalization of marijuana. While the litigation at the federal level of marijuana and states’ rights continue to evolve, it has become increasingly important for the organization to remain flexible in our communication of policies and procedures and in updating our employees.

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Through statistics in our state, we have seen an increase in crime, an increase in homelessness, an increase in “nolonger-seeking-work,” unemployment numbers and an increase in suicide attempts.

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OBESITY IN WORK

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THE PLACE— Let’s Talk about it

BY BRENDA WIEDERKEHR, CSC OWNER OF ACCESS COMPLIANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF ACCESS HEALTH SYSTEMS AND VPPPA REGION II CHAIRPERSON

The baby boomers know. They remember a slimmer America. They remember a workforce of healthier people. They remember the oddity of obesity in our society and our workforce. Now, there is a new workforce of younger people who know nothing but the “normality” of obesity in school children and in people walking the malls, the perpetual and never-achieved goal of dieting and the constant barrage of ads recommending ways to lose weight and eat “healthy.”

n the midst of this situation, why talk about the workplace? After all, what we eat and how we eat is a personal matter. The truth is that the adult worker spends the majority of his or her waking hours at work. Obesity affects the way we work, how we work and how much work we can do. Obesity affects the safety of the worker AND fellow workers. It is an issue that must be addressed by each person, by society and by workplaces.

What are the facts? The United States transformed over a period of about 35 years from the mid 1970s to the beginning of this decade, to the overweight nation. The average U.S. inhabitant is now 24 pounds heavier than their counterparts in the 1960s. The obesity rate in the United States doubled over this period of time. The rate is now rising at a slower rate, likely due to a combination of the knowledge we have about the existing problem and the genetic

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From a health standpoint, 80 percent of obese adults suffer from diabetes, coronary artery heart disease, elevated cholesterol, hypertension, gall bladder disease or osteoarthritis.

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pool of our society. In 2011–2012, we, as a nation, had an obesity rate of 34.9 percent. This year, it is predicted to be about 40 percent. In addition, 68.6 percent of the population is considered overweight which means that they don’t have a normal body weight. Of those individuals, 34.9 percent is considered to be obese. Of those considered to be obese, 6.9 percent is considered to be morbidly obese. What was once a medical oddity is now commonplace. The problem is more prevalent for women than men. Let’s define these terms. We use a tool to look at the relationship of sex, height, weight and age called the Body Mass Index, or BMI. In 1995, the World Health Organization (WHO) adopted this as the tool to measure body status. The BMI does not distinguish whether someone stores their fat under the skin or internally under the muscle. It is calculated knowing the person’s age, sex, height and weight with a specific formula. One can easily find BMI calculators online or via apps, many of which are available for free. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offers the following interpretation levels: • If your BMI is less than 18.5, it falls within the underweight range. • If your BMI is 18.5 to 24.9, it falls within the normal or healthy weight range. • If your BMI is 25.0 to 29.9, it falls within the overweight range. • If your BMI is 30.0 or higher, it falls within the obese range

• In addition, if the BMI is greater than 40, it is referred to as extreme obesity or morbid obesity, also known as Grade 3 obesity.

So how does this translate, and what does it mean for us and for the workplace? From a health standpoint, 80 percent of obese adults suffer from diabetes, coronary artery heart disease, elevated cholesterol, hypertension, gall bladder disease or osteoarthritis. Forty percent have two or more of these conditions. It is estimated that obesity causes approximately 400,000 premature deaths each year. The impact of obesity on a person is estimated as the same as adding 20 years of aging. From a financial standpoint, one estimate cited that obesity is responsible for 27 percent of our healthcare costs, a significant portion of health insurance premiums being paid and obese individuals are calculated to have 37 percent higher healthcare costs than non-obese individuals. In one study, workplace absenteeism rates of severely obese women (BMI >40) were more than double the rates of women who are in the healthy weight range. Workers with a BMI > 35 suffered the greatest number of work-related limitations. Statistical calculations estimate that this results in a 4.2 percent decrease in productivity due to health issues, which calculates out to $506/worker due to loss in productivity. In aggregate, the estimated cost of obesity in the workplace is calculated in one study as:

• For men: $322 for the overweight worker, $6,087 for grade 3 obese levels • For women: $797 for the overweight worker, $6,694 for grade 3 obese levels. This results in a total cost to the U.S. economy of 73.1 billion dollars. In fact, workers with a BMI>35 make up 37 percent of the population but cause 60 percent of the excess costs. What about safety? One study found that severely obese truckers had a 50 percent higher chance of getting into an accident in the first two years on the job than drivers of a normal weight. In another study of 69,515 public sector employees, the overall occupational injury rate was 21 percent higher in the obese population versus the normal weight population. Clearly, there is significant risk in the presence of an obese-aging workforce that was not there a few decades ago.

How can we deal with this? The first thing to do is recognize that new employees just entering the workforce consider obesity to be a normal state of existence, but not a normal state of health. Social norms and political correctness have made the problem much more difficult to address. Social pressures are far less intense and personal. Restructuring of what is “normal” should be considered in any attempt to address this problem. One approach that has been used in and outside of the workplace has been to promote wellness. There have been waves of wellness programs and products marketed to employers to create a healthy workforce. They may include classes, personal instruction, personal trainers, gym memberships, online education programs, online monitoring programs, incentives and goal programs, rewards programs and negative incentives such as penalties for certain lifestyle habits. People are given meters to measure footsteps or distances walked. There are even work stations built on treadmills. The CDC offers various tools. They developed the 2008 Physical Activities Guidelines for Americans as part of what they refer to as the Healthier Worksite Initiative. Wellness programs have been around for over 30 years. We are often bombarded by them, and yet, the hard reality is that studies performed to identify their effectiveness have found little to offer for results. People may have some initial enthusiasm, but often lose interest. Sometimes the message is

distorted. There is a great deal of emphasis on eating healthy foods. There are many foods marketed as low-fat, far-free or lowcholesterol. It is true that many of these foods may have less chemical content, less processing and even less or no fat, but the message for obesity is actually a story about calories, not these other heavily-touted qualities of our food. The number of calories we take-in each day minus the number we burn or excrete is a major determinant of our weight. So if you eat a “healthy” energy bar with 180 calories in it, believing that it is making you healthier, if it results in excess calories, this energy bar is hurting you and will cause your weight to increase. If you eat a no-fat item that has 320 calories in it, and this is over your daily requirements based upon the other foods that you eat, it will cause you to gain body fat. Trying to get past the marketing hype for selling food, to understanding how our bodies deal with what we eat must emphasize calorie intake for the obese population.

What else can be done, particularly in the workplace? During the latter-half of the last century, there was a truly outstanding effort to promote a positive safety culture in the workplace. During that time, the concepts of workplace-safe behaviors, safety audits, safety committees, management buy-in, peer review, safety practices and equipment purchase for safety engineering of workplaces were among a few of the ideas used in an attempt to lower accident and illness rates in the workplace. They were largely successful. A safety officer, and even the average employee, would cringe at the workplaces of the 60’s due to all of the advancements made in creating a safe workplace for today’s worker. Employers and employees both learned that preventing an accident was far less costly that treating one. What has entered into the conversation now, regarding the “obesity in the workplace” discussion, is to adapt this program, to piggyback it to encompass obesity as a particular safety hazard of interest. This means getting management and labor buy-in to address the issue of obesity as a workplace hazard, to consider obesity as a factor in post-accident analysis, to consider obesity in administrative and engineering controls and to make weight loss a focal issue in the safety culture of an organization. Discussion from safety

committees should be expanded to include topics about walkability of the workplace and about providing lower calorie food for employees as well as a myriad of strategies that employees and management should implement to lower obesity rates as one would try to lower accident rates by promoting a healthy weight culture in the workplace. This may be the most powerful way of dealing with a vulnerable workforce. After all, what do you do with the EMT who was hired at 25-years-old with a BMI of 23, is now 45 with a BMI over 40 and has trouble carrying a stretcher down the stairs or running out to get equipment? Do we begin to set minimal physical capacity levels for job descriptions as part of hiring with ongoing annual assessments? Do we establish rehabilitation programs rather than wellness programs to get workers back to a standard of fitness for duty? These are discussions for safety committees. These are discussions for labor management meetings. These are discussions for focused, action-planning meetings. These are things we have not talked about, and what was once rare is now normal in our workplaces and our homes. The message is this: obesity affects not only the individuals, but also those that surround them. Wellness programs are vehicles to promote information and establish goals, but have had very limited impact. It is time to alter the workplace “culture.” The strategy should be a business matter. From boardroom to lunchroom, each company should incorporate the hazards of obesity into every level of policy and behavior. One of the best ways to do this is to re-examine your safety programs and redevelop them to include an obesity component. Human resources’ involvement in wellness management has significant limits if the culture in the company is not modified. Redefining what is normal and acceptable for a job is the key to helping turn back this tide, not just for the older workers who already suffer from obesity, but more importantly, for the younger workers who do not remember what a fit workforce looked like. Brenda Wiederkehr, CSC, has been a VPPPA member since 2002 and is currently the vice president at Access Health Systems, the Owner of Access Compliance and the VPPPA Region II Chairperson.

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BY CHARLIE DOSS AND THE VPPPA LABOR MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

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HOW CAN A

Mediator AFFECT YOUR SITE?

Cooperative safety programs are built on communication and trust. Through initiatives like the Occupational Safety and Health Administrationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s (OSHA) Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP), worksites experience unparalleled involvement from labor as sites develop employee-driven safety and health management systems. However, sometimes safety concerns are brought into the debate at the expense of other topics. Before communication breaks down entirely, bringing in an impartial mediator can help parties find the primary sources of disagreement, and find compromise that begins to rebuild trust. THE LEADER

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Worksites shouldn’t delay when debating mediation. The sooner an outside perspective is sought, the better.

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he Voluntary Protection Programs Participants’ Association (VPPPA) offers mediation services to its members as a resource. Members of its Labor and Management Committee have been trained by the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service and other organizations to foster dialogue and resolve disputes between employers and employees. In the following pages, a couple members of the committee share their experiences with mediation and why bringing in a mediator could break a stalemate in negotiations. Don Johnson, chairperson of the VPPPA Labor and Management Committee, is a member of Operating Engineers Local 399 and works with Phillips 66 in Roxana, IL. He went through mediation training at VPPPA’s national conference in 2008, and received conflict resolution training through a prior employer. He shared that his experience with mediating for a worksite begins with one step: listening. “The first thing that you do, you sit there and

listen to both sides,” Johnson says. “One thing I always try and do is to get the sides separated first. Meet with one and then the other. Because when they sit together, there seems to more of a contentious attitude.” Jack Griffith, union safety/Hanford Site VPP representative for CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation Company in Richland, WA., has gone through different trainings related to mediation throughout his career. He agrees that listening is key to that training, “A lot of the training deals with different types of scenario and how you respond. The biggest thing they’re going to teach you? Listen. Listen to both sides. Take notes. Let them work out the resolution. Don’t try to be the person that’s giving the recommendation, but let them work it out. In a nutshell, that’s what they’re trying to get you to do in mediation training.” “And that is why the mediation, if it is handled right, forces them to listen to both sides,” Johnson declares. “And it’s like anything else, in union and management or any type of relationship, there has to be “give” on both sides. Neither one can stay at their farthest point, they’ve got to meet somewhere in the middle if they’re going to do this.” Worksites shouldn’t delay when debating mediation. The sooner an outside perspective is sought, the better. Adds Griffith, “When you hear a union officer saying we’re considering pulling out [of VPP], you need to start intervening. Don’t wait for a ‘no’ vote to take place. The union leadership is letting you know what the membership is communicating to them. The sooner you can intervene at that point, the better.” “I think you are right on with that,” Johnson says. “As long as people are talking with each other, even if they are mad at each other, it’s better than if they weren’t. If you can, head it off when the threats start coming. That’s when you need to start this intervention, and it is going to be hard for either party. If there hasn’t been a formal vote yet, that’s when you have lucked out because there is still some damage control to be done. Once you let the one side vent, whether they have been offended or feel there’s inequity or whatever the problem may be, it gives you the opportunity to get that side of the story before you go to the other side.” Johnson recalls an example of a mediation he was involved in: “This will sound trivial on the surface, but at one mediation, the reason these guys were not going to sign an agreement was that the company sent down an underling

to speak with them; they didn’t send the plant manager. They sent someone a few steps lower, to come down and ask these guys to sign this agreement. They were deeply offended by that. That was kind of the crux of the whole thing. That resentment builds as you sit around break rooms and control rooms, with 12 hours a day to let things sit there and simmer. Other concerns are brought into things, and all of a sudden, poor communication or outreach from the company has grown into something way out of proportion, something that doesn’t have anything to do with VPP or its principles.” “And it comes back to the fact that you really shouldn’t ever use your safety programs as leverage,” Johnson warns. “That’s the opportunity where we need to come in as mediators with cool heads and very objectively present the program again for what it’s worth. Let them see how this has nothing to do with some of these side disagreements or some of the personal offenses that have been taken. And those are legitimate, I’m not saying that they don’t matter—they do, but are they legitimate enough to say they are ready to step out of VPP?” Griffith adds, “And that just seems like it’s a normal thing in our world. There’s always somebody unhappy and they want to ‘pull the plug’ so to speak. “You’ve got to reel them back. A lot of it is emotion attached to contractual stuff. We haven’t had anybody yet totally withdraw. We’ve been able to keep them in the program. Part of what we’re up against is that we often find out about organizations that wanted out or got out of VPP and we find out about it after the fact, and then it is too late to intervene.” “With either side of the disagreement, it shows you where they are putting their priorities over their values. Is it safety? Is it truly there? When things are cut back, why is safety one of the first areas we go to? I think it is because it is a peripheral area. It does not show on the bottom line as easily as keeping a piece of equipment running. I think in the long run it does. This program’s evidence of that.” Johnson underlines how VPPPA is wellpositioned to help with mediation for its members: “The good thing is that our committee consists of management and labor members from sites that have a collective bargaining unit and those without one. I don’t believe any particular site will have trouble with us from the outset for fear of being biased. The thing is, even if you’re from another outside union and you’re coming into a place you haven’t been before, there’s still some hesitation. I know I’d have some. People

are naturally unsure of an outsider’s intent. That’s part of our mission as mediators to show, yes, we are objective, that we want to hear from both sides. There’s been a few times where we’ve been called in by the company precisely because they knew we were union. We would talk their unions’ language, and we’d be on the same page. Whether we get them together or not, that may still be a tossup, but it would give us a head start.” “And it’s important that we let them know we’re a neutral party,” Griffith adds, “Yes I’m union. Yes I support unions in general, but here I can’t side with the union. We’ve got to hear both sides. We want you, as the parties involved, to put all of your issues on the table and work through them one at time. Let’s find that happy medium. If we take a side, the other can easily tell and we’ll have lost all credibility.” VPPPA members should not hesitate to take advantage of this benefit, Johnson says, “We are trying to put the word out there that this type of service is available through the organization, that it won’t cost anything. We have people available to help who are experienced and trained in mediation or conflict resolution. We’re going to

be reaching out to avoid just what you’re talking about, where sites had an issue that could have been resolved, but they didn’t search outside of their worksite for help. If we can’t arrange location visits, we can also work with people remotely. Our VPPPA Labor and Management Committee members have done a lot of great work to help worksites going through a period of disagreement. I want to particularly thank Steve Gauthier, our Region I chapter chair, from General Electric in Lynn, MA. He has worked with many sites personally and has dedicated himself to helping sites join and stay in VPP.” “It’s simpler than people think. People should not hesitate to bring in outside help if they think it is needed. It boils down to finding out what the biggest issue is. Try to resolve the true sticking points and the minor stuff falls into place, to the point where many of them don’t even exist anymore,” Griffith advises. VPPPA offers complimentary mediation services to its members. For further information, or to request mediation, simply email mediation@vpppa.org.

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IN THE If you happen to be one of the 29.1 million Americans with diabetes, it may not matter to you that it is one of the most common chronic health conditions in the United States; it already is a very real part of life every day at work, home and play. But what if you are one of the 8.1 million undiagnosed cases and you are going to work? Are you in even more danger?

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BY: KAREN KELLY, MSN, APRN-C, COHN-S

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ake for example Sam, who had never been diagnosed with diabetes. He goes to his health center and has a wellness screen that shows his blood glucose is elevated and his A1C (blood sugar levels) is 8.2 percent. He learns that an A1C percent would be less than 5.7 percent if he did not have diabetes. Sam doesn’t have a family physician and doesn’t have time to deal with this now because he is very busy. He doesn’t have time to go to the doctor so he figures he will just eat less sugar for a few nights and maybe this will make it go away. What Sam doesn’t understand is that silently, his elevated blood glucose is putting him at risk for heart disease, blindness, numbness in his hands and feet, problems with his kidneys and general day-to-day sluggishness. Sam has high blood glucose, or hyperglycemia, due to undiagnosed and untreated diabetes. His occupational health

nurse tries to tell him he needs to see a doctor but he doesn’t listen. His supervisor is unaware that Sam is at risk for health problems. Compounding the diabetes issue even further, according to 2009–2012 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 37 percent of people in the United States age 20 and older have prediabetes. This equates to an estimated additional 86 million Americans.1 Individuals who have prediabetes have blood glucose levels that are more elevated than normal, but not high enough to be considered diabetes. If this condition is ignored over a few years, the person will most likely develop diabetes. A high percentage of individuals with diabetes and prediabetes are actively working. As an employer, you may not be aware of an employee’s medical history. The untold impact of this ignorance is not blissful. According to the American Diabetes Association’s (ADA) 2012 economic report, the burden of diagnosed diabetes costs are estimated to be a total of $245 billion with $176 billion attributed to direct medical costs and $69 billion attributed to reduced productivity. This is a 41 percent increase from the 2007 estimates.2 The prevailing trends indicate a significant challenge for both employees and employers. Employers and occupational health professionals who assist employees with diabetes and prediabetes help to defray the $245 billion expense. Since the average employee spends about eight hours per day at work, a proactive approach to a healthy work environment is

vitally important. The American Association of Occupational Health Nurses (AAOHN), in embracing total worker health, wants to ensure that its nurse members have the latest information related to diabetes and its prevention and treatment, and has launched a year-long educational program called “Managing Diabetes at Work.” Studies show that maintaining a healthy workforce can lower direct costs such as insurance premiums and workers’ compensation claims, as well as indirect costs like employee productivity, absenteeism and presenteeism. The concept of presenteeism, rather than absenteeism, impacts employees who come to work while suffering from physical or mental health problems that prevent them from working at their full potential. A workplace approach to diabetes management can help an employee learn to be more empowered and proactive about their health and learn to self-manage their disease, therefore indirectly having a positive influence on productivity and costs. A CDC initiative, the National Healthy Worksite Program (NHWP) (www.cdc.gov/ nationalhealthyworksite/index.html), provides employers with tools that can help them adopt workplace-health improvement programs that can address diabetes. This program can be accessed online at the CDC website. In addition, here are some steps that employees and employers can take to manage emergencies related to diabetes and tips to help employees improve their disease management at work.

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hyperglycemia. Many people refer to this elevated blood glucose of diabetes as “sugar.” Debilitation from hyperglycemia, or abnormally high levels of glucose, as is the case with Sam, can be more subtle and have a slower onset over time. Hyperglycemia, over time, is one of the risk factors associated with cognitive decline, primarily, processing speed and verbal memory. According to a study done by Novo Nordisk with 906 participants, two-thirds of participants reported having missed work due to hyperglycemia and 75 percent reported that it affected work productivity. In this study, 519 participants reported being employed, with 68 percent of them reporting that they had hyperglycemia, 27 percent of them having it three or more times per week.5

Hypoglycemia: Hypoglycemia, the deprivation of glucose to the brain, is a complication of diabetes that can have serious consequences such as seizures, unconsciousness or death. According to a study by the ADA, 52 percent of glycemic episodes occurred during sleep but 15 percent occurred at work.4 Mild hypoglycemia may result in little lost work time (30 minutes), while an episode of severe hypoglycemia can result in lost work time of 1–2 days. If a hypoglycemic event occurs while working in isolation, it can be very dangerous, and can result in impairment of cognition. Determining if a person with diabetes can perform the duties of a safety-sensitive job should include assessing their incidence of hypoglycemic events and the severity of these events. A matrix for risk assessment created by the ADA can be used by occupational health professionals who are involved in this decision-making process. The decision to allow an employee to work in a safety-sensitive job is best made by a health care professional familiar with diabetes and with the employee’s functional job expectations.

Steps to prevent and treat hypoglycemia at work: Hypoglycemia is a risk of immediate concern for employees with diabetes and can be an emergency situation. To prevent this, the employee should be educated to: • Notify co-workers of their risk for hypoglycemia • Wear an identification bracelet

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Steps to take in the management of hyperglycemia: • Know the time of medication peaks so that shift work, meals and physical activity can correlate with dosing • Carry a blood glucose meter to spot check and detect hypoglycemia early The employer can: • Provide for the provision of healthy food options, flexible meal times, frequent, shorter breaks, and facilities for storage of medication and safe needle disposal. • Have a glucose solution or another form of sugar readily available in a first aid kit, located near the work area. • Provide first aid training or use posters in common areas advising what actions to take • Call 911 if an employee becomes unresponsive and report to the emergency providers how long the employee was unresponsive. • Make provisions for the employee to be evaluated afterwards by medical personnel before a return to work. • Support education in the prevention and care of diabetes • Provide flexible time off for medical appointments • Provide a place to rest until blood glucose returns to normal and the employee is feeling stronger

Hyperglycemia: When you have diabetes, your body either doesn’t make enough insulin or can’t use its own insulin as well as it should. This causes sugars to build up in your blood, known as

The employee should be encouraged to: • Measure his/her blood glucose two hours after meals. If higher than 180 mg/dL often, then treatment revisions are needed • Consult with a medical practitioner if hyperglycemia occurs frequently The employer can: • Allow for blood glucose testing to be done at work • Provide a private area for testing • Use basic life support training if needed for emergencies and call 911 for assistance

The Impact of Shift Work: According to the CDC, 15 million Americans work permanent or rotating night shifts. Shift work has been found to have an impact on health, which varies from insomnia or stomach complaints, to a worsening of chronic disease such as diabetes. A study done at Harvard Medical School with 70,000 women enrolled in the Nurses’ Health Study, found that a woman’s risk of developing diabetes when rotating shifts was increased by approximately 60 percent. The longer these shifts were, the greater the risk. Specifically, there is a 58 percent increase in risk when these shifts were worked for more than 20 years. This is possibly due to the effects of weight gain, often associated with night shift work.7

Take steps to decrease the impact of shift work: The employee should: • Be aware of the risk for increased obesity and diabetes.

• Take steps to improve diet and lifestyle • Know when medications work the best and when they have peak action in order to make needed adjustments to dosing times. • Learn the best times to eat, sleep and exercise according to the shift worked • Keep records of the times when sleeping, eating and exercising as well as when taking medications and blood glucose levels for your physician to make needed adjustments according to shift demands The employer should: • Provide access to, or encourage physical activity at work with short intervals of walking or stair climbing • Provide information on the benefits of a healthy lifestyle • Avoid rotating shifts if possible, to decrease the negative impact on sleep and stress involved with frequent changes in sleep patterns and wakefulness

Heat Stress: Summer heat and temperatures above 80 degrees, especially if humidity is above 40 percent, can impact medication, testing supplies and health especially in persons over 65 or if the employee has a chronic disease.

Steps to take in the management of heat stressors: The employee can: • Check all of package literature to see if heat affects the product. This would include meters, insulin pumps and all testing supplies as well as medications. Most meters work between temperatures of 50 to 104 degrees • Store all products away from heat such as direct sunlight or a hot car • Use a cooler or gel pack for storage if heat cannot be avoided • Stay hydrated • Avoid sugary sweet drinks • Know the signs of heat-related illness • Wear loose clothing that’s light in color • Exercise in the morning when temperatures are cooler • Keep an emergency kit with a three-day supply of all medication and diabetes supplies to use if an emergency situation occurs. The employer can: • Provide a means of hydration • Allow use of personal coolers onsite to store medications and supplies • Monitor workers at-risk for heat-related illness

• Schedule work in the cooler part of the day • Acclimatize workers, exposing them progressively • Provide heat stress training

Worker Lifestyle Tips: Healthy eating is important for job performance and for good health. This should be a priority every day at home and at work. Employees can be encouraged to: • Eat breakfast. This is an easy meal to eat on the run if necessary. Try: • Dry cereal with fruit • Pre-planned and prepared egg muffins to microwave • A protein shake • Cheese stick and fruit • Boiled eggs with fruit • Plan ahead and prepare food the day before, especially if the only access to food on the job is fast food or vending machines. Prepare a healthy lunch at home and take it to work. This allows more control over choices and portion sizes • Healthy snacks can be included as part of the daily meal plan such as fruit, nuts or yogurt • If eating off-site is the only option, aim for simple foods that are low in fat and sugar, such as a grocery store salad bar or deli counter selections Employers can: • Make nutrition facts available in the cafeteria • Stock vending machines with healthy options Employers can also encourage exercise at work including walking meetings, walking during a lunch break and taking the stairs. Ten-minute exercise sessions, for a total of 30 minutes per day, are recommended to meet activity goals and to offset elevations in blood glucose. The impact of any chronic disease is difficult to measure. As the workforce ages, the challenges become a business issue as well as a health issue for the employees. Diabetes is a disease that can be treated and managed by healthy eating, regular physical activity and medications to lower blood glucose levels. With some simple workplace changes and education and self-care practices, people with diabetes can stay healthy and live productive lives. Regularly scheduled visits to a family doctor or endocrinologist, podiatrist and optometrist can prevent complications and reduce costly risk-factors. Employers should allow for these visits to be incorporated into an employee’s schedule

without worry about negative impact on performance. The payback for employees will be increased health and wellness. The payback for employers will be increased productivity, improved presenteeism and a decrease in lost-work days due to illness. Find more resources from the National Diabetes Education Program, a joint CDC and National Institutes of Health (NIH) project, at www.diabetesatwork.org.

References: 1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2015) National Diabetes Statistics Report, 2014. 2. American Diabetes Association. (2013). Economic Costs of Diabetes in the U.S. 2012. Diabetes Care. 3. Wolf, K.. (2010) Making the Link between health and Productivity at the Workplace— A Global Perspective. Industrial Health. 48. Pgs 251–255 4. Leckie, A.M. et al. (2005) Frequency, Severity, and Morbidity of Hypoglycemia Occurring in the Workplace in People with Insulin-Treated Diabetes. Diabetes Care. Vol.28. No. 6. Pgs. 1333–1338 5. Nikolajsen, A. et al (2015) Postprandial Hyperglycemia Interferes with Work Productivity. Presented at EASD 2015. 6. Lee, M.S. et al. (2011) Diabetes Management and Hypoglycemia in Safety Sensitive Jobs. Safety and Health at Work 2; 9–16 7. Fennell, D. (2011). Rotating Shift Work Linked to Increased Type 2 Risk. Diabetes Self-Management 8. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2014) National Diabetes Statistics Report: Estimates of Diabetes and Its Burden in the United States. U.S. DHHS.

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BY GERALD NICHOLS REGIONAL SAFETY MANAGER AT BIG CAJUN II

MAINTAINING HEALTH AND WELLNESS AT

BIG CAJUN II S

afety, health and wellness are key elements of NRG’s STRIVE values: Safety, Teamwork, Respect, Integrity, Value creation and Exemplary Leadership. In these values, safety always comes first as the company and the plant embrace safety with an ultimate goal of zero injuries, and a focus on preventative practices. As part of their commitment to this goal, Big Cajun II promotes safe and healthful work environments by communicating about safety and health issues, utilizing safe work practices and providing ongoing safety and health training and resources for all employees. NRG’s Big Cajun II operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, providing reliable, economic power to more than one million homes served

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by Louisiana’s electric cooperatives. With a workforce of approximately 175 employees, Big Cajun II established a safety ethic of “We do the right things the right way for the right reasons because safety is paramount.” Reinforcing its strong commitment to safety across the plant, the facility became a VPP Star site in 2012. It is important to maintain a safety and wellness program that benefits all employees, and with an aging workforce, it is imperative to encourage team members to stay active. Big Cajun II implements various programs and procedures to boost health awareness, including daily exercises. “The first thing we do every morning is start our day with a 15-minute stretch. Each department has an instructor-led video to

guide them through the stretches they need to keep from injuring themselves during their physical day at work,” says VPP coordinator Connie Carrier. “The video also encourages them to repeat the stretches throughout the day after periods of rest.” Employees are also encouraged to participate in NRG’s company-wide wellness program “Power Up My Life.” The program encourages employees to know their health numbers, such as blood pressure, blood sugar, cholesterol and weight, and gives employees the opportunity to identify potential health problems and take steps to address them before they become an issue. “Power Up My Life” also encourages an exercise regime and provides information on

how to manage stress, eat healthier and prevent sleep deprivation. The facility sponsors several activities throughout the year to bolster the program’s efforts to educate employees on healthy lifestyle practices and help them understand the importance of their own personal health. Activities include a health fair, informative meetings, appreciation events and digital newsletters. Gwen Miletello, health fair and wellness coordinator, works with a team to organize an annual health fair where employees and contractors can be screened by more than 30 different health and wellness vendors including ones that offer services for holistic living, BMI checks, EKGs, eye exams, neck and back

massages, hand strength testing, foot exams, home gardening, oral health information, cancer screening and mammography education. At the fair, employees are given complete access to a variety of specialists, which in the past have included general practitioners, pharmacists, physical therapists, massage therapists, chiropractors, nurses, nutritionists, ophthalmologists, cardiologists and urologists, as well as local law enforcement officers who assist with tobacco-free living and driving under the influence simulations. “Valuable information and screenings are provided, which benefits not only the employees, but also their families. It takes a team effort, but it is important that these types of events are held onsite so employees have

access to the screening and healthcare providers. If anything is discovered during the screening, employees are encouraged to follow up with their primary care physician,” Miletello advises. Regularly-held, all-hands meetings are another type of group effort that are a part of the health and wellness program at Big Cajun II. The meetings are sponsored by the site safety team and guest speakers from the healthcare industry present a specific wellness topic to employees. The topics vary and have included vaccinations, heat stress awareness and prevention, heart health, diabetes, nutrition, exercise, eye care and safety, chiropractic care, sleep deprivation and how to provide care to aging parents or an ill family member. The healthcare professional remains onsite after the meeting to answer any questions employees may have in a group or one-on-one setting. Along with these meetings, the facility routinely organizes appreciation activities. One example is a meet and greet, where the plant manager and site safety team members greet each employee as they enter the site for the day and thank them for working safely. Employees also receive a healthy snack such as a bottle of water and fresh fruit, and either a heat stress prevention or cold weather item such as hand warmers or a knit cap. Healthy meals are another routinely sponsored appreciation activity that includes nutritious items like grilled chicken, vegetables and fruit. Employees also receive newsletters with health and wellness information from organizations such as Occupational Athletics, WebMD and the American Heart Association through their company email. The Big Cajun II team is keenly aware of how hard it can be for employees to maintain a balanced lifestyle between work, family and other obligations. To provide opportunities for physical activity for those in sedentary positions at the plant, employees also have access to tread mills and a walking track that can be used during lunch breaks. By providing these valuable resources as part of Big Cajun II’s safety and health program, NRG ensures that the facility’s team members have access to the tools needed to maintain safe and healthy lifestyles so that the “joie de vivre”—or “joy of living”—attitude can continue to prevail in Cajun country. “Laissez les bon temps rouler!,” which is a Cajun expression meaning “Let the good times roll!” THE LEADER

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BY STEVE GAUTHIER HEALTH AND SAFETY REPRESENTATIVE, GE AVIATION, AND VPPPA REGION I CHAIRPERSON

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Thousands of workers use chemicals in their workplaces and homes every day. At work, chemicals are used for a number of processes throughout the day and at times, can be very hazardous due to the demands of the processes involved. Many people are aware that some chemicals can cause acute and chronic short and/or long-term health problems. Acute problems happen immediately after an exposure, while chronic, long-term health problems stem from repeated chemical exposure over a period of days, weeks, months or even years. As a result of long-term exposure, chronic health problems may not be seen for years because of the time required for damage to develop. Both acute and chronic health effects can result in permanent injuries such as skin damage, respiratory or nervous system ailments and even cancer.

or years, companies have continued using many of the same chemicals, neglecting to source other chemicals that may be safer for their employees. Some are concerned that altering a process could affect the quality of work, or that the product will be less-effective. With today’s resources, it has become easier to seek alternatives. In Massachusetts, the Toxics Use Reduction Act (TURA) drives the issue and offers a wide range of services for employers and employees to help them reduce their use of toxic chemicals. The businesses that take advantage of TURA program services often find ways to reduce toxic chemical use while saving money, improving product quality and getting ahead of the regulatory curve. The Massachusetts Office of Technical Assistance (OTA) provides onsite confidential assistance free of charge to Massachusetts businesses. The Toxics Use Reduction Institute (TURI) provides training, grants and other resources. The role of workers in defining safer alternatives is a very important part of bringing a new perspective to the table and understanding just how chemicals are used in the workplace, sometimes in a manner that isn’t suggested. Benefits for companies range from improved worker health, to the overall bottom line, impacting productivity and cost. There is a growing concern about the effects of chemicals on workers’ health and the environment because of the unknown long-term effects of chemicals seen as safe. The health of people is determined by their circumstances as much as it is their environment. It’s understood that the world cannot be risk-free, but we know that there are safer alternatives to many of the toxic chemicals and products in use today. Industrial progress has brought us many advantages but we can work toward a healthier environment by following toxic use reduction policies and by developing policies to reduce the use of toxic chemicals.

Man-made chemicals are not only a problem in the wider environment, they are more often closer to the workplace and home. Everyday uses of consumer items such as cleaning products, cleaning solvents and metalworking fluids, as well as items that might appear less likely to contain hazardous substances, such as adhesives, sealants and work clothes, can all be hazardous to a person’s health if used improperly, or if used in a way that the manufacturer never intended for a chemical to be used.

There is a growing concern about the effects of chemicals on workers’ health and the environment because of the unknown long-term effects of chemicals seen as safe. Oftentimes, warning labels and instructions do not anticipate that cleaning product A and sealant B will be used in the same space at the same time. Unfortunately, this unwittingly exposes people to the negative effects of using different safe chemicals together. Even if employees are taking every precaution recommended by the manufacturer and may be working safely, a chemical interaction may occur that was never anticipated because the intent was never for these chemicals to be used at the same time. Many major illnesses can be caused by interacting exposures. The most helpful ways to avoid health-related issues from exposures is to engage the workforce in the education of chemical-related health and safety programs by offering meaningful ways for them to be part of the effort to mitigate improper and unintended chemical use. Training should provide employees with background information including:

• Types of chemical hazards found in the workplace • How chemicals can harm you • How to obtain and understand information about chemicals used at work • Workers’ right-to-know policy • The role of the health and safety representative in ensuring the safe use of chemicals found in the workplace Addressing chemical-related health and safety issues shouldn’t be seen as a regulatory burden; it offers significant opportunities to improve your worksite by reducing short and long-term healthcare costs of your workers, reduction in injuries and illnesses, reduction in productivity loss and an increase in morale. An effective way to begin is by creating a chemical review committee, a group of people that will focus on the work environment and applying the hierarchy of control to a site. The hierarchy of control consists of the elimination, substitution, engineering controls, administrative controls and personal protective equipment (PPE) related to standard processes involved in reducing hazards. By reviewing the many chemicals in use today, your company will help create a more sustainable environment. We all have a responsibility to make sure that our actions do not harm others or our shared environment. Whenever possible, the employer should set goals for reducing and/ or eliminating toxic chemicals. The rewards achieved are far-reaching and beneficial. Steve Gauthier, CMFS, is a health and safety representative at GE Aviation in Lynn, MA. Steve got involved with VPP in 2006 when the Lynn GE Aviation site achieved VPP status. He is a member of the National Society of Tribologists and Lubrication Engineers (SLB) and is a founding member of the Alliance for a Healthier Tomorrow (AHT). THE LEADER

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member spotlight

Hill Air Force Base’s 309th Electronics Maintenance Group BY BENJAMIN MASSOUD, COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR, VPPPA, INC.

ithin government work, there are a plethora of short-lived programs, including what Craig Buelo, the first full-time VPP program manager at the Hill Air Force Base, refers to as “flavor of the month” programs. So when it was announced in 2006 that VPP would be implemented at Air Force sites in an effort to combat their steadily increasing injury rates, naturally, the employees weren’t exactly thrilled about having to adhere to another program. What they had yet to learn was VPP isn’t just “another program.”

Acclimation through Education Hill Air Force Base’s 309th Electronics Maintenance Group (EMXG), located in Ogden, UT, completes a variety of work,

EXMG’s VPP committee members accept the VPP flag as part of their VPP Star recognition.

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namely operating on aircraft generators and ground support equipment, and repairing electrical components of military aircraft. To avoid heavy lifting, hydraulic carts, lifts and cranes are utilized to move the heavy parts. EXMG must be wary of the potential for exposure to various chemicals in the form of cadmium and chromates, which are contained in the primer used to paint military aircraft. Additionally, some of the cleaning chemicals can be harmful to the workers. To avoid exposure, information and guidance about proper handling of chemicals, and the importance of wearing personal protective equipment (PPE) is stressed. Dealing with such a wide range of potential hazards, it was only logical EXMG was determined to achieve VPP status to keep its workers safe. Of course, as many sites have

gone through VPP can attest to, achieving VPP status isn’t easy. And with employees feeling dubious about VPP, and with no support from management, something needed to be done to change opinions. It’s not uncommon to fear the unknown. What better way to change minds about VPP than through education? Information packets were developed, educational VPP games were created that offered prizes and perhaps most notably, the “Commander Safe Site Challenge” program was adopted. The program awards recognition to safe sites, with bronze, silver and gold levels, based on the amount of knowledge sites acquire about VPP, and the efforts made to implement safer work practices. Throughout the weekly and monthly safety meetings, supervisors and VPP reps continually prepare the employees for the Commander Safe Site program by briefing them on crucial safety, health and VPP information. Featuring checklists for each level, the program requires employees to complete various safety tasks to advance. Among other responsibilities, employees must pull-up a safety data sheet (SDS) and be informed of all the information the sheet contains, answer questions about VPP and its elements, create VPP goals and objectives for the year and develop and implement a site-specific safety program. The “VPP Passport” program has been another successful avenue to increase employee involvement in VPP. The VPP Passport consists of 22 action items that can be checked off by supervisors. Workers are required to perform at least 12 tasks including presenting a safety briefing in a meeting, leading a group discussion on a chosen safety topic, receiving and maintaining a CPR card and participating in a near-miss investigation. As of December 2015, 72 percent of employees had completed the program.

A Strong Foundation Over time, all levels of management came to accept VPP, and encouraged employees to become involved. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) local 1592 became an active partner, showing full support and encouraging bargaining unit employees to become involved in improving safety and health in all work centers. As VPP became more embraced by the staff, employees volunteered as VPP representatives. Composed of 45 supervisors or “safe sites,” EXMG is

divided between three support sections and three squadrons, each having a primary and alternate VPP rep. The reps for the squadrons hold monthly VPP meetings with the VPP reps and management to discuss VPP goals and objectives and to review safety and health concerns. The three support sections include the business office, which focuses on administrative tasks and analytics, a quality team and an engineering team. There’s also a group VPP committee containing a VPP program manager, chairman, co-chair and each of the squadron/section primary and alternate representatives. The committee meets every two weeks to review concerns and to pass information to the VPP reps to share with workers within the squadrons and support sections during the weekly tier board meetings. In an effort to improve daily operations EXMG developed a VPP SharePoint that allows workers to report hazards and near-misses. In the report, the worker gives a description of the incident, and once submitted, an email alert is sent out to the VPP program manager and the squadron VPP primary and alternate rep. The worker is guaranteed a response from a VPP rep. within 48 hours, but is usually contacted within one to two hours. After submission, workers can access the SharePoint file to review its status and receive updates on the mitigation of the hazard or near-miss. “Once employees got involved and started identifying and reporting hazards in the VPP SharePoint we created, management began tracking the hazards and made the effort to spend the money to fix the hazards. This helped the employees feel they had a voice in their safety and health program, and the culture took off,” Craig notes. It was clear the safety culture was gradually improving, but the path of any VPP journey is filled with hurdles. In 2011, the maintenance complex at Hill AFB received 75 citations from OSHA, 15 written against EMXG paint and blast facilities. While this would discourage most sites, EXMG remained motivated in its pursuit of VPP Star status. By forming a team of subject matter experts and engineers to develop solutions, EXMG was able to close the citations within 18 months. Installing a new air handling system and closing gaps in the booths that had allowed cadmium and chromium to escape and by changing cleaning and material handling processes, EXMG successfully lowered the affected areas’ sample limits of

Throughout the weekly and monthly safety meetings, supervisors and VPP reps continually prepare the employees for the Commander Safe Site program by briefing them on crucial safety, health and VPP information.

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member spotlight

EXMG assembles into a VPP Star formation for a team picture.

cadmium and chromium to near zero. It certainly helped that they had a dependable, knowledgeable mentor in URS/Battelle, who shared with them, among many other recommendations, the “employee element team” concept. Utilizing the concept allowed the site to delegate responsibility for each aspect of work by separating workers into different teams: • Hazard Identification and Analysis: Meets with employees in work areas to identify hazards, and works with management to mitigate hazards • Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and Machine Guarding: Ensures employees are using the proper PPE and that all machine guarding equipment is identified • Readiness team: Prepares staff through drills so they’re ready to handle any emergency situation, including fire drills, active shooters, earthquakes and chemical spills • Industrial Shelving Team: Identifies and labels all industrial shelving throughout the facility and certifies the correct shelf and rack weight limits • Vidmar Securing Team: Detects all vidmars in use and secures them from tipping per manufacturer’s instructions

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• Ergonomics: Consists of four smaller teams, discusses ergonomics with employees and trains them on the guidelines.

VPP Bound After becoming the first group at Hill AFB to complete the Commander Safe Site Challenge, EXMG submitted its VPP application to OSHA Region VIII in September 2014. A few months later, in January 2015, OSHA Region VIII VPP manager Brad Baptiste completed his review of the site. After submitting further clarification and documentation, EXMG was notified of its application’s acceptance in April 2015, with an onsite evaluation set for early June. Employee involvement within VPP is not only important to the success of the program, it’s also crucial to scoring well on a VPP evaluation, as employee interviews comprise 80 percent of a site’s score. “For first time Star evaluations, we expect 60 percent of employees to buy-in to the program, but you guys blew us away! You were well within the 90th percentile with participation and support,” reported Brad, the team leader of EXMG’s VPP evaluation. Most first-time sites have one or two best practices, some have none. EXMG was told it had six; prompting praise

from one of the SGE’s on the evaluation team: “They looked more like a site that was doing their first re-inspection three of four years down the road.” The decision was obvious: a couple months later, EXMG received its VPP Star recognition letter, signed by Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels. “With VPP Star recognition, employees know EMXG is a place where they can feel safe coming to work each day. The safety culture has become a 24/7 culture, with employees making their homes safer and sharing their knowledge on safety with families and friends,” Craig proudly declares. “The journey to an improved safety culture and VPP Star is not something you can do overnight. The culture change takes a lot of time and energy by many people to make it happen,” he acknowledges. A program that experienced much initial doubt and skepticism and took two years for management to get behind, is now one that has helped identify and mitigate over 800 hazards, reduced injuries by 98 percent over the last four years—with only one recordable injury this year—and impacted employees’ safety habits even off the job. Perhaps VPP is not just “another program.”

member info corner

Renew Your VPPPA Membership

t’s that time of year—your membership with VPPPA is up for renewal. An email containing your invoice was sent out in December, as well as a hard copy in January. You can easily renew your dues by clicking on the “renew” tab located on the left side of VPPPA’s home page at www.vpppa.org. If you have forgotten your password, simply click on the option that allows you to reset your password and follow the directions. Once logged in, you will be able to seamlessly renew your membership. We would like to thank our members for their support over the past year. Member participation and dedication to the safety and health industry facilitated our association’s many accomplishments. We urge you to recommit your support to the association and to the safety and health industry by renewing your membership. If you have any questions regarding your membership or dues, contact membership@ vpppa.org or call (703) 761-1146.

entry will receive a two-page spread in the summer issue of The Leader; the left side will include your artwork and the right side will include an explanation (500 words) of the pictures, company background information and contact information. This is a great chance for members to share their experiences and promote themselves and their company’s achievements! The rules and requirements to enter this contest are as follows: • Must be a member of VPPPA • Artwork must be designed to fit 8.5 x 11 inches • You must have the rights to the photos used • If using original artwork, it can be computer-generated or a drawing • VPPPA is not responsible for any lost/ damaged artwork or photos

• VPPPA has all rights and ownership to the submissions • VPPPA reserves the right to make any minor edits • Images must be in high resolution (300 dpi or higher) no clip art please • No nudity, graphic language or content, firearms or alcohol, may be shown in any artwork • Submit your entry, including your name and member ID number, by April 8, 2016 by email to membership@vpppa.org, or by dropbox. You can also mail your entry to VPPPA’s National Office at VPPPA Inc., Attn: Membership, 7600-E Leesburg Pike, Suite 100, Falls Church, VA 22043

VPPPA’s Got Talent The voting for VPPPA’s Got Talent ends Feb. 26! To vote, visit our YouTube page at www.youtube.com/user/VPPPA and click the “thumbs up” icon located directly below the video on the right. The contestant with the most “likes” will receive complimentary national conference registration, free airfare and lodging at the Gaylord Palms.

Illustrated Journey Contest If you have pride in your company and its journey through VPP, VPPPA’s Illustrated Journey Contest is for you! Depict your journey through VPP by using original pictures and artwork. In portraying your journey, be sure to represent the following: • Show others how your company got involved with VPP. • On a more personal level, where did you begin and how did you get to where you are now? • What does VPP, and your involvement with VPPPA, mean to you and your company? No words are necessary, simply use your own artwork and photos. The most creative THE LEADER

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state-plan monitor

COMPILED BY CHARLIE DOSS, FORMER GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS MANAGER, VPPPA, INC.

New Mexico New Mexico has held steady with 12 VPP Star sites in its state-plan. Two applications have been submitted for new sites. The state has started using federal special government employees (SGE) and has found the change to be very positive, both from a technical expertise standpoint and as a supplement to resources. Interested locations are encouraged to contact Melissa Barker at (505) 222-9595 or melissa.barker@state.nm.us.

Tennessee Federal OSHA States State-Plan States Public Sector Only

In November 2015, Steve Hawkins, Administrator of Tennessee OSHA, presented two Star re-approval awards. The honored companies were Marvin Windows and Doors of Ripley, TN, and ABC Inoac Company in Livingston, TN. This was the third re-approval for both sites.

Marvin Windows and Doors celebrates its third re-approval.

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contacting each state >> Alaska Bill Nickerson VPP Coordinator bill.nickerson@alaska.gov Phone: (907) 269-4948 www.labor.state.ak.us/lss/ oshhome.htm Arizona Jessie Atencio Assistant Director atensio.jessie@dol.gov Phone: (520) 220-4222 www.ica.state.az.us/ ADOSH/ADOSH_main.aspx California Iraj Pourmehraban Cal/VPP & PSM Manager ipourmehraban@hq.dir.ca.gov Phone: (510) 622-1080 www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/cal_ vpp/cal_vpp_index.html Hawaii Clayton Chun Manager clayton.g.chun@hawaii.gov Phone: (808) 586-9110 labor.hawaii.gov/hiosh Indiana Beth A. Gonzalez VPP Team Leader bgonzalez@dol.in.gov Indiana Dept. of Labor Phone: (317) 607-6778 www.in.gov/dol/vpp.htm Iowa Shashi Patel VPP Coordinator patel.shasi@dol.gov Phone: (515) 281-6369 www.iowaworkforce.org/ labor/iosh Kentucky Joe Giles VPP Program Administrator joe.giles@ky.gov Phone: (502) 564-4089 labor.ky.gov/dows/ oshp/doet/partnership/ pages/VPP---VoluntaryProtection-Partnership.aspx Maryland Allen Stump VPP Coordinator stump.allen@ddol.gov Phone: (410) 527-4469 www.dllr.state.md.us/labor/ mosh/vpp.shtml

Michigan Doug Kimmel MVPP Specialist Phone: (231) 546-2366 Sherry Scott MVPP Manager scotts1@michigan.gov Phone: (517) 322-5817 www.michigan.gov/mvpp Minnesota Ryan Nosan MNSTAR VPP Coordinator ryan.nosan@state.mn.us Phone: (651) 284-5120 www.doli.state.mn.us/ mnStar.html Nevada Jimmy Andrews VPP Coordinator andrews.jimmy@dol.gov Phone: (702) 486-9020 www.dirweb.state.nv.us New Mexico Melissa Barker VPP Coordinator melissa.barker@state.nm.us Phone: (505) 222-9595 www.nmenv.state.nm.us/ Ohsb_Website/Compliance Assistance/VPP.htm North Carolina LaMont Smith Recognition Program Manager lamont.smith@labor.nc.gov Phone: (919) 807-2909 www.nclabor.com/osha/ osh.htm Oregon Mark E. Hurliman, CSHM VPP/SHARP Program Manager mark.e.hurliman@oregon.gov Phone: (541) 776-6016 www.cbs.state.or.us/osha/ subjects/vpp.htm Puerto Rico Ilza Roman Director roman.ilza@dol.gov Phone: (787) 754-2171 www.dtrh.gobierno.pr

South Carolina Sharon Dumit VPP Coordinator dumits@llr.sc.gov Phone: (803) 896-7788 www.scosha.llronline.com Tennessee David Blessman VPP Manager david.blessman@tn.gov Phone: (615) 253-6890 www.state.tn.us/labor-wfd/ vppStar.html Utah Karla Staker VPP Manager kstaker@utah.gov Phone: (801) 530-6494 www.laborcommission. utah.gov/divisions/UOSH/ VPPprogram.html Vermont Daniel Whipple VPP Coordinator dan.whipple@state.vt.us Phone: (802) 828-5084 www.labor.vermont.gov/ vosha Virginia Milford Stern VPP Coordinator milford.stern@dol.gov Phone: (540) 562-3580 www.doli.virginia.gov/vosh_ coop/vosh_vpp.html Washington John Geppert VPP Manager Phone: (360) 902-5496 www.lni.wa.gov/safety/ topics/atoz/vpp/default.asp Wyoming Karin Schubert Consultation Supervisor Karin.schubert@wy.gov Phone: (307) 777-7710 www.wyomingworkforce. org/employers-andbusinesses/osha/Pages/ safety-and-healthcompliance.aspx

For additional information and up-to-date contacts, please visit www.vpppa.org/chapters/contacts.cfm THE LEADER

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chapter round-ups

COMPILED BY BENJAMIN MASSOUD, COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR, VPPPA, INC.

Region I The region continues to grow the special government employee program (SGE). We recently held an SGE training session at General Electric Aviation, Lynn, MA. There were 27 new SGEs sworn in by Tony Covello, area director of the Boston area office and Lynnda Ignacio, VPP coordinator. The instructors were Brian Sullivan of Maine OSHA, Dan Whipple of Vermont OSHA and Steve Gauthier, an SGE from GE. Following the training, a fourth quarter chapter meeting took place and GE provided a tour of the Jet Engine Museum. If you missed our regional conference last year, plan to join us on May 2–4, 2016; you will be glad you did as 2016 marks the 20th anniversary of VPPPA Region I. The conference will be held in Manchester, NH, at the downtown Radisson. The opening speaker, professional climber Jim Davidson, will reflect on his epic experiences and share his critical lessons of resilience, and how he survived a snow bridge collapse that dropped him and a partner into an 80-foot crevasse on Mount Rainer, forcing him to climb out alone. The closing speaker, Cindy Mahoney from GE, will provide a corporate perspective on VPP and its benefits. Cindy is also the

former chairperson of Region II and a former national board member. Don’t miss out on conference sponsorship opportunities; visit our website at www.vppregion1.com for information. If you would like to exhibit at the 2016 Region I VPPPA Chapter Conference, please visit our website for an exhibitor contract or contact Michael Avery at (413) 526-2336 or Michael.Avery@cartamundi.com. We are always looking for new workshops at our conference to highlight best practices. You can make it interesting and fun by sharing your site’s successes. If you are interested in presenting a workshop at the 2016 conference, please contact Jack Popp at (413) 526-249 or via email at jack.popp@cartamundi.com. If you wish to be part of the conference planning committee, please contact Steve Gauthier at Stephen.Gauthier@ge.com. The Region I board would like to extend our appreciation to the Region I OSHA offices for their support over the years; we can always count on their participation. Contributed by: Steve Gauthier, Region I Chairperson

Region III The Cintas operation in Baltimore, MD, recently received VPP Star approval from Maryland Occupational Safety and Health (MOSH). “We are proud of the local management team and front-line partners working together toward the common goal of eliminating workplace injuries,” stated Rick Gerlach, senior director of safety and health. The Baltimore location, which employs 180 people, is the 33rd Cintas facility in the U.S. to receive VPP Star designation since 2011. Contributed by Kristyn Grow, Region III Director-at-Large

Region IV

Cintas, Baltimore, MD., recently received VPP Star approval.

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The 2016 Region IV VPPPA Safety and Health Excellence Conference will be held June 21–23 at the Lexington Hyatt Hotel and Convention center in majestic Lexington, KY. Region IV will host an OSHA SGE Training session (June 19–21) and an OSHA 10-Hour General Industry

Class (June 20–21) as pre-conference workshops. Registration is now open and can be completed at www.regionivvpp.org. Pre-conference workshop space is limited, so attendees are encouraged to register now to ensure desired placement. All participants in the SGE training must be registered by April 15, 2016. The winner of the 2016 Region IV Logo Contest is Donnie Baggs of the Marine Corps Logistic Base in Albany, GA. Congratulations Donnie, and thank you to all those who submitted logos for consideration. You all did a great job! Contributed by Chris Colburn, Region IV Director-at-Large

Region V The 2016 Region V Conference will take place May 24–26, 2016, at the Hyatt Regency O’Hare in Rosemont, IL. Be sure to save the dates! This year’s keynote speaker is USAF fighter pilot, and the founder and CEO of Target Leadership, Jeff “Odie” Espenship! Odie attended the University of Georgia for his higher education and enrolled in the prestigious Air Force ROTC program. Due to his demonstrated leadership and officer ship skills in cadet corps officer training, Odie was awarded a full academic scholarship and a USAF pilot training slot. After receiving his Bachelor’s degree in political science, Odie spent a year cheating certain death and destruction earning his USAF pilot wings. Demonstrating enormous success, he won the coveted “Commanders Trophy” as the overall top graduate of his pilot training class. Odie became a USAF fighter pilot flying the venerable A-10 Thunderbolt, also known as the “Warthog.” He was stationed with the 18th Tactical Fighter Squadron at Eielson AFB in Fairbanks, AK. While there, he qualified as one of the youngest 4-ship flight leaders in the entire squadron. He won numerous “Top Gun” awards for air-to-ground bombing and gunnery. Odie was selected to attend The Air Force’s formal leadership training college for young officers, Squadron Officers School. After six years of dedicated service in the Air Force, Odie decided to fulfill another lifelong dream by becoming an airline pilot. Amid his tenure as an airline pilot, Odie also flew a 1943 T-6 “Texan” on the airshow

circuit. A tragic accident took the life of his brother, as well as the life of the pilot. This significant event in Odie’s life ignited the spark that helped create what Target Leadership is today. From those humble beginnings in 2003, Odie and his team have grown Target Leadership into a well-recognized brand for culture leadership safety training among the nation’s top Fortune 500 companies including ExxonMobil, The Southern Company, John Deere and Chevron.

SGEs Wanted If you’re an SGE and looking to participate on an assessment in 2016, be sure to review the VPP OSHA lead contact list as soon as possible. For the VPP assessment schedule and OSHA contacts, please visit our website at www.vppregionv.com/region-v-sges Contributed by Steve Washburn, Region V Director-at-Large

Region VI Region VI board members Haney Robertson, Kirk Crandall and Johnny Collazo recently had an outreach event at the 2nd Annual DiVal Safety Summit in Pasadena, TX. They also presented a workshop and answered questions about getting into VPP. Additionally, Region VI board members Haney Robertson, Johnny Collazo and Dan Aleksandrowicz attended the Louisiana Governor’s Safety Conference in Baton Rouge, LA, manning the Region VI outreach booth. Haney Robertson also attended the NASA Johnson Space Center Safety Day, operating the Region VI outreach booth. Region VI board member Danny Barrett has recently started to mentor Cintas Uniforms in Conroe, TX, and Kirk Crandall began mentoring Tenaska Frontier in Shiro, TX. So far, Region VI has four SGE training sessions scheduled for 2016: • March 15–17, 2016: SGE training held at USPS—OK District Office in OKC, OK • May 14, 2016; SGE training held at Omni Hotel Fort Worth, Fort Worth, TX • July 12–14, 2016; SGE training held at Valero, San Antonio, TX • September 15–17, 2016; SGE training held at NASA—Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX For more information and deadline dates, visit www.osha.gov/dcsp/vpp/sge/sge_training.html.

Congratulations to our new Star sites: • Safeway Services LLC at Phillips 66 Alliance Refinery—Belle Chasse, LA • Solvay Specialty Polymers Borger Plant— Borger, TX • Total Safety IPSC at Phillips 66 Sweeny Refinery—Old Ocean, TX • Turner Industries Group at Phillips 66 Allican Refinery—Belle Chasse, LA • Valero Services Inc.—San Antonio, TX Congratulations to the following sites on their re-approvals: • 3M Company Research Boulevard— Austin, TX • Akzo Nobel Polymer Chemistry— Battleground Site—Deer Park, TX • Austin Industrial at LyondellBasell Bayport— Pasadena, TX • Austin at Equistar Channelview— Houston, TX • Chevron Phillips Chemical Company— La Porte Eng.—La Porte, TX • Entergy Texas—Beaumont Transmission Service Center—Beaumont, TX • Evergreen Packaging Cadron Creek Woodyard—Menifee, AR • Raytheon Mission Capability & Verification Center—White Sands Missile Range, NM Contributed by Kirk Crandall, Region VI Director-at-Large

Region VII Region VII is preparing for our regional conference, which will be held on May 16–18 at the Downtown Marriott in Des Moines, IA. The 2016 conference will have retired New York Fire Department Lieutenant Joe Torrillo as the keynote speaker. Buried alive twice on September 11, Lieutenant Torrillo will share his amazing stories and inspiring messages that attendees will never forget. Lieutenant Torrillo travels the world as a professional speaker with a quest to make our country the “Re-United States of America,” resurrecting patriotism, trumpeting the men and women of the armed services, mentoring adolescents and inspiring audiences of all sizes to embrace change and never give up on their dreams. For more information on Lieutenant Joe Torrillo and the 2016 Region VII VPPPA Conference, please visit www.regionviivpp.org Region VII mentors have been reaching out to VPP companies who are up for their re-approvals in 2016. Mentors are THE LEADER

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chapter round-ups

volunteering their time to visit sites and provide another set of eyes before site audits take place. Region VII has received many requests for mentors, including Collins Bus, Hutchinson, KS, who is taking its first steps toward VPP. Employees at NuCor Steel, Norfolk, NE, are mentoring their resident contractor, Tube City IMS. Jarden Plastics, Springfield, MO and CBRE and Guckenheimer, MO, both from the St. Louis area, are being mentored as well. Springfield Remanufacturing Corp. (SRC), Springfield, MO, just celebrated its fifth VPP Star approval. SRC has been a VPP Star site for 20 years, making them the longest active VPP Star site in Region VII. OSHA’s area director from the Kansas City office, Barbara Theriot and Region VII’s Secretary/Historian Alicia Hardacre were onsite during the re-approval celebration and flag raising ceremony to present them with a plaque commemorating the 20-year event. Contributed by Bill Turner, Region VII Vice Chairperson

Region VIII Region VIII’s “Make it Safe, Make it Home” Safety Summit will take place April 26–28, 2016, in the Denver, CO area. Keynote speaker Lisa Haen will lay the foundation for a sustainable safety culture, while Dawn Kaiser will inspire and refuel your commitment to safety excellence. Two board members were able to participate in the November congressional outreach. We joined forces with approximately 40 other VPPPA members from across the U.S., and it proved to be the most successful one ever held! It is truly amazing that we had meetings with 205 offices in two days. Furthermore, the letters in support of H.R. 2500 that were provided via email were hand-delivered to Senator Bennet’s D.C. office. Thank you, Region VIII, you rock! Region VIII would like to thank Champion Health (Active Release Techniques—ART) in Colorado Springs, CO., for hosting our last “What’s Gr8 in R8” event. Last year, we launched four outreach and networking events and it was a huge success as we experienced interest, as well as growth, over the quarterly benchmarking activities. SGE training will take place April 5–7, 2016, at Hellman & Associates, Inc in Wheat Ridge, CO. Additional 2016 events will be announced soon.

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Region VIII had three recent VPP Star Ceremonies: • 309th Electronics Maintenance Group at Hill Air Force Base in Ogden, UT • NuStar Energy in South Dakota • MillerCoors Barley Elevator in Monte Vista, CO We have received requests from two Utah companies regarding mentorship. Morton Salt is facilitating matches and/or becoming the mentor. Make sure to visit our website www.region8.webnode.com/, or follow us on Twitter and Facebook for up-to-date announcements and information. Contributed by Mark Moya, Region VIII Chairperson

Region IX As the 2015 calendar year came to an end, your Region IX VPPPA representatives found themselves working hard to deliver yet another stellar safety summit for 2016. The venue for the “Future So Bright” 2016 Regional Summit will be the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort in Phoenix, AZ. Mark your calendar now for April 26–28, 2016, as this promises to be a great learning opportunity. The event starts with a VPP application workshop on April 25, 2016 for those just venturing into the process. There will also be an opportunity to “hit the links” for those wanting to get some time on the greens during our annual golf tournament.

We then kick into high gear on April 26, 2016, with the opening session. In addition to an inspirational kickoff from our keynote speaker, you can participate in networking events throughout the week. On April 27–28, 2016, you will be able to choose from, and participate in, dozens of breakout sessions, with over 48 different safety topics offered. The regional board listened to all your excellent feedback following last year’s successful event in Reno, NV, and they are bringing back the ever-popular executive panel session. This year’s topic of discussion asks the question: “Are we leading the organization towards continuous improvement?” Come hear from corporate executives as they explain just how important the safety and health initiatives are within their own organization, while sharing their vision of safety excellence. The regional board has been working nonstop since the end of last year’s safety summit, all in order to improve this highly anticipated safety event. Final works are still underway and if you should want to get involved, there is a way to make that happen. Feel free to visit the region IX website at www.regionixvpppa.org so you can sign up as a volunteer or obtain information about the location and register for the summit. We look forward to seeing you there, as the future is so bright! Contributed by Mark Norton, Ambassador to the Region IX Board.

calendar of events

VPPPA Contacts

February

May

To reach the VPPPA National Office, call (703) 761-1146 or visit www. vpppa.org. To reach a particular staff member, please refer to the contact information below.

Feb. 1–26, 2016

May 16–18, 2016

VPPPA’s Got Talent Voting

Region I VPPPA Chapter Conference Radisson Hotel Manchester Downtown Manchester, NH

Feb. 18, 2016 VPP 1-0-Wait, What? Webinar 1 p.m. EDT

Feb. 25, 2016 VPP 1-0-Wait, What? Webinar 1 p.m. EDT

April April 8, 2016 VPP Illustrated Journey Contest Artwork Due

April 12–14, 2016 Region II SGE training session Access Health Systems, Latham, NY

April 15, 2016 VPP Illustrated Journey Contest Winner Notified

April 26–28, 2016 Region VIII VPPPA Chapter Conference Hilton Denver Tech Center, Greenwood Village, CO

April 26–28, 2016 Region IX VPPPA Chapter Conference Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort & Spa Chandler, AZ

April 26–29, 2016 Region III VPPPA Chapter Conference Dover Downs Hotel & Casino Dover, DE

May 16–18, 2016 Region VII VPPPA Chapter Conference Des Moines Marriott Des Moines, IA

May 16–19, 2016 Region VI VPPPA Chapter Conference Fort Worth Convention Center and Omni Fort Worth Hotel Fort Worth, TX

May 17–19, 2016 Region X VPPPA Chapter Conference Boise Centre and the Grove Hotel Boise, ID

May 23–25, 2016 Region II VPPPA Chapter Conference Tropicana Casino Atlantic City, NJ

May 24–26, 2016 Region V VPPPA Chapter Conference Hyatt Regency O’Hare Rosemont, IL

June June 21–23, 2016 Region IV VPPPA Chapter Conference Lexington Convention Center and Hyatt Regency Lexington Lexington, KY

R. Davis Layne rdlayne@vpppa.org Senior Advisor Sara A. Taylor, CMP staylor@vpppa.org Director of Operations Ext. 107 Amanda McVicker amcvicker@vpppa.org Senior Conference Coordinator Ext. 112 Sarah Neely sneely@vpppa.org Communications Manager Ext. 121 Benjamin Massoud bmassoud@vpppa.org Communications Coordinator Ext. 117 Tom Webb twebb@vpppa.org Strategic Development & Member Services Manager Ext. 114 Katlyn Pagliuca kpagliuca@vpppa.org Member Services Coordinator Ext. 115 Heidi Hill hhill@vpppa.org Event Sales & Advertising Coordinator Ext. 111 Marianne Trinh mtrinh@vpppa.org Senior Accountant Ext. 106 Michael Khosrofian mkhosrofian@vpppa.org Accountant Ext. 104 Bryant Walker bwalker@vpppa.org Information & Data Analyst Manager Ext. 110 Courtney Malveaux, Esq cmalveaux@vpppa.org Government Relations Counsel Ext. 105

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7600-E Leesburg Pike, Suite 100 Falls Church, VA 22043-2004 Tel: (703) 761-1146 Fax: (703) 761-1148 www.vpppa.org VPPPA, a nonprofit 501(c) (3) charitable organization, promotes advances in worker safety and health excellence through best practices and cooperative efforts among workers, employers, the government and communities.

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