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ALLIANCE ANNUAL REPORT U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR HARRISBURG AREA OFFICE AND TTHE PENNSYLVANIA CHAMBER OF BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY August 6, 2009
Alliance Background Date Alliance Signed: March 29, 2004 Date Alliance Renewed: August 10, 2005; August 20, 2007 Alliance Anniversary: August 20, 2009 Overview The Pennsylvania Chamber is the largest broad-based business association in Pennsylvania and the second largest state Chamber in the United States. The Chamber has over 10,000 members; 82% being considered small employers with less than 100 employees and 1/3 of their members having less than 10 employees. By combining OSHA’s safety expertise with the broad base of employers who belong to the PA Chamber, OSHA’s resources can be leveraged more effectively. Our common goal is to help employers through outreach, training and educational safety programs that they can take back to and implement at their individual work places. The Alliance between OSHA and the PA Chamber provides a platform to reach small employers and provide necessary information, guidance, access to training on a variety of safety regulations, and best practices from the OSHA website. These are all resources that companies may not realize exist without these OSHA sessions which are organized and facilitated by the PA Chamber. Each year the alliance conducts 3 Roundtable sessions to help employers, their safety managers and employees with professional and business development. A true win-win for all parties, while meeting OSHA’s objective, to furnish to each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards. Implementation Team Members OSHA Members: A. Bryan Seal, Area Director; Dale Glacken, Compliance Assistance Specialist (CAS). PA Chamber Members: Susan Smith, Director, Educational Services; Don Holt, VP of Finance and Operations. Evaluation Period August 21, 2008 thru August 20, 2009. Implementation Team Meetings August 2008 through August 2009 – Numerous contacts (telephone conference calls and e-mail exchanges) were made to prepare for each of the three Roundtable sessions. The more notable include: September, 30 2008: Meeting between Mr. Bryan Seal, the new Area Director for the Harrisburg Area Office and the PA Chamber to meet and discuss ways we can support and help each other achieve OSHA’s goals and objectives. The Chamber discussed plans to broaden their OSHA base from the Harrisburg area and extend it into other locations in the state. April, 29 2009, May 12, 2009, May 13, 2009, June 26, 2009, August 3 and August 4 2009: Additional planning calls/conversations for the next two roundtables and discussions to prepare the alliance renewal document and annual report. Events and Products Training and Education Events   September 9, 2008, Fall Half Day OSHA Roundtable: The Harrisburg Area Office (HAO) CAS provided opening remarks and an OSHA Update for members of the PA Chamber of Business and Industry’s, "Ask OSHA Roundtable" in Harrisburg, PA. The session was also attended by HAO Assistant Area Director (AAD), Mr. Matt Bole who presented information on "Prevention of Combustible Dust Explosions". Doctor Timothy Allen, M.D., from Concentra, presented "Complying with OSHA’s Bloodborne Pathogens Standard" and "Value and Timing of Flue Shot Programs". There were 90 attendees at the roundtable. March 19, 2009, Spring Half Day OSHA Roundtable: Opening comments were provided by Mr. Bryan Seal, new Area Director for the Harrisburg Area Office. Two other sessions were conducted, "Complying with the Confined Space Entry Standard" as presented by Mr. Charles Baker from Compliance Management International (CMI) and "Complying with the Trenching and Excavating Standard" as presented by Mr. Joe Boslet from Inservco Insurance Services. 48 people were in attendance. The PA Chamber went beyond the scope of our Alliance and presented similar sessions through out the Commonwealth giving business an opportunity to meet their local Area Directors from throughout the state. Sessions were held in Pittsburgh, 30 were in attendance, Scranton, 30 were in attendance and in Valley Forge where 50 were in attendance. Overall the Chamber was able to help us reach 158 companies on these topics. May 19, 2009, Full Day OSHA Roundtable: Opening comments and an update on Personal Protective Equipment requirements were provided by Dale Glacken. Additional presentations included: "Preventing Arc Flash and Electrical Injuries" as presented by Mr. Jack Creamer from Pennsylvania Power and Light (PPL) Corporation, "Complying with the Lockout/Tagout Standard" as presented by Walt Siegfried, Senior Program Manager, ATL International, Inc., "Complying with the HAZCOM Standard" as presented by Jeffrey Lee, Director of Safety, Brubacher Excavating, Inc, "Dust Explosion Hazard Assessment" as presented by Dr. Vahid Ebadat, CEO of Chilworth Technology and "Surviving OSHA Inspections" as presented by Steve High, Consultant, High Safety Services, Ltd. 92 members of the Chamber were present for this event. Products N/A Outreach and Communication Events N/A   Products On August 20, 2008 the PA Chamber interviewed the Compliance Assistance Specialist (CAS) from the Harrisburg Area Office for an article to appear in the PA Chambers magazine, the "Advocate". The article focused on publicizing efforts OSHA has taken to help employers with their safety and health programs. Each quarter the PA Chamber sends 5000 of its members the "PA Chamber Expert" a newsletter giving members safety information, some from the OSHA website and links to safety information. The bottom of the page provides members with "Helpful Resources"; the first link listed is the OSHA webpage. Over the last year the Pa Chamber has included articles on many safety topics in the "PA Chamber Expert", such as:   Fall 2008 Newsletter: General Industry Load Handling Fixtures and OSHA Training Centers for Region III – Pennsylvania Winter 2008 Newsletter: Frequently Asked Questions about Powered Industrial Trucks, Spring 2009 Newsletter: A Reminder about Compressed Gas Safety, Summer 2009 Newsletter: Standard Operating Procedures – Grounds Maintenance Safety and OSHA Offers Tips on Working Safely in Hot Weather. Promoting the National Dialogue on Workplace Safety and Health Events N/A   Products N/A Results The fifth year of the Alliance has been devoted to presenting information to the Chamber’s members at three different "Ask OSHA Roundtable" sessions. Similar activities are planned for the sixth year of the Alliance. During this last year the Chamber expanded their efforts and offered additional Half Day Round Tables in Pittsburgh, Scranton and Valley Forge.   Type of Activity (Conference, Training, Print and Electronic Distribution, etc.) Number of Individuals Reached or Trained Half day, "Ask OSHA roundtable" 90 Half day, "Ask OSHA roundtable" 158 Full day, "Ask OSHA roundtable" 92 TOTAL 340 Upcoming Milestones For the 2009/2010 meeting year, several goals have been established to enhance the outcomes of this alliance including: Two half day Roundtables will be conducted this coming year with a full day OSHA/Chamber Roundtable. Planning has already begun for the first Half Day Roundtable to be held on September 10, 2009. We will present an OSHA Update, review fall protection requirements, Respirator Protection requirements and Complying with the Powered Industrial Truck Standard (Forklifts). We will continue to have meetings with the Chamber to work out the details for each. We have plans to help the Chamber update one of their publications, "OSHA Handbook" for their members.