Spring Leader - Safety and the Under-Represented Workforce - Spring 2015 by VPPPA

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 2, SPRING 2015

SAFETY: THE UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE?

letter to the editor New!

hank you for taking part in our survey on The Leader. Congratulations to the winners of our Amazon gift cards: • Chuck Last, Mission Athletecare • Larry Rattray, Northwestern Energy • Kelly Hebert, Savage Services • Brian Williams, Fiberteq, LLC • Teri Ard, Johns Manville We received overwhelmingly positive feedback and some helpful constructive criticism. Thank you all for taking the time to tell us what you want to see in the magazine! Because of you, our summer issue’s theme will be devoted to “Best Practices.” Share your own best practices with other VPPPA members by contributing an article to the magazine. Contact Sarah Neely at sneely@vpppa.org for more information.

Things we learned: • 70 percent of respondents would like the option to view The Leader online in addition to a seeing a hard copy. We are pleased to announce that this will be possible in November 2015! • 82 percent of respondents rated the overall quality of the magazine as excellent, or good. • 81 percent of respondents who do not receive the magazine said they would like their prime contact to share issues with them. • Many of the suggested future topics or regular features for the magazine include legislative analysis; more relevant regional information about outreach, new sites and training; more information on new regulations; compliance and best practices. • The most frequent comment that was stated throughout the responses was a request to hear from other VPPPA members. If you are interested in telling your VPP story, please contact us. Your peers want to learn from your experiences!

“Keep up the fantastic work at the National Conventions, as well as the strong support shown to the regions. Continue your efforts on Capitol Hill and with OSHA as well. It is good to know you have our backs!”

“Please include more articles on safety improvements and provide more ideas from other facilities. Share more success stories.” “I like the feature articles and you do well researching all the topics and finding relevant information.”

“I am an hourly VPP coordinator so I would like to see more about hourly input, especially since this is an employee driven program.” “I really like the infographic section, I use that in a lot of training sessions.” “Tell us about new safety products and PPE.”

“I love that the articles assist with improving safety in our institutions.” “Make it easier to get copies of The Leader to give out or make the subscription electronic.” “Add more information for sites who are still working toward a VPP Star.”

“Feature more fun items like “what’s wrong with this picture” and have people send in the violations or safety issues that they see.”

Tell us what you think! Do you have feedback about The Leader? “Letter to the Editor” is a new section of the magazine that gives VPPPA members a platform to provide feedback on the topics covered, feature articles, chapter roundups and other magazine sections. Tell us what you want to see more of! Help us continue to improve our publication by providing your opinions, both positive and negative, so that we can tailor content to your interests and needs. Printed letters may be anonymous and will not be edited for content but will be edited for spelling and grammar. Avoid using profanity or derogatory, inflammatory language in your response. Lastly, please provide feedback relevant to the most recent issue of the magazine. Send letters to the editor to Sarah Neely at communications@vpppa.org by June 30, 2015, for an opportunity to see your letter in our summer issue. We want to hear from YOU!

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LEADER THE

VOL 2. ISSUE 2

SPRING 2015

cover

CONTENTS

Safety: The Universal Language? Literacy and Language Challenges in the Workplace As the American “melting pot” becomes increasingly diversified, employers face inevitable issues related to language in the workplace. Employers who hire non-English speaking workers are obligated to ensure that all employees, regardless of their linguistic background, receive and comprehend safety-related training. This article outlines OSHA’s policies with respect to training nonEnglish speaking employees, discusses OSHA’s recent emphasis program on ensuring employees are provided training in their native language, analyzes potential discrimination issues that may arise by limiting a safety training program to English only and offers recommendations for employers in assuring that all employees are adequately trained to work safely.

features

Tackling Taboo Topics: “Pregnant Worker” & “Unborn Child” After a 30-year sleep, workplace safety is undergoing a great transformation. All workplaces and nearly all workplace hazards will be impacted. Approximately 75 percent of all women workers will become pregnant sometime during their working careers. Although the statistic varies, about half of the U.S. workforce is made up of women. The health of more than one-half of all newborns in the U.S. may be impacted by workplace exposures. The topic is taboo; people know what I’m talking about but they respond in whispers.

Being heard: Sharing the VPP Experience

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their way to meeting with more than 100 different congressional offices to share their worksites’ experiences with the Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP). Through the VPP Participants’ Association’s (VPPPA) congressional outreach initiatives, safety and health professionals have met with hundreds of House and Senate offices to bring attention to OSHA’s premier cooperative program.

Want to know how to increase safety and performance without substantial added costs? Workers with disabilities are some of the most productive and safe employees in manufacturing plants and distribution centers around the world. Over the past 10 years there has been talk about the Baby Boomers retiring and the upcoming labor shortages. This discussion will continue over the next decade and beyond, and we must look for non-traditional labor pools to fill the gap. One option is the emerging trend of hiring people with disabilities.

features continued

Spanish-Speakers and Safety: What Everyone Needs to Know

Additionally, over 250,000 federal contractors and sub-contractors are now impacted by a new requirement of the Department of Labor, Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act, effective March 24, 2014, requiring companies that do business with the federal government to significantly increase their workforce of people with disabilities.

A Surprising Solution to Increasing Employee Engagement The question asked by countless safety professionals as they continue to improve their VPP strategy is one for which there never seems to be a good, clear-cut answer. “How do I increase my site’s employee engagement?” Consider the fact that 19 percent of the workforce will be Latino by 2020, (according to the Department of Labor) and that figure does not even include other workers who do not speak English as a first language.

Misunderstandings due to cultural differences, language barriers and vastly different backgrounds often limit productivity and unnecessarily divide the workforce. From safety inspections, corrective actions, near miss reporting, feedback, daily inspection checklists, toolbox safety talks, to training and emergency action plans; training workers in all of the various aspects of a safety program is tough enough. Add into the mix, non-Englishspeaking workers and it can be very overwhelming.

Mentoring—A VPPPA Opportunity

You made it, now you are a Star site! It is a wonderful achievement, but there is more work to be done to keep improving safety at your site—a neverending process. One way to continue the process of improvement is to observe the procedures and practices other companies use to implement safety.

WASHINGTON UPDATE

VPPPA National Board of Directors Chairperson Mike Maddox, NuStar Energy, LP Vice Chairperson Mike Guillory, SGE, The Brock Group Treasurer Chris Adolfson, Idaho National Laboratory Secretary Terry Schulte, NuStar Energy, LP Director from a Site With a Collective Bargaining Agent Kent Lang, Clearwater Paper Corporation 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 Don Johnson, Phillips 66 Editor Sarah Neely, VPPPA, Inc.

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global safety and health watch

“Ticked Off” According to the CDC, there were more than 35,000 reported cases of Lyme Disease in the U.S. in 2013.

BY BENJAMIN MASSOUD, COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR, VPPPA, INC.

ou can typically find them on dogs, deer, field mice and sometimes even yourself; if they are not removed quickly enough, your life could be changed forever. Although very small (2.7mm), ticks are a major cause of the most rapidly spreading vector-borne disease in the world, Lyme Disease. The disease is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, and is usually transmitted to humans and animals through the bite of infected, blood-feeding, backlegged (deer) ticks. Hard to spot, a tick will typically remain attached after a bite, and will likely not be seen or even felt, that is, until the bacterium begins to spread and the symptoms of Lyme Disease start to take effect. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it takes 36-48 hours or more before the bacterium can be transmitted. Early symptoms include fatigue, chills, fever, headache and muscle and joint aches. Sounds an awful lot like common indicators of the flu. So how do you differentiate Lyme Disease from other common illnesses? Although it doesn’t occur in every case (70–80 percent of cases), usually in the early stage after a bite, between three and thirty days, a red, expanding rash called erythema migrans (EM), will start to develop on the skin of the affected

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area. If left untreated, the rash may clear, leaving a “bulls-eye” mark on the skin. A tick bite does not automatically spell disaster. It is important to spot the bite early and continue with prompt removal using a plain set of fine-tipped tweezers. Additionally, if recognized early enough, Lyme Disease can be treated with antibiotic medication. However, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), if a tick bite goes untreated, chronic conditions, including permanent damage to the joints or nervous system, may occur. The CDC provides step-bystep instructions to ensure the proper removal of a tick: 1. Use fine-tipped tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin’s surface as possible. 2. Pull upward with steady, even pressure. Don’t twist or jerk the tick; this can cause the mouth-parts to break off and remain in the skin. If this happens, remove the mouth-parts with tweezers. If you are unable to remove the mouth easily with clean tweezers, leave it alone and let the skin heal. 3. After removing the tick, thoroughly clean the bite area and your hands with rubbing alcohol, an iodine scrub or soap and water. 4. Dispose of a live tick by submersing it in alcohol, placing it in a sealed bag/container, wrapping it tightly in tape, or flushing it down the toilet. Never crush a tick with your fingers.

Are you at risk? Ticks are generally found in heavily-wooded or grassy areas; therefore, OSHA advises workers in forestry, construction, farming, landscaping and other professions that require outdoor work, to take precautions. Off the job, outside leisure activities including hiking, camping, fishing and hunting, are additional opportunities for tick exposure. When outdoors, the CDC advises using repellants that contain 20 to 30 percent DEET (N, N-diethyl-mtoluamide) on exposed skin and clothing to deter ticks. Furthermore, it is recommended to use products that contain permethrin on clothing. How big of an issue is this? According to the CDC, there were more than 35,000 reported cases of Lyme Disease in the U.S. in 2013. However, that number does not take into account the thousands of infected people who do not report the disease. Although there have been reported Lyme Disease cases in all states except Hawaii, the majority of cases occur in the Northeast (Massachusetts to Maryland) and the upper Midwest (Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, etc.). As the prevalence of ticks continues to spread, Lyme Disease is now endemic in over 60 countries. There is a heavy incidence of European Castor Bean Ticks in Europe’s temperate forested regions, namely in the central and eastern countries of the continent. Additionally, Northern Asia is also a hotspot for ticks. The crucial thing to remember, in addition to wearing the proper preventive clothing and tick repellants, is to examine your body immediately following any amount of time you spend in grassy or heavily-wooded, outdoor areas. In addition to the symptoms mentioned earlier, a failure to remove a tick can ultimately cause neurological symptoms, including facial palsy and neuropathy, and cognitive defects such as impaired memory. Don’t let something so small, have such a large, negative impact on your life.

References: • wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/yellowbook/2014/ chapter-3-infectious-diseases-related-totravel/lyme-disease • www.cdc.gov/Lyme/ • www.osha.gov/dts/shib/shib021103.html

washington update

Proposed OSHA Budget The Department of Labor’s (DOL) proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2016 (FY2016), beginning in October 2015, includes an increase for the budget category containing the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP). While Congress is almost assured to pass a radically different budget, the proposal offers a guideline for the administration’s priorities. The topline requested figure for OSHA is $592 million, an increase over the $552 million appropriated in fiscal years 2015 and 2014. Almost half of the increase is for federal enforcement activities. The next largest beneficiaries are Whistleblower Programs and Compliance Assistance—Federal, the latter of which includes VPP. A $4.6 million increase brings the proposed budget for that category up from $68.4 million to $73 million. If enacted, this would restore funding to levels last seen in 2011–2012. VPP is not broken out within this category, but the budget justification provides further insight. OSHA states that it will seek to expand the role of Special Government Employees (SGE) and that “these changes will lead to an increase in VPP evaluations conducted and new VPP applications processed, and the increase noted for FY2016 is largely due to these efficiencies.” That increase is a stated target of new and re-approvals of 315 sites for FY2016, up from a FY2015 target of 285. For further details on the budget, visit www.dol.gov/dol/budget/.

Budget Hearings Address VPP, SHARP Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez testified before two House committees to discuss the Department of Labor’s proposed FY2016 budget. On March 17, 2015, the House Committee on Appropriations Subcommittee for Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies, heard from the secretary. Rep. Martha Roby (R AL-2) asked about a November 2014 memo from OSHA that sought to remove sites from the Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP) that were subsidiaries of larger companies that normally would not be eligible for participation and steer them toward VPP approval. Sec. Perez stated that in response to feedback on the policy change, existing SHARP sites will be allowed to remain

in that program, stating, “In 2016, our effort is to make sure that we have more businesses that are in [VPP].” The next day, the secretary testified before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce where he faced a similar question from Rep. Tim Walberg (R MI-7). Sec. Perez assured him that OSHA will not remove any current site from SHARP. Rep. Walberg also asked about the department’s commitment to VPP and the secretary shared, “Our aim for 2016 is to expand VPP because we think it is a great program.”

Hazard Alert for Stone Countertop Silica OSHA and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) have issued a hazard alert describing the danger posed from the manufacture, finishing or installation of natural and manufactured stone countertop products due to silica exposure. The alert details ways to avoid exposure through controls and other methods, which can be downloaded as a PDF at www.osha.gov/Publications/ OSHA3768.pdf. The agencies issued the alert after numerous workers in Spain and Israel were reported to have developed silicosis from similar work.

“Our aim for 2016 is to expand VPP because we think it is a great program.” —Secretary Perez

Honduras Worker Rights Report from DOL As part of the Dominican RepublicCentral America-United States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR), DOL has released a report citing concerns about workers’ rights to organize and bargain, working conditions, hours and wages and child labor in Honduras. The report is a result of a submission filed by the AFL-CIO and 26 Honduran groups. The Honduran government has stated its intent to work with the U.S. to address these concerns, as stipulated as part of the CAFTA-DR agreement. THE LEADER

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SAFETY:

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THE UNIVERSAL LANGUAGE? LITERACY AND LANGUAGE CHALLENGES IN THE WORKPLACE INTRODUCTION As the American “melting pot” becomes increasingly diverse, employers face inevitable issues related to language in the workplace. Employers can no longer assume that qualified workers speak or write in English. Employers who hire nonEnglish speaking workers are obligated to ensure that all employees, regardless of their linguistic background, receive and comprehend safety-related training. For employers whose supervisors only speak English, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) requirements can present unique challenges. This article outlines OSHA’s policies with respect to training non-English speaking employees, discusses OSHA’s recent emphasis program on ensuring employees are provided training in their native language, analyzes potential discrimination issues that may arise by limiting a safety training program to English-only and offers recommendations for employers in ensuring that all employees are adequately trained to work safely.

BY MARK A. LIES II AND KERRY M. MOHAN, SEYFARTH SHAW LLP

OSHA’s Training Requirements Numerous OSHA standards, from lockout/tagout to forklift operation and bloodborne pathogens to hazard communication, require employers to train or instruct employees in some way. OSHA generally treats its training requirements as performance-based, meaning that OSHA defers to each individual employer to fashion the most effective manner by which to accomplish the goal of the standard. For that reason, none of OSHA’s training standards require employers to use particular documents, teaching methods or language to train employees. Instead, OSHA requires employees to present information in a manner that employees are capable of understanding. For example, if an employee is not literate, the employer does not satisfy OSHA training requirements merely by telling the employee to read training materials or safety programs. Likewise, if an employee does not speak, read or understand English, training must be provided in a language the employee understands. OSHA has tasked each of its inspectors with the duty to determine whether the training provided by an employer satisfies the intent of the standard—i.e. whether employees receiving the training have actually understood that training. Obviously, this is a highly subjective exercise. One way that an OSHA inspector will make this evaluation is to interview employees. These interviews may or may not take place in the presence of a management representative. During the interviews, OSHA inspectors may attempt to hold employees to high standards of knowledge, asking employees fact-specific questions regarding hazards, signs and symptoms of illness or injury or specifics about an employer’s program. In some cases, the OSHA inspector may use an employee’s inability to memorize specific facts to claim that training either did not occur or was too technical or complicated for an employee to understand. Another issue involving employee interviews is whether the employee speaks English. Many OSHA inspectors are bilingual, particularly in Spanish, and those who are not may request another employee to act as an interpreter to translate during an employee interview. Translation issues can present potential bias problems during employee interviews, whether the interpreter is another employee, a management representative or an OSHA official. For this reason, employers must ensure that employees understand their right to have a management representative present during the interview. Employers may also consider requesting that a neutral third-party act as interpreter during the employee interview, particularly if the interview is a critical one and accuracy is an important consideration.

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Employers who fashion “English-only” policies, prohibiting employees from speaking languages other than English at all times in the workplace, are presumed to be discriminating on the basis of an employee’s national origin.

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Another way OSHA inspectors will evaluate an employer’s compliance with safety training standards is by determining how the employer communicates other workplace rules and policies to employees, particularly job instructions—i.e. other non-safety policies or procedures. If these other job instructions are given in Spanish, for example, OSHA will likely view English-only safety training as insufficient. Ultimately, the OSHA inspector will determine, based on a review of all of the gathered facts, whether a “reasonable person would conclude” that the employer has not conveyed training to employees in a manner they are capable of understanding. For example, in one case involving deficient safety training, a supervisor described the company’s training program as follows: “Basically, in the yard with the men making sure they got their vests, their shoring, their boards before they leave for the job. They are directed to not get in holes over four feet deep, when it’s unsafe to use the proper shoring.” Sec. of Labor v. J. Mess Plumbing Co., Inc., 21 O.S.H. Cas. (BNA) 1100, O.S.H.R.C. Docket No. 040197 (A.L.J. Oct. 18, 2004). In that case, most of the company’s employees had immigrated from Bosnia and Albania and could not speak English. When an employee could not speak English, another co-worker would translate the materials for him. The employer also did not maintain any documentary evidence of a training program. An administrative law judge upheld OSHA’s citation under a construction industry training standard, finding that the employer “hired workers who are not fluent in English, and then failed to ensure that

they understood the minimal training they received.” Id. OSHA has also increased the potential liability and penalties that may be imposed for training violations. For instance, recent case law from the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission validated OSHA’s ability to issue citations under its training standards on a per-employee basis, meaning that OSHA can issue a separate citation and penalty for each and every employee who did not understand his or her required safety training. In Sec. of Labor v. E. Smalis Painting Co., 22 O.S.H. Cas. (BNA) 1553, O.S.H.R.C. Docket No. 94-1979 (Apr. 11, 2009), OSHA issued a total of 71 willful citations to Smalis for failure to train 71 employees as required in OSHA’s lead in construction standard, 29 C.F.R. § 1926.62(l)(1)(ii). The review commission upheld 27 of those willful citations, one for each of the 27 employees who had been exposed to lead at or above the action level and who had not received the training, and imposed a penalty of over $1,000,000 in total. The review commission’s decision in Smalis was based on its finding that the training requirement under OSHA’s asbestos standard “imposes a duty that runs to each employee.” While the Smalis decision is based on the employer’s failure to train altogether, the review commission’s reasoning may well be applied to situations involving the adequacy of an employer’s training program as it relates to non-English speaking employees.

OSHA’s Emphasis on Training Presented in a Manner Employees can Understand On April 28, 2010, OSHA issued a policy statement reiterating its position that employee training “must be presented in a manner that employees can understand…” www.osha.gov/dep/standards-policystatement-memo-04-28-10.html. In the policy statement, OSHA states that “an employer must instruct its employees using both a language and vocabulary that the employees can understand.” Id. Accordingly, OSHA believes that employers must take into account employees’ language capabilities and education levels, and adjust their training programs accordingly. For instance, if an employer has a workforce who speaks predominantly Spanish or Polish, OSHA will require the employer to provide training in those languages. Further, if an employer has

an uneducated and/or illiterate workforce, OSHA will expect the employer to provide the training in very simple terms and use pictograms or visual training materials, as opposed to written materials.

The Issues of English-Only Employment Policies for SafetySensitive Areas Employers may be tempted to avoid OSHA’s training policies by employing only Englishspeaking workers. Employers must proceed with extreme caution in fashioning these types of policies, so as not to run afoul of federal and state anti-discrimination laws. Employers who fashion “English-only” policies, prohibiting employees from speaking languages other than English at all times in the workplace, are presumed to be discriminating on the basis of an employee’s national origin. The federal regulations implementing Title VII of the Civil Rights Act call such policies “a burdensome term and condition of an employment,” and add that prohibiting nonEnglish languages in the workplace at all times “disadvantages an individual’s employment opportunities on the basis of national origin” and creates “an atmosphere of inferiority, isolation and intimidation based on national origin.” 29 C.F.R. § 1606.7(a). However, these same regulations do recognize that when applied only at certain times, an English-only policy in the workplace may be appropriate and non-discriminatory. To avoid liability for discrimination, the employer must establish that the rule is justified by a “business necessity.” 29 C.F.R. § 1606.7(b). In its Compliance Manual, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has recognized that the need for the safe operation of an employer’s business is considered a “business necessity” that can justify an English-only rule that is tailored to specific circumstances. The EEOC also recognizes that the need for supervisors who only speak English to communicate with employees is also a “business necessity” that can justify an appropriately narrow Englishonly policy. The EEOC cites the following scenario as an appropriate use of an English-only rule to address safety concerns: XYZ Petroleum Corp. operates an oil refinery and has a rule requiring all employees to speak only English during an emergency. The rule also

requires that employees speak in English while performing job duties in laboratories and processing areas where there is the danger of fire or explosion. The rule does not apply to casual conversations between employees in the laboratory or processing areas when they are not performing a job duty. The English-only rule does not violate Title VII because it is narrowly tailored to safety requirements. EEOC Compliance Manual, Section 13: National Origin Discrimination (Dec. 2, 2002), www.eeoc.gov/policy/docs/nationalorigin.html. According to this example, an employer would not run afoul of federal nondiscrimination laws by requiring employees to speak only English while performing specific job functions, during emergency situations or while working in particular areas of a facility that implicate workplace safety issues. Employers must also take care in making hiring decisions based on a candidate’s ability to speak English. A narrowly-tailored and appropriately used English-only policy is relevant to hiring decisions. For example, if an employer has an English-only policy like XYZ Corporation’s in the above example, it would need to consider that policy in hiring employees to work in the laboratories and processing areas. Candidates who speak no English would not be able to adhere to the policy and would therefore not be qualified for hire into a position that includes work in those areas. Similarly, even in the absence of an English-only policy, an employer does not violate federal antidiscrimination laws by rejecting a non-English speaking candidate whose inability to speak or understand English would materially affect his or her ability to perform job duties. If, for example, a candidate’s job duties would require forklift operation, and the candidate could not read or understand warning signs, operating manuals or safety placards required for the safe operation of a forklift, then the employer would have a good faith, non-discriminatory reason for rejecting that candidate.

and understood required safety training, including the following: • Review how work instructions are communicated to employees. If work instructions are communicated in languages other than English, consider providing safety training in those languages as well. • Incorporate practical tests into required safety training, allowing employees to demonstrate their understanding (or lack thereof ) of core concepts. • Consider incorporating visual, as opposed to written, materials in the safety training program to account for illiterate or lessereducated individuals. • Maintain meticulous documentation of employee training, including any practical tests included in training. Include a signed statement from each employee that he/she has received and understood specific safety training provided. • In the event of an OSHA inspection, advise all employees of their right to have a management representative present during any interviews. Designate a qualified and reliable person (whether management or non-management) to act as the go-to interpreter to facilitate interviews with non-English speaking employees. • Evaluate employee duties on a job-by-job basis to determine whether critical job-or safety-related functions require fluency in English.

NOTE: If you wish to receive complimentary copies of this article and future articles on OSHA and employment law related topics, please contact Mark A. Lies, II at mlies@seyfarth.com to be added to the address list.

Mark A. Lies, II, is a partner with the law firm of Seyfarth Shaw LLP, 131 South Dearborn Street, Suite 2400, Chicago, IL 60603. He can be reached at (312) 460-5877, and mlies@seyfarth.com. He specializes in occupational safety and health and related

Conclusions and Recommendations

employment law and civil litigation.

It is recommended that all employers who employ workers with limited or no ability to speak or understand English, carefully evaluate their safety training programs to ensure those employees have received

Kerry M. Mohan is an associate with Seyfarth Shaw, (312) 460-5659, kmohan@seyfarth.com. His practice focuses on occupational safety and health, traditional labor matters, and related employment law and civil litigation.

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TACKLING

O O B TA PICS: TOker” & “Unborn Child”

“Pregnant Wor

A version of this article originally appeared in Industrial Safety & Hygiene News (ISHN) magazine in October 2014.

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BY DAN MARKIEWICZ, MS, CIH, CSP, CHMM

After a 30-year sleep, workplace safety is undergoing a great transformation. All workplaces and nearly all workplace hazards will be impacted. Approximately 75 percent of all women workers will become pregnant sometime during their working careers. Although the statistic varies, about half of the U.S. workforce is made up of women. The health of more than onehalf of all newborns in the U.S. may be impacted by workplace exposures. Unfortunately, protective controls for U.S. pregnant workers are stalled in decades-old concepts. Risk assessments for pregnant worker = unborn child = children, must eventually occur. When spoon-fed, occupational safety pros see the hazards but are fearful or uncertain how to act. In the face of uncertainty, they do little or nothing.

Uncertainty rules Safety pros don’t have the appetite to make the call on this issue. All seem to be waiting for a higher authority to tell them what to do. My closet peers, people I trust, have told me to give up this topic. Stop writing, stop speaking about it. Piecemeal discussion is okay but don’t tackle the big issue. The topic is taboo at almost every workplace I visit— and I honor the request of clients to be silent about the equation of pregnant worker = unborn child = children. People know what I’m talking about but they respond in whispers. I’ve learned that if you start off a conversation with the term “pregnant worker” and especially, “unborn child,” minds snap shut among safety pros. This attitude poses a risk. About 75 percent of pregnant workers will confirm they are pregnant with a home test kit at about 5.3 weeks. The majority of pregnant workers will inform their employer about the pregnancy at about 10.9 weeks, just before the baby bump shows. This is too late for the employer to fix first trimester pregnancy hazards, such as chemical exposures. Why do these workers keep their pregnancy secret for so long? Possible discrimination. The Pregnancy Discrimination Act (PDA), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and other

federal laws designed to help pregnant workers are easily abused by employers. The laws are very weak.

Information is not shared There is valuable information that should be shared, but rarely is. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) mid-1970s lead standard warned of possible harm to unborn children and the agency recommended a blood lead level limit for women who may become pregnant. By the mid-1980s, 20 percent, and maybe more, of the Fortune 500 companies at the time established “fetal protection policies.” These policies said women cannot work with lead if they are capable of becoming pregnant. I worked for a Fortune 500 company at the time and we had that policy. Exposure controls existed, if well enforced, that could keep the blood lead levels at safe limits (at the time), but work exclusion among women, not men, was the preferred solution pushed by company lawyers and senior management. The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled in 1991 (UAW v Johnson Controls) that fetal protection polices violated the PDA. The court decision gave U.S. women the right to work in environments that may damage their unborn child. But the decision did not mandate safer U.S. workplaces for pregnant workers.

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Approximately 75% of all women workers will become pregnant sometime during their working careers.

Changing climate Things are popping, however. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) updated 30-year-old American Medical Association (AMA) lifting guidelines for pregnant workers last year. Additionally, OSHA’s 30-year-old chemical management practices are being transformed now to the Globally Harmonized System (GHS) to better protect these workers. “Unborn child” and “breastfed children” are mandatory GHS terms in OSHA’s hazcom. The deadline for full hazcom compliance is June 1, 2015. In July 2014, President Obama called upon Congress to pass a pending federal safety law for pregnant workers. More than 135 members of the U.S. House are cosponsors of the proposed new law. Not to be outdone, the U.S. Supreme Court, side-stepping the advice of the U.S. Solicitor General, heard a case on the safety of these workers in late 2014, Peggy Young v. UPS. A ruling occurred on March 25, 2015. (Look for an analysis of this ruling in the summer issue of The Leader). Young’s case was sent back to lower courts for re-interpretation of claims under the 1978 Pregnancy Discrimination Act. UPS, however, did not wait for the court’s decision. Effective January 1, 2015, UPS enacted new corporate procedures to voluntarily provide reasonable workplace accommodations for pregnant workers

The majority of pregnancy issues are not medical issues; that’s why new laws are moving away from “doctors’ orders,” to “healthcare provider recommendations,” for normal limitations of pregnancy.

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beyond current law. The Supreme Court’s opinion, coupled with UPS’s voluntary actions, will trigger employers and other key stakeholders to re-examine their treatment for pregnant workers. Because the 1978 PDA still has fuzzy areas of interpretation (three justices dissented to the majority opinion in Young v UPS), the rapid growth of state and local “pregnant worker fairness laws” that offer more legal clarity are expected to continue, if not accelerate. Nearly all pregnancy discrimination claims evolve from employer uncertainty on how to reasonably accommodate safety concerns for the worker and her unborn child. Pregnant workers want to remain safe and employed. Progressive employers seek the same objectives. These objectives are compatible when frontline occupational health and safety pros team with other stakeholders, such as human resources and the medical community, to recognize and apply best management practices. The majority of pregnancy issues are not medical issues; that’s why new laws are moving away from “doctors’ orders,” to “healthcare provider recommendations,” for normal limitations of pregnancy. Bureau of Labor Statistics Standard Occupational Classification Number 29-9011 means safety pros are “healthcare practitioners;” this may qualify them under some new pregnant worker fairness laws as a “healthcare provider.” There’s a new way of thinking occurring. New laws outside of the court’s reach, however, are where safety issues are happening. In the past 24 months, mostly occurring in 2014, California; Maryland; Philadelphia; New Jersey; New York City; Central Falls and Providence, Rhode Island; Minnesota; West Virginia and Illinois passed safety laws to protect women carrying children. These established laws cover more than 700,000 workers annually. The language of these new safety laws should excite safety and health professionals. Besides a few exceptions, such as Minnesota law referring to a 20-pound lift, safety decisions are open and are no longer the domain of the medical profession. Safety and health pros, like you and me, may now interpret what job tasks are safe for these workers.

A rare embrace From what I can see and hear, within the U.S., the issue I’m discussing is rarely fully embraced

with front-end prevention through an initial risk assessment. Trying to get organizations to embrace the topic is really tough. The government affairs gate-keeper at one professional society told me that the society is not involved in “children’s health.” A safety conference stopped offering a pregnant workers class because too few people signed-up for the course. Another professional group is hesitant to offer training because the topic has “low peer review.” I recently met a trainer from a labor union at a client’s site (he was conducting safety training; I was doing industrial hygiene sampling). When I brought up the issue, he agreed it is very important, but has never seen what I’m describing with risk assessments at any work site he has ever visited; however, he believes it’s a good idea. As soon as I mentioned that I’m working with a lawyer who provided an amicus curiae brief in the 1991 case, previously mentioned, to develop a brief for the Supreme Court case on the safety of pregnant workers, all feedback to me stopped. The union guy I mentioned worked for Johnson Controls. He was very sensitive to the topic and the legal impact. This is probably why his union is careful of my involvement and offer to help.

The coming legal battles I see disputes on the horizon. Years ago, a lawyer asked me, “What side of the fence are you going to take on this issue?” He wondered if I would represent the defense (business) or plaintiff (worker) if a tort action were to arise. Generally, an expert witness stays only on one side of the fence. I have always, to this point, represented business interests. I understand, however, that business is not performing good due diligence on this topic. With what I know now, it appears much easier to win disputes on the plaintiff ’s side. This is another reason why I continue to push my peers to take action on this topic. It’s hard to argue that disputes are not on the horizon.

Stirring the pot When I discuss this topic with female workers, questions usually come up: “Why hasn’t my company educated me fully about this issue and help determine what is safe?” My response is always, “This is a question you should direct to your company’s safety pro.”

The core issue here has always been about safety—who determines what is safe for pregnant workers and how safety will be achieved? New laws are opening up this opportunity for safety and health professionals. The Supreme Court’s decision will greatly stir the pot with how pregnant U.S. workers are to be managed. Again, almost all “discrimination” cases boil down to a safety issue—not so much for the worker, but uncertainty of safety for the unborn child. I feel comfortable making these safety calls for normal conditions of pregnancy. I want other safety pros to get comfortable too. It’s a tough sell. But just think of the positive impact that safety pros could have. The walls of silence are coming down. Be ready to act.

Dan is an independent environmental health and safety consultant. Look for Dan’s article in the summer issue of The Leader regarding the impact of the Supreme Court’s ruling on Peggy Young v. UPS and the potential ways of interpreting the 1978 Pregnancy Discrimination Act.

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: D R A E H G N BEI E H T G N I R SHA E C N E I R E P X VP P E

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

Huddled together over breakfast and, more importantly, coffee in a Capitol Hill cafeteria, nearly two dozen individuals look over their schedules for the coming day. Braving a bit of late February snow, these safety and health professionals are well on their way to meeting with more than 100 different congressional offices to share their worksites’ experiences with the Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP). Since VPP can easily be overlooked in the massive federal budget, representatives from worksites across the country have done what they do best: rolled up their sleeves and worked hard to address the problem. Through the VPP Participants’ Association’s (VPPPA) congressional outreach initiatives, safety and health professionals have met with hundreds of House and Senate offices to bring attention to OSHA’s premier cooperative program.

The Importance of Reaching Out VPP began as a pilot program in California’s state-plan that was adopted federally in 1982. The legal justification for its creation comes from the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act of 1970, the landmark legislation that created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). From that point, the program grew steadily across different presidential administrations and Congresses, covering more than 2,000 sites by 2008. However, as has been the case for many

government programs, resources have become constrained. Budget cuts across most of OSHA and continued policy disagreements leading to sequestration and a government shutdown created a backlog of existing VPP site reapprovals. This in turn hindered the agency’s ability to admit new sites to the program. Over the past year, OSHA has been able to catch up on re-approvals across most of its regions, but budget pressures remain. VPP is funded by Congress through an item in OSHA’s budget entitled Compliance

Assistance—Federal. This category covers a wide range of programs, including training though the OSHA Training Institute, outreach programs and materials and strategic alliances. Within this broad category it is difficult to determine what amount is set aside for VPP; there is no official accounting of the amount, but it has been estimated to be between $4–5 million annually. This amount is strikingly low when compared to the profound difference VPP makes at worksites across the country.

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REACH OUT

Reaching out to your elected officials in support of VPP is more important than ever. OSHA is seeking to increase the number of sites in the program in 2016 according to Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez.

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For 2012, OSHA estimated that nonconstruction VPP participants saved an estimated $179 million from avoided injuries, of which $32 million was saved at federal worksites. That is quite the return on investment for taxpayers. These figures do not even include other savings or productivity gains not directly related to injuries. It is also important to note that state-plan VPP sites, administered by 22 state agencies, are not included in these figures. They are funded by those agencies, which in turn receive part of their funding from federal OSHA. Building on successful outreach events on Capitol Hill last year, VPP participants met with 101 congressional offices, representing 35 states, in February. These meetings have produced results, as well as increased familiarity of the programs within Congress. Members of Congress are visiting VPP sites for tours to see how the safety and health management systems make a difference, in person. This spring, VPP employees have been traveling to local congressional offices and hosting representatives on such visits, building on the momentum from their Washington visits. On June 10–11, 2015, an even larger congressional outreach event is being planned. Reaching out to your elected officials in support of VPP is more important than ever. OSHA is seeking to increase the number of sites in the program in 2016, according to Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez (for more, read the “Washington Update” on page 7). Additionally, legislation to codify VPP, giving it its own budget category, will be introduced this Congress. Known as the VPP Act in previous Congresses, this separates the resources dedicated for VPP from the other programs that share the Compliance Assistance—Federal budget category, allowing for easier administration and growth of the VPP community. There are similar bills in the planning stages for some of the state-plan programs as well. When dealing with Congress, it is important to remember that every representative and senator must deal with every issue facing the American people, with an often surprisingly small staff to aid them. For this reason, they value, and even rely on their constituents to bring important issues to their attention that

might otherwise have gone unnoticed. VPP’s quiet success over the decades fits this perfectly. Every congressional office handles appointments and correspondence in its own way, but generally the first step is to reach out to the main Washington, D.C., office to the point of contact for scheduling requests, making sure to stipulate whether this request is for D.C. or back home in the district or state. For either location, it can be difficult to meet with an elected official directly, due to committee duties, public appearances, campaigning, etc., and it is for this reason that the vast majority of congressional meetings are with staffers. With different portfolios, they track relevant issues for the representative and his or her constituents and serve as the point person for their particular office on those issues. Meetings with a congressional office are often brief, especially at the main D.C. office. Visitors often have only 10 minutes to make their point, even if the meeting has to be taken out in the hall or in a cafeteria because the congressional office is booked solid. Thankfully, the VPP participants who take part in these visits are experts at making the best use of this time and sharing their passion for workplace safety. They are sharing a simple and effective message: VPP works and saves. It cuts to the quick of what makes VPP a valuable government program that should be brought to the congressperson or senator’s attention. In addition to sharing the facts and figures mentioned earlier, these volunteers share the human element from their sites. Stories of how their sites have improved over time, to the work they do sharing best practices with their peers and community, provide context to the savings and show the impact VPP has on everyday life for these office’s constituents. If you would like more information about participating in June’s congressional outreach event in Washington, D.C., or reaching out to your elected officials locally, contact Charlie Doss at governmentaffairs@vpppa.org or (703) 761-1146. Be sure to attend this year’s 31st Annual National VPPPA Safety & Health Conference as well. Rep. Gene Green (D TX-29), a longtime champion of VPP, will be joining attendees to celebrate the important impact of VPP for workers across the country.

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BY MEG O’CONNELL, PHR & DEB RUSSELL, GLOBAL DISABILITY INCLUSION, LLC

ADDED COSTS? We’ve got the answer. No, we haven’t unleashed a colony of radioactive spiders like the one that bit Peter Parker, turning him into Spiderman and giving him super powers. Nor have we mass-imported teams of people from Krypton to be Superworkers that will consistently show up on time, meet production and most importantly, meet or exceed safety standards. The solution is actually much simpler: Hire workers with disabilities. Yes, you read that right. Workers with disabilities are some of the most productive and safe employees in manufacturing plants and distribution centers around the world. Skeptical? Well, we can prove it!

ver the past 10 years, there has been talk about the Baby Boomers retiring and the upcoming labor shortages. This discussion will continue over the next decade and beyond, and we must look for non-traditional labor pools to fill the gap. Where can you find labor that can work safely in your environment? One option is to follow the emerging trend, and hire people with disabilities.

2. The definition of disability has expanded. In fact, by today’s definition, the majority of disabilities are invisible (Diabetes, Hearing Loss, Depression etc.), which means you are likely already employing someone with a disability. That’s right—because one in five people has a disability—an employee has a 20 percent chance of being a person with a disability. Additionally, over 250,000 federal contractors and sub-contractors are now

impacted by a new requirement of the Department of Labor, Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act, effective March 24, 2014, requires companies that do business with the federal government to significantly increase their workforce of people with disabilities. See highlights of the new regulation below: There are two implications of Section 503 that are immediately clear: 1. If your company is a federal contractor or a subcontractor, hiring people with

Why Workers with Disabilities? According to the Department of Labor, there are 56 million Americans with disabilities, and 33 million are between the ages of 16–64. This is a large pool and many of them are able to, and want to work. As you consider workers with disabilities, we ask you to focus on two things: 1. Forget everything you think you know about disability. Times have changed. Technology has changed. Education and training for people with disabilities have changed. Disability is no longer a closeddoor issue. Disability issues are becoming front and center, and some of the world’s greatest contributions have come from those categorized as “disabled.”

Section 503 Highlights: • Establishes a utilization goal of 7 percent across all job groups—so now federal contractors need to show that their entire workforce is inclusive of people with disabilities in every level of job, not just entry level. • Document and update annually the number of individuals with disabilities applying, and those hired—federal contractors now have to report metrics on their workforce and if not meeting the 7 percent, they need to show efforts to specifically recruit people with disabilities. • Invite self-identification of disability status during the application process and post offer (and every five years)—Everyone, employee and applicants, will be asked if they consider themselves a person with a disability. To learn more, visit: www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/faqs/503_faq.htm

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FIGURE 1: Walgreens’ three-year study of the job performance of their non-disabled team members vs. those with disabilities SPLIT CASE PICK—RO

SPLIT CASE PICK—R14

SPLIT CASE PICK—TE-TN

With Disability

2.1

2.4

2.5

Without Disability

2.0

2.2

2.495

FIGURE 2: 2010 Kessler/Harris/NOD poll: Managers were asked the question, “How do employees with disabilities compare to their non-disabled colleagues in the following areas?” MORE

SAME

LESS

Dedication

35%

62%

Flexibility to adapt to new situations

16%

67%

16%

Absenteeism

14%

71%

13%

Ability to acquire new skills

81%

10%

Turnover

58%

33%

Source: Kessler/Harris/ NOD poll 2010

disabilities isn’t just a good idea, it is a requirement. If you haven’t launched your disability hiring initiative, the time is now. 2. Competition for qualified candidates with disabilities is growing, and you need to be in a position to recruit the best for your facility.

Workers with Disabilities Are Valued Employees But first, you may be wondering, can people with disabilities do your jobs and meet your standards? And more importantly, can they be safe? Before we go any further, let’s review the data, proving people with disabilities can meet performance standards in a broad array of jobs AND meet safety requirements:

Fact #1—Performance and Capability: Walgreens conducted a three-year study of the job performance of their non-disabled team members vs. those with disabilities (over 1,200 team members have disabilities) in their distribution centers (see Figure 1). The table in Figure 1 demonstrates that the performance of the Team Members With Disabilities (TMWD) equals or exceeds that of their nondisabled colleagues. In a Kessler/Harris/NOD poll in 2010 (see Figure 2), when managers were asked the question, “how do employees with disabilities compare to their non-disabled colleagues in the following areas?” managers agreed that employees with disabilities were as dedicated, as reliable, acquired new skills and had similar turnover. But 1/3 of managers responded that they viewed employees with disabilities as more dedicated and less likely to leave their positions.

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Fact #2: Meeting & Exceeding Safety Standards That same Walgreens study reviewed safety records of the non-disabled population vs. the disabled population, and specifically reviewed equipment operators who are deaf vs. the other operators, and found that costs related to safety incidents were 67 percent lower than for the remaining workforce, partly because these workers returned to work faster. The graph to the lower right (Figure 3) shows the safety records of the TMWD equal or exceed that of their non-disabled colleagues. Walgreens received more and more questions about allowing people who are deaf to be equipment operators, they queried their more than 50 operators to discuss how they completed their safety checks. Since one of the requirements is to check the horn, many people wondered how a deaf person would accurately complete this step each time. There were two different responses: 1. Place their hand against the wall of the equipment near where the horn is located to feel the vibration, and 2. Watch their co-workers nearby when operating the horn to check for startle reactions. In many cases, what appear to be obstacles, have some common sense solutions. There are many more examples like these. The trend in hiring people with disabilities is continuing in companies across the country, and if you ask, you will hear stories from Lowe’s, Pepsi, Office Depot and more.

Getting Started Now that we’ve established hiring people with disabilities makes sense, the next obvious question is “how do we do it?” Most

companies new to this concept immediately resist because they have visions of expensive accommodations, concerns about training and questions about how to integrate people with disabilities into the existing workforce. The good news is there are more and more companies executing disability inclusion strategies, and best practices have emerged. There are considerations around accommodations and integration, but they are no more substantial than training programs for new workers, in general. However, because the considerations are different, the most successful programs are guided by

FIGURE 3: Relative Incidents-Accidents per 1,000 Motion Hours

Relative accidents per 1,000 motion hours

WITH DISABILITY

REMAINING POPULATION

0.6

1.0

1.2 1 TMWD had 34% fewer events.

0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0

TMWD

REMAINING POPULATION

Source: Professional Safety Magazine, June 2012

professionals with extensive experience in developing and implementing these programs in a way that is sustainable, if not profitable. While there is some upfront investment in learning, time and program development, the payoff far exceeds the expense. In general, the roadmap for companies to follow to ensure that they can fully leverage the benefits of hiring employees with disabilities should include these primary steps; we call it The BASIC Program: • Benchmark—Where your company is today vs. companies that have successfully implemented disability employment programs. • Assess—Understand where you are and assess the gaps you need to fill to prepare for development and implementation of your program. • Strategy—Create a customized strategy and series of tactics to: • Identify and match jobs and skills with potential candidate groups, • Prepare for any needed accommodations, and • Develop internal training programs for the existing workforce around how to successfully work with their new teammates. • Implementation—Create and deploy an implementation plan that ties everything together in a timeline with milestones and success measures. • Compliance/Competitive: Each of the above steps can be used to help you achieve compliance as a federal contractor and focus on becoming competitive in the marketplace as you employ people with disabilities. The fact is, most companies do not have disability employment programs in their operations plans. But that is shifting and more and more forward-looking businesses are seeing these types of programs as sources for a competitive advantage. At Global Disability Inclusion, we’ve organized our programs to help our clients take this journey. Our Evolution of Disability CompetitivenessTM provides a framework for companies that want to not only bring them into compliance with new Department of Labor regulations, but will, in fact, deliver this competitive advantage. Every company exists somewhere on the “Evolution” lifecycle, which, in brief is: • Not Important/Not on the radar—no plans for disability employment

• Compliance—companies are concerned with compliance guidelines only • Competence—building internal resources to more effectively integrate people with disabilities into the workforce • Confidence—beginning to develop mastery of disability inclusion principles • Competitive—cultural shift takes hold, the company can compete for the best employees, and the resulting improvements in operational metrics create a competitive advantage. The only question that remains is, will your company take advantage of this opportunity to improve operations, safety records, competitive advantage and engagement? Or will you be left behind?

The trend in hiring people with disabilities is continuing in companies across the country, and if you ask, you will hear stories from Lowe’s, Pepsi, Office Depot and more.

Resources To help you get started, we (the authors of this article) are providing a list of resources: • Global Disability Inclusion—(the authors of this article) work with Global 500 companies and U.S. Federal Contractors, to design and develop comprehensive disability employment & inclusion strategies. Our approach enables companies to evolve from a compliance based organization to one focused on disability competitiveness. globaldisabilityinclusion.com • The Kessler Foundation—A major nonprofit organization in the field of disability, a global leader in rehabilitation research that seeks to improve cognition, mobility and long-term outcomes, including employment, for people with neurological disabilities caused by diseases

and injuries of the brain and spinal cord. Kessler Foundation leads the nation in funding innovative programs that expand opportunities for employment for people with disabilities. kesslerfoundation.org • The Poses Family Foundation—The Poses Family Foundation (PFF) is a New York City-based, philanthropic foundation founded by Nancy and Fred Poses. With interests in five areas, PFF puts its greatest focus on learning and attention issues. To create long-term, scalable impact, PFF provides strategic analysis, pro bono advising, incubation of large-scale initiatives and multi-year funding. Note: The Kessler and Poses Family Foundations are supplementing funding for a large scale project at Pepsi, and several other global corporations. THE LEADER

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The question asked by countless safety professionals as they continue to improve their VPP strategy is one for which there never seems to be a good, clear-cut answer. “How do I increase my site’s employee engagement?” It’s a struggle we hear about over and over again from our peers, at conferences and during webinars. Consider the fact that 19 percent of the workforce will be Latino by 2020, (according to the Department of Labor) and that figure does not even include other workers who do not speak English as a first language.

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BY SARAH NEELY, COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER, VPPPA, INC.

A SURPRISING SOLUTION TO

INCREASING

EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT THE LEADER

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“There is a bias held by a number of people that immigrants should speak English. Period. End of story. No matter the belief or attitude, the inability to speak English should not be punished by a serious injury, or worse, a death.

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o when one of Gilbert Aceves’ Spanishspeaking employees requested holding two separate safety meetings every month, one in English and one in Spanish, although skeptical about what it would do to employee interaction, Gilbert was willing to try it. As it turns out, that decision was only the first step in the Spanish language training program that he helped implement at Morton Salt’s Long Beach facility. The unexpected consequences of that program had a dramatic impact on the increase in employee engagement. In fact, measures taken at the Long Beach plant have been so successful, and promoted so much collaboration between both English and non-English speaking workers, that Morton Salt was recognized by CAL OSHA as one of the first facilities in the state where the union completely ran the safety programs. Gilbert recalls early on in his career in 2001, trying to sell safety and VPP to the union at the Long Beach plant. The biggest focus at that time was “How can we increase participation in this program? How do we get people interested?” While it may seem counterintuitive to hold two safety meetings, no one could argue with the results: a significant jump in employee engagement resulting in 90 percent employee participation. He recalls that, at the time, he was holding one safety meeting for employees, alternating between English and Spanish throughout the meeting so that everyone had the opportunity to hear the same message. When employees first raised the question about a separate safety meeting in Spanish, Gilbert asked why there was a need for two meetings but ended up answering his own question when he observed how people were acting. “When I spoke in Spanish, the Englishspeaking guys would completely zone out. Employees started talking to each other about who was having a barbecue that weekend, how their families were doing and about upcoming vacations, because what was being said at that time didn’t pertain to them; they couldn’t understand and didn’t feel the need to pay attention.” The same thing happened when Gilbert switched to English. Once the meetings had been disrupted, he found it was difficult to rein employees back in and get them focused again, causing important safety information to be missed. There were initial concerns that topics or safety issues discussed in one meeting may inadvertently be ignored or skipped in a second meeting. The

other challenge that arose was ensuring that questions or additional topics raised in the second safety meeting of the day, were shared with the first group of employees as well. To overcome this, minutes from both meetings were translated, shared and filed, making sure that everyone received the same updates and safety information. Involvement started from both sides of the table, meetings had always been recorded in English and now, things that happened in the Spanish meeting were translated for the record as well. The separate meetings focused his employees and their efficiency increased as they became more engaged in what was being discussed. Gilbert enlisted safety champions to assist in the bilingual implementation process. Some employees were tasked with translating meeting minutes from English into Spanish and helping to make sure that all signage was properly translated and displayed. He also noticed that his employees were suddenly more outspoken than they had been. Near miss reporting began increasing because people were suddenly more invested in helping each other out. Everyone in the plant knew, unequivocally, that they were on the same page. Gilbert talked about an experience he had when one of his employees saw how he had translated a memo from English into Spanish. “He just looked at it and kind of laughed and explained that while it had been translated correctly, the way it was written was like something out of a dictionary and didn’t use commonly spoken syntax or vocabulary. It was not a relatable document and it basically looked like it had been written in old or overly formal Spanish. This guy had always been quiet and it had been difficult to get him involved but suddenly, he wasn’t afraid to speak out. He then volunteered that his wife was a translator and that he could have her assist with correct translation of the materials if I was interested. He started to oversee how my documents were translated to make sure that grammar and word usage was in plain Spanish that was relatable.” More employees were starting to offer solutions and discuss how things could be done more efficiently. There were also instances of some of the Spanish-speaking employees speaking out for the first time when they saw situations that were unsafe, situations that they would have been too scared to mention prior to taking ownership of the safety program. Gilbert remembers one of the first times that he realized how much more involved his employees had become and how much more confident they were when it

came to enforcing the rules and regulations that they’d had a hand in developing. “Someone from the corporate office was visiting the plant. He had on his safety helmet, his glasses and all the other gear that had been required. He was being shown around the plant, all of the operations were being explained and discussed, when all of a sudden, one of the employees raised his hand and pointed out that he was not wearing steeltoed shoes. Everyone kind of looked at him in shock and the gentleman was removed from the floor immediately until he was outfitted with the proper gear. I just remember thinking that this is something that never would have happened a few months before.” While the Long Beach facility may have been the pilot program for Morton Salt’s dual language training, and continues to run strong, it was not the last. It proved so successful that sites in Canada now offer similar programs in French and a site in the Bahamas offers dual language training. A Morton Salt facility in Arizona actually took this program one step further by offering free English language education programs to their employees. It makes a huge difference when employees can see that the company really cares about them and their well-being. “There is a bias held by a number of people that immigrants should speak English. Period. End of story. No matter the belief or attitude, the inability to speak English should not be punished by a serious injury, or worse, a death. It is so easy to provide training videos in two languages, create signage and memos that everyone can understand and have separate safety meetings. I have seen how doing this actually improved employee cohesion at a site. The attitude that not speaking English means that you should be ignored is just baffling,” Gilbert said. He recounts a meeting a few years ago at a VPPPA national conference where people were visibly angry about having nonEnglish speakers as colleagues or subordinates. He was at a workshop about minorities in the workplace and someone stood up and said, “I have a guy that works in my control room and who speaks no English. They are in our country; they should learn to speak English.” Gilbert was upset at this sentiment because so many people work side-by-side and the necessity of trying to communicate with fellow workers is imperative. While the discussion that ensued was heated, yet, productive, Gilbert was taken aback a year later when the same person apologized to him and described how he had taken the advice Gilbert

gave him the previous year. “The same guy who had been so upset at that conference actually thanked me for my observations and suggestions. His employees’ reluctance to work with him had diminished and things were running so much better since he had taken the initiative to communicate better with his Spanish-speaking workforce. He apologized for his attitude the previous year and thanked me for actually saying something because things had improved more than he could have imagined.” As of last fall, Gilbert began working for NRG EL Segundo (NRG) and has also been able to use his knowledge of effective Spanish language programs at his new site. At NRG, everyone speaks fluent English however; for contractors, that is not the case and there are a lot of contractors coming in and out of NRG. The highest rate of injuries in the U.S. is to contractors so safety training is the main priority at the facility. Anytime new contractors come in, Gilbert provides all of the training before anyone ever sets foot on the floor. He always asks contractors if they would prefer to hear safety training in English or in Spanish. “Their faces always light up when the question is asked and it’s obvious that they have never been given the option before or, they have been too afraid to request it. Most of them tell me that they understand English but would appreciate receiving the training in Spanish to make sure they fully understand all rules and safety procedures.” NRG EL Segundo uses videos in both English and Spanish and they also spend a great deal of time updating all of their training materials annually to ensure that nothing falls behind. All signs are also in Spanish and manuals and equipment information are available to all contractors in Spanish if needed. For some sites, pre-emptive steps have already been taken to accommodate a nonEnglish speaking workforce and to ensure

that working conditions stay safe for all workers on a site, regardless of the language barrier. Many companies, however, are still struggling to begin an effective program. For many sites, there can be a disconnect between the perceived challenges of engaging nonEnglish speakers and the true challenges. For example, a language barrier may be incorrectly interpreted as a lack of interest and this goes both ways. Non-English speakers may feel intimidated when it comes to interacting with their English-speaking counter-parts and English-speaking employees may not know how to connect with their fellow employees. Engaging all employees in the same mission is the real solution to the barriers. When all employees have certain tasks that they are responsible for, they begin to truly take ownership of the safety program. No matter what the cultural or language difference may be, all employees come to realize that they do have at least one thing in common, the commitment to keeping each other safe. Gilbert Aceves is a safety specialist at NRG EL Segundo, CA. With over 13 years of experience in VPP, he also serves as an STM for the state of California as well as an SGE, allowing him to assist in a wide variety of site VPP audits. Gilbert serves on the Region IX VPPPA Board of Directors as vice chairperson. He holds a certificate in environmental, health and safety from Cal State Dominguez Hills in Carson, CA., and an AA in business management. Gilbert maintains certificates as a counterbalance forklift trainer, in addition to several other safety and health certifications. Gilbert started his career in safety at Morton Salt’s Long Beach, CA, site as a maintenance welder/electrician and eventually became the VPP coordinator. He has also held a position as the chief shop steward representing Teamsters Local 848. Gilbert was at Morton Salt for 17 years.

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BY STEVEN J. ST. LAURENT PRESIDENT STEVENSTLAURENT.COM, INC. FITCHBURG, MA

Workplace demographics are undeniably changing. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, over 50 million “Hispanics or Latinos” live in the U.S. That doesn’t take into account the estimated 10 million undocumented immigrants, many of whom speak Spanish better than English. The U.S. population is changing, and a significant portion of those 50–60 million people who come from Latin America and Spanish-speaking countries work in construction and manufacturing.

he challenge for safety managers and supervisors alike, is significant. Misunderstandings due to cultural differences, language barriers and vastly different backgrounds often limit productivity and unnecessarily divide the workforce. How can you ensure that even the bare minimum of safety training is understood and delivered—as the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) states—“In a manner or in language that is understandable to employees?!” Training workers in all of the various aspects of safety inspections, corrective actions, near miss reporting, feedback, daily inspection checklists, toolbox safety talks and emergency action plans is tough enough. Add into the mix, non-Englishspeaking workers, and it can be very overwhelming.

Communication = Mutual Understanding. If your company has not made efforts and doesn’t have a plan to ensure that training is delivered and comprehended “in language that is understandable to employees,” as OSHA mandates, then it is only a matter of time before that backfires on the safety, quality and production side of your business. If you

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Don’t: • Ask if they can read or write. • Ask if they went to school. • Use common hand gestures (They often mean something completely different in other countries). • Manage by fear. One national credential I hold is that I am a Certified Instructor through Command Spanish,® who specializes in practical Spanish for immediate use on the job as well as cultural seminars. Here are some useful tools that you can use to get down to the personal level and to connect with people.

Supervisor Checklist: Pitfalls

What unites all people worldwide no matter their language, culture, education, financial status or age? It is value.

do have a plan of attack in place that addresses language challenges for a safe workplace, looking at the existing program to determine improvements is continually needed. Although this article focuses on Spanish-speaking employees, the recommendations are applicable to any language or cultural difference. This article provides practical tips and a basic understanding of what everyone needs to know as it relates to culture and language differences by giving the top do’s and don’ts regarding cross-cultural communication, and gives a survey and supervisor checklist that you can take away and use to improve communication at your workplace. The survey and checklist are based upon actual input from 100’s of supervisors across the country from training conducted in 2012–2013.

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What unites all people worldwide no matter their language, culture, education, financial status or age? It is value. What do you value? I have posed this question to thousands of individuals personally across the United States and Mexico in my training sessions. Over the years, I have had the great pleasure of meeting people in my training sessions who were born in Africa, Europe, Asia and Central & South America. Guess how most people respond? They say they value their family, life, health and faith. Most people typically value the same things because we are not too different from one another. Thus, the do’s and don’ts are rooted in respect: Treat others as you want to be treated:

Do: • Get to know each individual personally that you manage or supervise. • Find out what country they are from. • Get out of your comfort zone. • Show interest. • Squash stereotypes (i.e. Americans are angry and shout a lot. I will get fired if I report an accident.) • Be professional (i.e. Hire professionals to interpret or train in the person’s target language.)

• Not translating evaluations, feedback or meetings. • Not giving feedback, even if the answer is “no.” • Making changes of any kind without explaining why or without getting input from operators or people in the field. Not giving them time to adjust to the new changes. • Saying or allowing the following to be communicated by your actions, “I’m the boss and you will comply culturally out of fear for your job.” • Spending too much time in the office and not enough in the shop or on the jobsite. • Not taking the time to get to know your employees personally to the appropriate professional level.

Tips • We’re all human and value mostly the same things: Life, family, health and time. Thus, treat others as you want to be treated. • A good supervisor knows his/her people and can observe if something is wrong or “off,” and has the professional relationship to talk about it with the employee to ensure their head is in the game to work on a given project that day. Sometimes our co-worker or boss can prevent an accident by noticing when we are distracted, or drowning in emotion from a tough personal situation. • Look for easy ways to show support for your employees that will foster loyalty and trust. • If they feel more supported, then they will be more productive and healthier. The supervisor should feel the pressure for production, not the worker.

• Show gratitude and say thank you by pointing out positives and not just mistakes. • Care about your employees as if they were your loved ones. Don’t treat them like children, but look out for them. How would that affect safety at your location?

Where are you at?—Survey/Poll for your employees: Roles and Responsibilities of a Supervisor (from a safety standpoint) This is a list of questions compiled from employees from a custom supervisor training I was involved in during 2012 and 2013 at an international company with 7,000 employees. I was part of a team of five trainers who rolled out a two and a half-day training for 1,000 supervisors in the U.S. About 1/9th of their workforce nationwide speaks Spanish and I’ve personally trained over 1,000 of their 7,000 employees; about 85 percent of my trainings were in Spanish, the rest in English. Give this list of questions below to your employees and have them rate you or score you anonymously. Even better; give them two or three questions each week and have them return their answers when they pick up their paycheck (or something similar). Instead of grading you 1–10 for each item below (10 being the best), you could just assume that you need to improve in every area and ask each employee to write out how you can improve in each area. Perhaps another employee could type up the answers to ensure anonymity. 1. Walk-the-walk, champion safety and health 2. Provide tools and equipment needed to do jobs safely 3. Enforce rules 4. Provide appropriate training for new hires or when someone changes jobs as well as ongoing and refresher training 5. Provide a safe environment 6. Be approachable and support safety (attitude) 7. Address safety issues in a timely fashion 8. Empower employees 9. Follow up (give feedback), review, share and implement changes needed 10. Document things appropriately 11. Recognize and reward safe behavior 12. Have realistic expectations 13. Share current updates on safety rules 14. Motivate employees 15. Create organization structure to promote safety

16. Establish, update and enforce procedures and policies 17. Provide JSA’s (job safety analysis) and PPE 18. Listen to and respect employees 19. Be Visible Remember, human beings value most of the same things: faith, family, time and health. Try to connect and motivate people to work in unity. Take the time, make the effort to listen and learn.

Care about your employees as if they were your loved ones. Don’t treat them like children, but look out for them.

Since 2007, Steven St. Laurent has designed and conducted safety training that doesn’t bore you to death, in English and Spanish in over 30 states across the U.S. It has brought him back to Mexico where he perfected his Spanish over two separate years studying, working and living in central and northern Mexico. He resides in central Massachusetts with the love of his life and their three children.

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NATIONAL VPPPA THE CONFERENCE LASTS FOUR DAYS, BUT THE KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCES LAST FOREVER. REGISTER NOW for the 31st Annual National VPPPA Safety & Health Conference, held Aug. 24–27, in Grapevine, TX. How do we top last year’s milestone 30th annual national conference? We have

What’s NEW this year? Improved Agenda We’ve modified the conference’s agenda to enhance your experience. In addition to preconference workshops on Sunday, conference workshops will be held on Tuesday, Wednesday AND on Thursday morning, followed by a closing box lunch. By offering even more content on Thursday, attendees are presented with additional opportunities for professional development and networking, therefore, receiving a greater value.

an even more fulfilling conference experience!

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• Acquire valuable knowledge and information from over 100 workshops and more than 300 exhibitors. • Learn about cutting-edge safety and health products from industry leaders • Meet others from your region at your chapter meeting • Participate in multiple contests and win dozens of prizes • First-Timer’s Workshop

Casino Night On Tuesday, Aug. 25, we’re hosting a Casino Night! Enjoy drinks and appetizers and win various prizes playing poker, blackjack, craps and roulette!

Two Free Pre-conference Workshops Join us on Sunday, Aug. 23, for preconference workshops for a more in-depth experience. We are offering two free preconference workshops this year: • “What’s New in DOE-VPP” • “Before Pulling the Plug on VPP”

incorporated your feedback and are excited to offer you

Additional Conference HIGHLIGHTS:

Improved Mobile App This year, attendees will be able to instantly download and share workshop presentations, as well as their own notes through the conference mobile app. Email notes to yourself directly from the app or download them to your phone.

Register NOW! For more information on the conference, including how to register, visit the conference website: www.vpppa.org/ conference, or call or email the VPPPA National Office at (703) 761-1146 and membership@vpppa.org.

For more information on how to register, workshops, speakers, sponsorship opportunities, the venue and exhibitors, visit the conference website at vpppa.org/conference

NATIONAL VPPPA EDUCATE. COLLABORATE. ADVOCATE. ATTEND THE 31ST ANNUAL NATIONAL VPPPA SAFETY & HEALTH CONFERENCE. August 24–27, 2015 / Gaylord Texan, Grapevine, TX. The conference lasts four days. . .but the knowledge and experiences last forever. • Join thousands of EHS professionals at the premier safety and health event of the year in Grapevine, TX! • Experience four days of activities, including over 100 workshops, over 300 exhibitors and numerous networking opportunities

• Hear from nationally-known keynote speakers • Meet with hundreds of exhibitors who are featuring the safest and newest products available to the EHS community • Network with dedicated safety and health professionals who share your vision for a safer workplace

JOIN VPPPA TODAY AND RECEIVE THE DISCOUNTED MEMBER RATE ON CONFERENCE REGISTRATION! Contact our Membership Department at (703) 761-1146 or membership@vpppa.org.

member spotlight

Stephanie Genovese BY BENJAMIN MASSOUD, COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR, VPPPA, INC.

You don’t reach 28,000,000 hours with zero lost-time-accidents without an excellent safety program. Perhaps what makes this achievement even more astonishing is that this feat has been accomplished by contract workers. Recruited from all over the country, contactors have different backgrounds and expertise levels; which is exactly why it is so crucial that the WRB Refining LP Wood River Refinery (WRR) has such a comprehensive safety program in place that covers all WRR contractors and helps them meet the refinery’s safety expectations. It can be argued that any safety program is only as good as its leaders. In the case of WRR, which is operated by Phillips 66, one of the leaders who has helped shape and instill the safe work culture is Stephanie Genovese. However, she will quickly add that she is just one of the many forces behind the success of the contractor safety program, from the entire safety team of which she is a part of, to the management and each person working at the plant who values the strong safety culture. Previously working as a project engineer, Stephanie has been the contractor safety coordinator at the VPP Star site of Phillips 66 WRR, located in Roxana, IL, for nearly five years. As part of her job, Stephanie provides information and assistance to help the contactors perform their work in a safe manner without any incidents. It is this duty, providing contractors with information to share with their work groups, continuing to improve the safety process, that she says gives her the most enjoyment from her job. Drawing from her experience with the Girl Scouts, Stephanie says she was constantly taught the importance of leaving things better than when she found them. “That can apply to more than just the campground,” Stephanie says. “The idea of workers going home in the same way, or

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preferably, better than when they arrived for work that morning is important.” Naturally, a company of Phillips 66’s stature starts taking its safety precautions well before the work even begins. Phillips 66 has an agreement with the online database, ISNetworld (ISN), a system that allows WRR to analyze key safety statistics from over 59,000 contract companies, 2,000 of which are connected to Phillips 66. Phillips 66 also has set safety criteria that contract companies must meet and maintain to be considered for work at its locations. The Phillips 66 ISN Safety “Grade Scorecard” evaluates six areas, including recordable rate and citations, to get an initial idea of a contract company’s safety performance. To help make the transition smoother, each company working at WRR has a Phillips 66 sponsor to help them understand the safety culture and job requirements, as well as to answer questions that arise. With over 800 contractors working for 25–35 different contract companies onsite daily, the sponsors play a vital role in on-boarding and staying connected to their assigned contract companies. The sponsors are selected based on the type of work the contractor performs or the project they are involved with; the sponsors are sure to be familiar with the safety considerations for the work the contractor will be performing. Once the contractors are ready for work, they begin pre-job planning by using two valuable tools, the Safe Work Execution Plan (SWEP) and the Job Safety Analysis (JSA), designed to identify hazards and mitigations that may arise for planned work. The SWEP, a key tool for planning, communicating and safely executing work, is used to safely plan the entire scope of work, while the JSA is focused on the task at hand, and is completed by the work crew just prior to performing the task. As JSAs are developed, the applicable section of the SWEP is referenced for hazard awareness and to ensure the mitigations prescribed in the SWEP are in place. Understanding that any job worth doing is worth doing right, WRR utilizes a stop work policy, in which individuals are required to take time to evaluate how the work they are planning to do could affect their safety and the safety of their fellow workers. In applying the

stop work policy, workers must consider three important questions: 1. Have I done this work before and do I feel safe doing this work again (no red flags)? 2. Am I committed to do the job the right way (no shortcuts)? 3. Do I have the courage to stop my work, and any other work that I think is proceeding unsafely? If the answer to any of the three questions is no, the job is stopped and the concerns are discussed and addressed so that the work can continue in a safe manner. Sometimes the mitigation is in the workgroup’s control; other times, it is necessary to elevate the concern to get resolution. When asked about the major obstacles to maintaining a strong contractor safety program, Stephanie says that ensuring contractors are engaged with WRR’s safety culture and that they understand the safety requirements, can be challenging. To address these challenges, WRR has an orientation program in place for each contract worker to ensure certain regulatory and WRR requirements are expressed directly to workers; the orientation must be renewed annually. On a monthly basis throughout the year, the WRR safety message is conveyed to the site and safety lead for each contract company at the contractor safety forum meeting. The forum provides an opportunity to share the previous month’s safety statistics and learnings from WRR and the rest of Phillips 66, as well as new or revised procedures, VPP updates and special safety topics with the WRR contract leadership. The topics covered are chosen and presented by a committee led by Stephanie, that includes contractors, VPP members, WRR Health and Safety Team members and WRR management. The contract leadership is expected to “pass down” the information from the forum to their onsite workforce over the course of the month. Communication between WRR and the contract company doesn’t stop there. Face-toface review meetings are conducted in which the Phillips 66 sponsors, the WRR Contractor Safety Coordinator and WRR Site Management meet with the contract company’s management to discuss the work the company completed, their accomplishments during the past year, as

well as any plans and goals for the coming year. These meetings are a crucial communication tool used to help develop and refine expectations, and confirm that the contract company and WRR are aligned on key items. With the type of work that the contractors perform, it’s fortunate that Stephanie has the support of her fellow health and safety team members, the Phillips 66 sponsors and the contractors themselves, to maintain such an in-depth program. Working in an almost 100-year-old refinery, logically there is a lot of work to be done. Maintenance work, including the inspection and repair of existing piping and equipment, and project work, ranging from the replacement of a heat exchanger to the addition of an entire new process unit, are just a few of the jobs the contractors undertake on a daily basis. Speaking to the positive impact VPP has on WRR’s safety program, Stephanie acknowledges

the valuable resources that members of the VPP team provide to the employees and contractors. The VPP team members have a union background and bring different experiences with them, which are enhanced by what they learn at the VPP conferences. While it is clear that Phillips 66 already has industry-leading safety practices in place, she says that WRR’s VPP team has helped solidify them, and in turn, improve them. The VPP team consists of five members who are available to provide guidance on issues that may arise with operations, maintenance and any other aspects of work at the refinery. In fact, each morning, the members of the VPP team attend one of the many “safety huddle” meetings throughout the site and make themselves available to answer any questions and provide guidance to the workers. How do you get workers to buy into safety? If you ask ten safety professionals that question,

you may very likely get ten different answers. According to Stephanie, “Safety is about continually increasing awareness about issues, trying to drive messages home and emphasize them in different ways that are relatable to your worksite.” It sure seems like the program at WRR does a good job of that; the refinery’s overall recordable rate for the last two years is 0.15, with a 0.11 contractor recordable rate in 2014. But, like any quality, safety-minded company, WRR’s focus, as well as Stephanie’s, is always on improving. “We want our recordable rate to be even better than that. It’s about continuous improvement; we are always aiming to become better,” Stephanie says. With that kind of mindset, you can bet that Phillips 66 Wood River’s workers will achieve this goal, led by the culture and commitment of team members like Stephanie, and continue to go home safely, in the same way they arrived for work that day.

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member info corner

Don’t Miss Deadlines for Recognition Programs and Board Nominations

Are You Ready To Be a Leader? Are you a strategic thinker? What do you think should be at the top of VPPPA’s agenda next year? Do you have valuable ideas on what we can do to move the association forward and advance the VPPPA mission? Now is your chance! It’s time to take a leadership role and make a difference in VPPPA. Nominate yourself, or a fellow safety leader, to the VPPPA National Board of Directors, today! There are seven open positions: • Vice Chairperson • Secretary • Director from a Site with a Collective Bargaining Agreement • Director from a DOE-VPP Site • Director-at-Large (three positions available) To be elected to the VPPPA National Board of Directors, a nominee must be an employee of a full or corporate member site in good standing with the association. If you wish to nominate yourself or someone else for a position, please complete and submit the following materials, found at www.vpppa.org/board/nationalboard-nominations, by June 15: • Nominations form • Signed election protocols • Management commitment letter • A platform statement of no more than 300 words • Your headshot, 300 DPI or higher Send submissions to Sarah Neely, 2015 Nominating Committee liaison, at sneely@vpppa.org.

VPPPA Awards and Scholarships Although you don’t do your job solely to receive praise, wouldn’t it be nice to get

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recognized for your hard work, while also inspiring your peers? VPPPA offers a number of programs, including awards, scholarships and an achievement program, to recognize the extraordinary efforts of member sites and individuals who go above and beyond in their efforts to improve safety and health for the workforce. Below are the available recognition programs to apply to by June 26: • The VPPPA Annual Awards for Outreach and Innovation recognize member sites and individuals that have made exceptional contributions to the mission of the VPPPA during the previous year. • Have you helped implement best practices? The VPPPA Safety & Health Achievement Program provides special acknowledgement of non-managerial employees at member sites who have taken the initiative to learn and apply safety and health best practices. • Or maybe you’d like to further safety and health education for a family member or yourself? VPPPA’s scholarships will help achieve that goal. Winners will be announced at the national conference during a special reception on Sunday, Aug. 23. For more information visit www.vpppa.org/ recognition-programs or call or email the VPPPA National Office at (703) 761-1146 and membership@vpppa.org.

Roster Contest We couldn’t make this contest any easier if we tried! To ensure each of our members are receiving the benefits they deserve, we need your site’s roster to be updated. To enter our roster contest, update the roster that was included in your membership mailing. After we receive the updated roster, we will randomly select one prime contact to win a $50 gift card! Sites that have returned their roster are already entered into the contest. By helping us update your roster, you’re also helping yourself and your co-workers receive all of the benefits of VPPPA membership. Send your updated roster to membership@vpppa.org by June 26 for a chance to win. If you need another copy of your site’s roster, please contact the Membership Department.

infographic corner

By 2020,

Latinos are expected to comprise 19 percent of the U.S. labor force. The unemployment rate for persons with a disability was

13.2 percent in 2013, compared to a rate of 7.1 percent for those with no disability.

Mothers sole or primary are the

breadwinner for a record 40 percent of households today, compared with 11 percent of families in 1960.

In fiscal year 2013, pregnancy discrimination charges were filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and state and local fair employment practices agencies.

5,342

Nearly one in 10 working-age U.S. adultsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;19.2 million persons aged 16 to 64â&#x20AC;&#x201D;is considered limited English proficient, almost 10 percent of the working-age population.

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state-plan monitor

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

Federal OSHA States State-Plan States P ublic Sector State-Plan/Private Sector Federal OSHA

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Arizona The Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health’s (ADOSH) Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) currently recognize 36 Star sites. It recently gained two new sites. New to the VPP family are Loven Contracting Inc. and Kitchell Construction. Both worked hard to achieve the VPP Star designation by seeking out mentors within the established VPP family. They also attended various VPP Participants’ Association (VPPPA) conferences to gain valuable insight and knowledge into the process. All of this helped them to complete their applications and solidify their direction in shaping their own safety and health management systems. Both are general contractors who work in the commercial building industry specializing in clinics, hospitals and other spec. buildings across Arizona. As the year continues to move forward, four new applications have been received by ADOSH. With applicants in both construction and general industry settings, the program’s diversity continues to grow, offering new ways to implement best practices that may have gone unnoticed. Arizona anticipates three to five Special Government Employees (SGE) will be utilized over the course of the year as they continue to prove their value to the process. Recent re-approvals include Frito-Lay Distribution Center, Hunter Douglas Blinds, Johns Manville, Central Arizona Project, Raytheon Missile Systems, McCarthy Building and Special Devices Incorporated.

ADOSH anticipates an additional four sites by end of fiscal year 2015. In May and November 2015, ADOSH will host special events focusing on best practices, held at the Industrial Commission Auditorium in downtown Phoenix. The focus will be centered on best practices within several VPP sites and demonstrating how they were implemented in the workplace. Additional communication will be sent out to interested parties and will be available via webinar as well.

Michigan The number of sites in the Michigan Voluntary Protection Programs (MVPP) stands at 28, with 26 Star and two construction (MVPP/C) sites. Michigan OSHA (MIOSHA) has been actively promoting MVPP, with MVPP Specialist Doug Kimmel delivering presentations on the program to the management and employees of several companies, including G.E. Aviation and Hearthside Foods, both in Grand Rapids. The fall 2014 MVPP/C mentor meeting was hosted by Walbridge at its company headquarters in Detroit. The meeting was attended by representatives from several MVPP/C sites. Mentor meetings are a great opportunity for MVPP site representatives to network and share best practices. The Spring MVPP Mentor Meeting was held on April 14, 2015, at the Radisson Hotel in Lansing in conjunction with the 85th Michigan Safety Conference. An MVPP informational workshop was held on September 17, 2014. The event was hosted by International Paper in Sturgis, a MVPP Star site. Robert Bosch, LLC in Farmington Hills and E&E Manufacturing in Plymouth have submitted applications for MVPP. Kimmel has met with representatives from each of these sites to discuss the findings from the review of their applications for the MVPP. The inaugural meeting of the MVPP Advisory Group was held in January. Representatives from seven MVPP sites have volunteered to participate in this group to further promote the program and develop new and innovative ways to share best practices.

contacting each state >> A Star re-approval onsite review was performed at the DTE Milford Compressor Station in Milford. Walkthroughs of the Walbridge West Quad Project and the Munger Resident’s Hall project, both on the University of Michigan campus in Ann Arbor, have also been completed. A Star onsite review has been performed at Albemarle, South Haven. The review went well and the site has now been promoted from Rising Star (Merit) to Star. Several sites have been re-approved for participation in MVPP, including: • Covanta, Kent in Grand Rapids • Herman Miller Main Site in Zeeland • Georgia Pacific in Grayling Be sure to “like” Michigan OSHA on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @mi_osha. For further details on the MVPP, please contact Doug Kimmel, MVPP specialist, at (231) 5462366, or visit the MIOSHA website at www. michigan.gov/miosha.

Nevada Jimmy Andrews, Nevada State VPP Coordinator, has been in his current position for a few months now and stated “I am excited about the future of the VPP within Nevada.” Nevada currently boasts nine participating VPP sites, the newest being Copper Mountain Solar 1, LLC, which just finished its audit in January 2015. Andrews explained that Nevada OSHA is anticipating at least three new applications as they have been working with Cintas Corporation, Location #623 in Sparks, U.S. Ecology, Inc. in Beatty and the Starbucks Carson Valley Roasting Plant & Distribution Center in Minden. Sherwin-Williams, Sierra Nevada Distribution Service Center & Pacific Region CTS in Reno were re-approved in November 2014. There are three additional companies due for their re-approval this year. Andrews explained his projections for VPP in Nevada and expects the program to continually expand. Companies who are currently in the program have been reaching out to others and assisting them in the application process, as well as informing them of the expectations of being a part of the program. Nevada’s VPP policy is currently in the process of being updated.

Alaska Bill Nickerson VPP Coordinator Phone: (907) 269-4948 www.labor.state.ak.us/lss/ oshhome.htm Arizona Jessie Atencio Assistant Director Phone: (520) 220-4222 www.ica.state.az.us/ ADOSH/ADOSH_main. aspx California Iraj Pourmehraban Cal/VPP & PSM Manager Phone: (510) 622-1080 www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/cal_ vpp/cal_vpp_index.html Hawaii Clayton Chun Manager Phone: (808) 586-9110 labor.hawaii.gov/hiosh Indiana Michael Gaskill Manager Phone: (260) 373-2860 www.in.gov/dol/ Iowa Shashi Patel VPP Coordinator Phone: (515) 281-6369 www.iowaworkforce.org/ labor/iosh Kentucky Joe Giles VPP Program Administrator Phone: (502) 564-4089 labor.ky.gov/dows/ oshp/doet/partnership/ pages/VPP---VoluntaryProtection-Partnership. aspx Maryland Eric Uttenreither Assistant Commissioner Phone: (410) 527-2065 www.dllr.state.md.us/ labor/mosh/vpp.shtml

Michigan Doug Kimmel MVPP Specialist Phone: (231) 546-2366 Sherry Scott MVPP Manager Phone: (517) 322-5817 www.michigan.gov/mvpp Minnesota Ryan Nosan MNSTAR VPP Coordinator Phone: (651) 284-5120 www.doli.state.mn.us/ mnStar.html Nevada Jimmy Andrews VPP Coordinator Phone: (702) 486-9069 www.dirweb.state.nv.us New Mexico Melissa Barker VPP Coordinator Phone: (505) 222-9595 www.nmenv.state. nm.us/Ohsb_Website/ ComplianceAssistance/ VPP.htm North Carolina LaMont Smith Recognition Program Manager Phone: (919) 807-2909 www.nclabor.com/osha/ osh.htm Oregon Mark E. Hurliman, CSHM VPP/SHARP Program Manager Phone: (541) 776-6016 www.cbs.state.or.us/osha/ subjects/vpp.htm Puerto Rico Ilza Roman Director Phone: (787) 754-2171 www.dtrh.gobierno.pr

South Carolina Sharon Dumit VPP Coordinator Phone: (803) 896-7788 www.scosha.llronline.com Tennessee David Blessman VPP Manager Phone: (615) 253-6890 www.state.tn.us/laborwfd/vppStar.html Utah Holly Lawrence VPP Manager Phone: (801) 530-6494 www.laborcommission. utah.gov/divisions/UOSH/ VPPprogram.html Vermont Daniel Whipple VPP Coordinator Phone: (802) 828-5084 www.labor.vermont.gov/ vosha Virginia Milford Stern VPP Coordinator 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 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.

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— G N I R O T N ME Y T I N U T 40

R O P P O A P P P V A

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BY STEVE NIKKEL REGION VII VPPPA BOARD MEMBER

ou made it, now you are a Star site! It is a wonderful achievement, but there is more work to be done to keep improving safety at your site. One way to continue the process of improvement is to observe the procedures and practices other companies use to implement safety. Most of us are familiar with the traditional ways of expanding our knowledge; attending regional and national conferences, getting involved in informal discussions with other attendees and partnering with your local OSHA office. However, another beneficial approach that I have found to be beneficial is to get involved in the mentoring process to help other facilities become Star sites. Mentors gain a deeper insight into how the nuts and bolts of another site’s safety program works. For instance, how do they get input from their employees on safety-related issues? Every company receives and tracks employee input in different ways, and employee feedback is critical to a successful safety process. Do they have an effective safety committee that involves both hourly and salaried personnel? While working as a mentor, my experience talking to personnel in a facility has taught me that effective employee involvement is most important to being successful in safety. I have been able to acquire new ideas from other facilities that have improved my company. Therefore, you not only help a site achieve a goal and improve safety by giving them suggestions, but you also will learn something new from them that you can share with all employees at your site. This learning, or relearning in some cases, also applies to safety procedures, identifying physical hazards or latent conditions, improving management commitment, safety training and many other aspects of safety. In my recent mentoring experience, I got a reminder of how important it is to keep all employees educated on the benefits of VPP. The question at new sites, and even at sites that have been in the program for a long time, is: “Why do we need to participate in VPP?”

Employees need to understand that being in VPP requires the development of a detailed system for safety improvement, thus reducing injuries to employees at a site, and is not static. One requirement for continued participation is continuous improvement in the site’s safety program. Another question I hear at new sites being mentored: “Is this program just to make the company look good? Or worse, to avoid OSHA fines?” As a local OSHA representative emphasized at the site where he was mentoring, it will not prevent an OSHA fine, and being in the program guarantees that the plant will be audited every three years. Non-VPP sites may never get audited. Listening to the employees reminded me of the pain required for our site to reach Star status. One of the biggest hurdles in the process is to educate employees and engage all of them in some manner in the VPP process. They must understand the bottom-line “why” of the process, which is to reduce injuries. This fact is important even after a site reaches Star status. Also, as a mentor, I had the benefit of having a union employee, Mike Kendall, from a Star site, GE Aviation, US in Arkansas City, Kansas, help me in the mentoring process. During our visit with employees at the site, we tried to answer these “why” questions and concerns about being in VPP. As expected, there were a few skeptics suspicious as to why a company would want to get involved. Mike told these employees at this site that he used to be one of the “CAVE” people at his site—“Citizens Against Virtually Everything.” But after his union leadership asked him to get involved, he made it his mission to learn about VPP. Once he understood the program’s benefits, he became a leader not only in the VPP process, but in all aspects of plant safety. Also, Mike told employees at the mentored site that safety is one of the cornerstones of unions and the union should be active in promoting safety to its membership because it helps reduce injuries. VPP, he told them, can be a big part of the safety improvement effort and will give employees a louder voice

Mentors gain a deeper insight into how the nuts and bolts of another site’s safety program works.

in the improvement process. His enthusiasm taught me that safety improvement requires inspirational leadership to be successful. You can become a mentor by letting your regional VPPPA committee know that you have an interest. It is important to have a list of mentors so that they can be paired with a site that matches similar backgrounds. A mentor that works in a power plant will probably be the best mentor for a similar facility, a construction mentor for another construction company, and so forth. Your participation and involvement with another facility will depend on where they are in the process. It is important for the mentor to share information with the mentored facility about the process required for approval, including the VPP elements and subelements, the requirement to have an injury rate lower than the industry average and the audit plans. In my experience, it takes one or two visits to a new site, with each visit taking a few hours. After these visits, you can answer questions by phone call or email. The VPPPA Labor and Management Committee encourages, and will support mentoring efforts in any way possible. Promoting safety by helping other sites achieve Star status helps all of us in the industry and protects our fellow employees so they can go home safe every night. Everybody feels bad when we read about the misfortune at another site where an employee is hurt. As VPPPA members it should be our goal to help everyone go home safely. THE LEADER

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chapter round-ups

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

“Sustaining our VPP Star status is the result of our focus on continuous improvement with our safety management system, an effort that is championed and executed by employees at every level of the organization.”

Region I It’s springtime and it’s been a long, hard winter in New England. It’s the anticipation of spring that keeps us going. There are new VPP sites, as well as the re-approval of many other sites. Outreach efforts continue, whether it is companies interested in VPP, or those that know nothing about it. Region I has a tremendous network of companies willing to invite others into their facilities for the purpose of best practice sharing; this also allows us to host several regional events, from quarterly chapter meetings to OSHA Safety Roundtables. The regional OSHA staff must also be recognized for their hard work and for their participation at our chapter meetings and the annual conferences, providing the latest initiatives and VPP updates. FLEXcon, Spencer, MA, was recognized for 20 years of participation in the Voluntary Protection Programs, and recently received Star reapproval in December. FLEXcon has been a participant in VPP since 1995, holding Star status since 1998. “The health and safety of our employees is our highest priority,” said Michael Engel, chief operations officer, FLEXcon. “Sustaining our VPP Star status is the result of our focus on continuous improvement with our safety management system, an effort that is championed and executed by employees at every level of the organization. We are proud of this success and recognize the critical importance of continuing our commitment to workplace safety.” To mark the re-approval, FLEXcon held a ceremony for employees and OSHA representatives, Timothy Irving, OSHA Region I assistant regional administrator, Robert Sands, OSHA VPP manager and Lynnda Ignacio, OSHA VPP

Fred Cartagena, Tropicana Fleet Planner, explains the PIT Total Trax System

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coordinator, along with Jack Popp, vice president at Hasbro, East Longmeadow, MA, representing the regional board of directors. Keep an eye on our Region I website vppregion1.com for all news and communications. Submitted by Steve Gauthier, Region I Chairperson

Region II Safety Innovation One of Region II’s VPP participants, Evans Roofing Company, won the First Annual Safety Innovation of the Year Award at the Western New York Safety Conference on March 19, 2015, in Niagara Falls, NY. Conference attendees were encouraged to submit their safety innovations prior to the conference. The top four candidates were selected to give a 25-minute presentation on their innovation at the conference, and the winner was voted on by all of the conference attendees. Mr. Dan Nowak made the presentation for Evans Roofing Company. Some of the safety innovations and best practices at Evans include featuring all safety and health information on electronic tablets; fall protection equipment inspection tags ( QR2-Code) for accountability; project specific fall/rescue plans; fall protection equipment inspection checklists (weather-resistant punch cards); a new-hire mentoring program and a ladder repair program with an outside vendor. The award was presented by Mr. Gerry Bogacz, President of the Board of Directors for the WNY Safety Conference. The company

Don Barker, Tropicana HSE Coordinator, explains the Tropicana safety token program

received a glass plaque award, as well as an Albert Einstein painting that was completed at the conference by the keynote speaker, internationally recognized graffiti artist, author and entrepreneur, Mr. Erik Wahl. He painted the portrait in front of the audience at the conference opening, in approximately two minutes, and it was painted upside down! Evans Roofing Company, Inc. is a commercial roofing and wall panel contractor located in upstate New York. Evans Roofing Company, Inc. has two subsidiary companies; Charles F. Evans Company, Inc. (union) and CFE Inc. (nonunion). Both companies achieved VPP Star status in 2012 as VPP Mobile Workforce participants. These two companies are the only roofing companies in the United States to achieve this honor. Roofing is the sixth most dangerous profession in the country, presenting daily challenges with existing and predictable hazards. Evans decided back in 1990 to commit to a formal Total Quality Management (TQM) program where safety is one of three core values. This led to a paradigm change to how safety is performed on their projects. Today, a fully-staffed EH&S Department drives this comprehensive safety and health program, offering education and training backed with encouragement and guidance.

Outreach and Education The 15th Annual Holiday Safety & Health Council Meeting took place in December. Our very own Region II VPP company, Tropicana, presented “Management & Union: Working Together at a Successful VPP Star Site.” The presentation included the story of Tropicana’s management and union working together to operate and maintain an efficient VPP workplace. They shared insight on how their managers, supervisors and union employees work side-by-side on a daily basis to operate a safe and successful distribution center. They also went over how they identify and communicate safety hazards found in their facility. The team also discussed Tropicana’s safety program and their recent VPP Star reapproval. National and regional conferences are an outstanding platform for sharing best practices and sharpening skills to promote safety in the workplace. With that being said, Region II’s 2015

regional conference, taking place June 1–3, will be in Atlantic City, New Jersey, at the Tropicana. Post-conference workshops will be held on June 4. We are working to update our database to ensure that everyone who is interested in participating in future conferences will have time to allocate the appropriate resources. In the coming months, you may receive calls from volunteers to update contact information. We appreciate any help you can provide in this regard. Individuals and organizations interested in submitting workshop proposals, sponsoring breakout sessions, advertising in the official conference program and registering for the event, should visit our website at www. region2chapter-vpppa.org. Region II asks for your continued support of the Norman Deitch Automated External Defibrillator (AED) Fund. The fund’s mission is to provide free AEDs to nonprofits and organizations that traditionally do not have the resources to purchase AED on their own. Over the past eight years, with your help, we have donated 18 machines. Anyone interested in contributing to the fund should contact the Region II Chairperson, at Brenda@ accesshealthsystems.com. Contributed by Brenda Wiederkehr, Region II Chairperson

Region III The 2015 Region III Conference was held March 3–6 at the beautiful Omni Homestead Resort in Hot Springs, VA. The board of directors would like to thank all conference attendees for making it a very successful event. Keynote speakers included Dave Dravecky, Brandon Schaffer and Don Wilson. In addition to great breakout sessions and workshops, the conference featured a networking event at the hotel’s on-site ski lodge. Congratulations to Region III SGE of the Year, Thomas Rimel (Dunmore Corporation) and Mentor of the Year, Drew Holland (Norfolk Naval Shipyard). Through election, the open positions on the region’s board of directors were filled by: Mark Ball, ABB Inc., Bland, VA; Brad McPherson, FirstEnergy Corporation, Maidsville, WV; Joe Morrell, Fareva Richmond, Richmond, VA; and Eric Trout, Trinity Industries, Inc., Pittsburgh, PA. Incoming officers include Chairperson Rich Foreman, Frito-Lay, Aberdeen, MD; Treasurer Jacque Creamer, Jr., PPL Electric

Utilities, Allentown, PA; and Secretary Julie Simon, Noramco, Inc., Wilmington, DE. Kenny Richardson, Capps Corporation, VA, is returning as vice chairperson. Region III offers our heartfelt thanks to departing Secretary Bob Schroeder, Noramco Inc., Wilmington, DE, and Director-atLarge Scott Buterbaugh, Trinity Industries, Inc., Pittsburgh, PA. We are grateful for their leadership and for their many years of dedicated service. The Region III VPPPA Board of Directors have already started planning next year’s conference in Dover, DE, at the Dover Downs Hotel, April 25–29, 2016. We would like to find out what new and innovative best practices your site would like to showcase in a presentation during the conference. Please submit your breakout session ideas and requests to board member Brad McPherson at bmcpher@firstenergycorp.com with the subject line “Region III Breakout.” In your email, please provide a summary of the presentation that you would like to give and a brief presenter bio so it can be categorized and reviewed. Follow Region III activities on our website at vppparegion3.org/homepage.html. You can also “friend” Region III VPPPA on Facebook! Contributed by Julie Simon, Region III Secretary

Region IV We would like to start off by congratulating the new regional administrator for Region IV, Kurt A. Petermeyer; congratulations Kurt! We are looking forward to working with you. Also, congratulations to Pike Electric, Inc, which was reapproved for the Carolina Star Program in North Carolina for their Mount Airy facilities. Conference registration is now open for the 2015 Safety & Health Excellence Conference. The conference is scheduled for June 16–18, 2015, at the Caribe Royale in Orlando, FL. The 2015 conference will offer four paid preconference workshops, and for the first time ever, five free preconference workshops. Please visit our website for more details, regionivvppconference.com. Preconference workshops begin on June 16, 2015, at 8:00 AM and end at 3:00 PM. The conference kicks off at 4:00 PM on June 16, 2015. Congratulations to our conference logo winner, Donnie Baggs, Marine Corp Logistics Base in Albany, GA. One final note to mark your calendars for the Carolina Star Safety

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chapter round-ups

Conference on September 16th–18th, 2015, located in Greensboro, North Carolina. Visit the Carolina Star Safety website at www.carolinastar.org Contributed by Kim Burton, Region IV Secretary

Region V Our website address has changed from a “.com” domain to a “.org;” please be sure to check us out at www.vppregion5.org. The 2015 Region V Conference will take place May 19–21 at the Great Columbus Convention Center in downtown Columbus, OH. Join us for a preconference tour of Nucor Steel in Marion, OH, more than 40 workshops, networking, VPP Application workshop and opportunities to win various raffle prizes. Congratulations to the newest Region V VPP Star site, Delta Air Lines Cincinnati Reservations Sales Call—Cincinnati, OH. Several sites were also re-approved: • IP Food Service Business—Menomonee Falls, WI • Sandvik Hyperion—Worthington, OH • Steris Corp. Pinecone Biological Ops— Mentor, OH • Hamilton Sundstrand - Rockford Plant— Rockford, IL • NB Coatings—Lansing, IL • Nextera Energy Point Beach Nuclear Plant—Two Rivers, WI • Occidental Chemical Corporation Cincinnati—Cincinnati, OH • Delta Air Lines DAY Customer Service Station—Vandalia, OH • GE Healthcare Madison—Madison, WI • GE Medical Systems—Information Technologies—Milwaukee, WI

SGEs Wanted The 2015 VPP assessment schedule for Region V is posted on our website. If you’re an SGE and looking to participate on an assessment in 2015, be sure to review the VPP schedule and contact the OSHA lead as soon as possible. For the VPP assessment schedule and OSHA contacts, please visit vppregionv.com/region-v-sges. Contributed by Bill Linneweh, Region V Chairperson

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Region VI

Have you recently celebrated a success at your site? Share your story with the rest of the VPP community! Let’s hear what’s going on at your site. Send us your stories with photos, and brag a little about what you’re doing well and how it’s impacted your site and safety program. Send your stories and photos to Kirk Crandall (kirk.crandall@nrgenergy.com) so we can get them published. Visit the Region VI website at www.regionvivpp.org for more details.

the “Never Give up Guy” and author of “Kidjacked: A Father’s Story” gave outstanding speeches that motivated attendees. In March, Delta Air Lines in Colorado Springs, CO, volunteered to host our second “What is great in Region 8?” benchmark event. Approximately 15 OSHA VPP/or potential sites along the Front Range shared best practices while touring the host Star site. A joint effort with OSHA Region VIII, the event included multiple presentations on the 2015 NFPA70E edition. Presenters included Chris Matthewson, labor liaison, and Mark Moya, NFPA CESCP. Kim Hatler coordinated the event and provided lunch. Thank you again, Kim and Delta Air Lines! Region VIII would also like to congratulate our newest VPP site, Denver Transit Partners, Denver, CO. We would also like to recognize all our re-approved Star sites: Sturgeon Electric, Henderson, CO; PCAAP, Pueblo, CO; Phillips 66 Refinery, Billings, MT and Honeywell Technology Solutions, Inc., Colorado Springs, CO. Region VIII has been working with the VPPPA Government Affairs Counsel regarding regional congressional outreach. U.S. Senator Michael Bennet is tentatively scheduled to tour one of our Star sites where he will hear about the importance of VPP to employees, as well as to business. Members are encouraged to stop by his office while he is on recess to voice their support and to advocate for VPP. I’m very proud of what we’ve done and what’s yet to come. It has truly been an honor serving as your interim chairperson. Thank you Region VIII for rocking the Rockies!

Contributed by Kirk Crandall, Region VI Director-at-Large

Contributed by Mark A Moya, Region VIII Chairperson

Region VIII

Region IX

Our regional conference’s theme, “Make it Safe, Make it Home,” created by Jenelle Mote, was selected through a member-wide contest. To show our appreciation for everyone’s work for the conference, Region VIII coordinated a Rockies versus Diamondback baseball game at Coors Field. The conference was again held at the DoubleTree by Hilton Denver Tech Center, Greenwood Village, CO, on May 5–7. Keynote speakers Chad Williams, former U.S. Navy Seal and author, and Scott Lesnick,

Wow! What a great safety summit! The executive session was a smash, the keynote speech delivered by Keni Thomas was very inspirational and the breakout sessions were informative and useful. Once again, the closing session summed up what we all have to remember: “The lessons are in the Journey!” As a team, we all worked throughout the year to deliver the best safety summit possible for our stakeholders, hoping that we can change attitudes, instill

The Region VI conference was a huge success, as the attendees were riveted by speakers Joe Theismann and Colonel Mark W. Tillman’s inspirational speeches. Thank you to all who helped make the conference as beneficial and fulfilling as it was. OSHA will be offering an SGE class on July 14–16, 2015, at McKee Foods, Gentry, AR, as well as on Sept. 15–17, 2015, at NASA-JSC Gilruth Center, Houston, TX. The application deadline is July 15, 2015, for the September training. To register, please go to osha.gov/dcsp/vpp/sge.html. If you have any questions, please contact Chantel Sollers at sollers.chantel@dol.gov or (202) 693-2237 or Bill Klingbeil at klingbeil. william@dol.gov. Congratulations to the following sites on their recent re-approvals: • ConocoPhillips Co Global Aviation Services—Houston, TX • GE Dallas Service Center—Dallas, TX • Pratt & Whitney MCO ME Computed Tomography Lab—Austin, TX • West Fraser Lumber Mill Leola—Leola, AR

Share your Success Stories

excitement and infuse and enhance learning, all geared towards preventing another senseless workplace accident. We will continue to be your partners on the journey to safety excellence. The Region IX board of directors want to extend their heartfelt thanks and gratitude to each of the executives who gave their time to share how they make a difference in their workplaces. We also want to thank each and every person who helped by presenting a workshop, helping with registration or working behind the scenes; this does not happen without you! Even though the summit is over, we continuously work throughout the year by holding awareness and educational seminars in a variety of forms, working with our state plan partners in Arizona, California, Nevada and Hawaii. If you know of a local conference or safety summit and you would like to have representatives from the Region IX VPPPA attend, let us know and we will try to make sure we represent. Contributed by Mark D. Norton, Ambassador to the Region IX Board

Region X We are off to a strong start this year in Region X! There have already been a few reapprovals this year, as well as a reapproval ceremony or two. On February 12, 2015, Covanta Marion’s Energy-from-Waste (EfW) facility in Brooks, OR, held their Star reapproval ceremony. AmeriTies West LLC’s railroad tie plant in The Dalles, OR, Sherwin Williams’ Purdy Brush plant in Portland, OR, and NuStar Energy Tacoma, WA, were all reapproved early this year. At the end of last year, Mortenson Construction in University Place, WA, also received Star approval. Onsite evaluations at Starbucks Roasting plant in Kent, WA, and Trident Seafoods Pier 91 in Seattle, WA, have taken place and reapprovals are pending for Carlisle Construction Materials in Puyallup, WA, Georgia-Pacific Packaging in Olympia, WA. We would also like to offer a congratulations to our new SGEs! Thanks to two classes this winter, one in January at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and one in March at the HAMMER training facility, Region X now has nine new SGEs!

Community Outreach CH2M Hill Plateau Remediation Company (CHPRC) at the Hanford Site in Richland, WA, is investing in the community, enhancing our future and changing lives. CHPRC community outreach efforts are focused on health, economic development and education. CHPRC established a Legacy Project at Badger Mountain and is investing in the community through a partnership with the nonprofit Friends of Badger Mountain to extend the Badger Mountain trail system 20 miles. CHPRC committed corporate funds to help purchase land, expand trails and create trail monuments to honor Hanford workers. Late last year, 125 volunteers worked more than 512 hours constructing a new, two-and-a-half mile trail on the south face of the mountain. CHPRC Hanford workers are continually demonstrating safety to students in our community. Last year, 47 workers participated in the “After School Matters” program to increase safety knowledge and practices outside of Hanford. Workers discussed their professions, the hazards faced on the job and allowed kids to experience hands-on activities related to their jobs.

Last year, 47 workers participated in the “After School Matters” program to increase safety knowledge and practices outside of Hanford. Workers discussed their professions, the hazards faced on the job and allowed kids to experience hands-on activities related to their jobs.

Contributed by Jack Griffith, Region X Secretary and Communication Chair

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calendar of events

VPPPA Contacts

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. R. Davis Layne rdlayne@vpppa.org Senior Advisor

May 18–20, 2015 Region I VPPPA Conference Sea Crest Beach Motel, Falmouth, MA

May 18–20, 2015

Sara A. Taylor, CMP staylor@vpppa.org Director of Operations Ext. 107

Region VII VPPPA Conference Chase Park Plaza Hotel, St. Louis, MO

Amanda Buckner abuckner@vpppa.org Senior Conference Coordinator Ext. 112

May 19–21, 2015 Region V VPPPA Conference Hilton Columbus Downtown, Columbus, OH

June May 30–June 4, 2015

July July 15, 2015 Deadline to register at the regular rate for the national conference

August

American Industrial Hygiene Conference and Expo (AIHCE) 2015 Salt Lake City, UT

August 3, 2015

June 1–3, 2015

August 24–27, 2015

Region II VPPPA Conference Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, NJ

31st Annual National VPPPA Safety & Health Conference Gaylord Texan, Grapevine, TX

June 15, 2015 Application deadline for VPPPA National Board nominations

June 16–18, 2015 Region IV VPPPA Conference Caribe Royal, Orlando, FL

June 26, 2015 Deadline to apply for VPPPA Awards and Scholarships

Deadline for late registration for the national conference

Sarah Neely sneely@vpppa.org Communications Manager Ext. 121 Benjamin Massoud bmassoud@vpppa.org Communications Coordinator Ext. 117 Charlie Doss cdoss@vpppa.org Government Affairs Manager Ext. 113 Tom Webb twebb@vpppa.org Strategic Development & Member Services Manager Ext. 114 Katlyn Pagliuca 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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