Alaska
Alaska Occupational Safety and Health (AKOSH) is in the third year of its five-year strategic plan.
The three major strategic goals are:
- improve workplace safety and health in both the public and private sectors as evidenced by a
reduction in the rate of illnesses, injuries and fatalities;
- promote a safety and health culture in Alaska workplaces (both public and private sectors) through
compliance assistance, cooperative programs and consultation assistance; and
- secure public confidence through excellence in the development and delivery of AKOSH programs and
services.
AKOSH is focusing on reducing injuries, illnesses and fatalities in the construction industry in
Alaska. By directing attention and strategic efforts to those situations most likely result in
serious injuries or fatalities (falls, struck-bys, etc.), AKOSH has been able to lower the injury
rate in construction by 31.4 percent during the past two years. This reduction is particularly
significant, because construction industry activity and the number of employees have significantly
increased during that same time period.
In addition to construction, AKOSH continues to target enforcement and consultation inspections
toward the transportation and warehousing industry. This industry group was targeted as a result of
high injury rates revealed through workers’ compensation data analysis. Also, AKOSH provided various
training classes to employees in this industry.
Arizona
Arizona’s strategic plan contains five annual performance goals within two major goals of the plan.
Construction continues to be one of the high-hazard industries nationwide and the Arizona Division
of Occupational Safety and Health (ADOSH) has directed significant resources to reducing the number
of workrelated injuries, illnesses and fatalities in Arizona’s construction industry.
ADOSH is committed to building and maintaining partnerships with Arizona organizations and
individuals with an interest in workplace safety and health. ADOSH recognizes the division’s
effectiveness in reducing workplace injuries, illnesses and fatalities depends on the active
involvement and support provided by management, labor and government.
Arizona has devoted significant resources to increase public awareness of the importance of
workplace safety and health by offering partnerships to employers, providing compliance assistance
services, improving outreach efforts and encouraging active worker participation. By increasing
public confidence in the division, ADOSH expects employers and employees to be more willing to use
the services provided that will help to eliminate hazards and provide a safe working environment. In
addition, Arizona established a close relationship with the Spanish-speaking media and ADOSH has had
articles published periodically to get the word out about its services, accidents that have occurred
and accident prevention.
California
California OSHA (Cal/OSHA) remains committed in its next five-year plan (2004 through 2008) to
targeting the construction industry in a continuing effort to reduce fatalities, injuries and
illnesses in the industry. In fact, Cal/OSHA anticipates the creation of a dedicated team of
inspectors whose primary targets will be employers in the underground economy, with an emphasis on
the construction and agricultural industries. The presence of a dedicated team targeting the
construction industry should serve to encourage employers to improve health and safety on the job,
which – in turn – should result in a reduction of fatalities, injuries and illnesses.
The number of Hispanic worker deaths in California continues to decline. Specifically, the number of
Hispanic worker deaths in California was down 16 percent from 2001 to 2004. The California downtrend
exceeded the national downtrend during the same period.
Cal/OSHA met most of its performance goals for 2005. Rates of injuries, illnesses and fatalities
demonstrate a declining trend in agriculture, high-hazard industries and residential construction.
As part of Cal/OSHA’s high-hazard consultative and high-hazard enforcement program, various efficacy
outcome measures have been obtained during the years from employers to measure pre-intervention and
post-intervention data. Among these measures are injury and illness rates, injury and illness
severity rates, number and type of preventable work-related injuries and illnesses, and pertinent
data about workers’ compensation claims made and costs per claim.
In reviewing the efficacy data from a sample of high-hazard employers, it has been determined that
both the high-hazard consultation program and the high-hazard enforcement program have been
effective interventions in reducing injuries, illnesses and workers’ compensation claims for
employers that were targeted for consultation or enforcement interventions. These programs have a
continuing role to play in Cal/OSHA’s efforts to eliminate workplace hazards and reduce occupational
injuries and illnesses.
Connecticut
Connecticut OSHA (CONN-OSHA) continues to use Bureau of Labor Statistics data to identify
high-hazard public-sector workplaces. This is the third year of the five-year strategic plan. It has
identified municipal departments and state agencies in the following NAICS codes:
- 922160 – fire service;
- 23000 – state DOT and local public works;
- 62000 – state health care;
- 62000 – residential social service; and
- 22130 – municipal water, sewer, etc.
Indiana
In 2005, the Indiana Department of Labor (IDOL) continued working to reduce
occupational hazards through direct interventions. Specific activities included emphasis programs in
construction for trenches, scaffolding and fall hazards. Targeted industries were based on the most recent
Bureau of Labor Statistics data and included:
- motor-vehicle parts and accessories;
- millwork, plywood and structural members; and
- refrigeration and machinery services.
When possible, joint inspections were conducted to promote cross-training.
Kentucky
Kentucky has managed to achieve the initial five-year goal of decreasing the injury rates for
struck-by and falls by 10 percent. In comparing its 2002 baseline with 2004 for "falls," Kentucky
had a 35 percent reduction and is also below the national rate for 2004. In comparing the 2002
baseline for "struck-by," Kentucky had a 68.5 percent reduction and fell well-below the national
average.
Maryland
Maryland’s strategic management plan focuses on the following goals: reduce occupational hazards
through direct interventions; promote a safety and health culture through compliance assistance,
cooperative programs, strong agency leadership, ongoing safety training provided to employers and
employees through Maryland Occupational Safety and Health (MOSH) Training and Education; and secure
public confidence through the development and delivery of MOSH programs and services.
In fiscal-year 2005, Maryland conducted approximately 1,146 inspections in construction and general
industry emphasis areas. Of those inspections, 62.4 percent were specifically targeted to strategic
emphasis areas. Eighty-eight percent of the fatality and catastrophe investigations were initiated
by MOSH within one working day of notification. Employers could not be located/contacted in the 12
percent that were initiated after one working day.
Michigan
The Michigan OSHA (MIOSHA) strategic plan for fiscal-year 2004 through 2008
calls for targeting both outreach and enforcement resources toward some of the most hazardous industries
in Michigan, including: construction, furniture and fixtures, primary metals, fabricated metal products,
industrial machine and equipment, and transportation equipment. MIOSHA also directed efforts toward
reducing ergonomic-related injuries and illnesses, amputations and noise-induced hearing loss.
MIOSHA developed its plan with substantial stakeholder input and used the team concept to develop
the performance goals. The goal is to reduce injuries and illnesses in targeted industries by 20
percent at the end of the five-year plan. Workplace fatalities continue to decrease in most areas.
MIOSHA has made significant progress toward nearly all program goals. Significant decreases in
injuries and illnesses were reported, including: a 21 percent reduction in the three-year average
for amputations; a 19 percent reduction in the three-year average for overexertion; and a 28 percent
reduction in injury rates in the furniture and fixtures industry, a new strategic-plan emphasis.
Minnesota
Minnesota OSHA’s (MNOSHA’s) five-year strategic goals for federal fiscal-year 2004 through 2008
support and guide its efforts during the next several years. The goals are to:
- reduce occupational hazards through compliance inspections;
- promote a safety and health culture through compliance assistance, outreach, cooperative programs
and strong leadership; and
- strengthen and improve MNOSHA’s infrastructure.
With few exceptions, MNOSHA’s federal fiscal-year 2005 performance goals were
achieved.
New Jersey
New Jersey’s five-year strategic plan for fiscal-years 2004 through 2008 has three major strategic
goals:
- improve workplace safety and health for all public employees as evidenced by fewer hazards,
reduced exposures and fewer injuries, illnesses and fatalities;
- promote safety and health values in New Jersey’s public-sector workplaces; and
- secure public confidence through excellence in the development and delivery of programs and
services.
Outcomes from implementation of the five-year strategic plan will:
- reduce the number of worker injuries and illnesses, by focusing statewide attention and resources
on the most prevalent types of injuries and illnesses, the most hazardous public occupations and the
most hazardous workplaces;
- increase the public-sector employer and employee awareness of, commitment to and participation in
safety and health;
- improve the response to legal mandates, so workers are provided full protection under the Public
Employees Occupational Safety and Health (PEOSH) Act; and
- increase and improve the number of implemented emergency preparedness/homeland security programs
and services, coordinating efforts with federal, state, county and local agencies.
New York
New York’s Public Employee Safety and Health Bureau (PESH) is in its second five-year strategic plan
cycle. The goal for this period is to further reduce the injury and illness rates by 10 percent in
623110 (nursing care facilities), NAICS 237310 (highway, street and bridge construction) and
922160/621910 (fire and ambulance services). Specific committees have been established to address
each of these disciplines.
Nursing care facilities
This committee is focusing on county and state veterans’ homes. Each nursing home was provided a
review of recordkeeping procedures. In 2005, each facility was visited and the injury and illness
logs were corrected as needed. This provided a sound baseline to compare the future year’s data.
Based on this data, the first five-year commitment witnessed an employee injury rate reduction of
18.1 percent, which exceeded its goal by more than 80 percent. An injury rate reduction of 10
percent has occurred since 2002, with an overall injury reduction of 33 percent.
This committee also focused resources on comprehensive safety and health consultation to the five
nursing homes with the highest injury rates. These site visits included a detailed review of the
resident handling procedures, because these are the identified tasks that result in the majority of
injuries to employees. The committee promotes the development of a "zero lift policy" and strives to
reach that level while continually working with the facilities.
Outreach activities continue to include Employee Injury Prevention Conferences
that focus on providing safe resident/patient handling, workplace violence and emergency response needs
for health care.
The Nursing Home Strategic Plan committee has ongoing partnerships with the County Nursing Facility
of New York, which is an association of county nursing home administrators, and the Civil Service
Employees Association, which is the public-sector union that represents the majority of nursing
assistants in New York State. These partnerships provide a unique opportunity for government, union
and management to work as a team with a focused goal aimed at reducing employee injuries.
Highway, streets and bridge construction
The primary goal of this strategic plan committee is to build partnerships to reach more employers
and ultimately reduce highway department employee injuries. Partnerships with the New York State
Association of Counties and the New York State Safety Officers Association have promoted workplace
safety initiatives.
This committee continues to work with New York State Department of Transportation, Thruway Authority
and the Office of General Services providing safety awareness training to employers and employees.
Members of this committee also network with equipment manufacturers in an effort to better
understand the safe operation of highway equipment.
Most counties in New York are self-insured and include the towns and villages within their
geographical boundary. By working with individual counties and self-insurance groups, PESH is able
to reach many more municipal workers. This committee developed a training program for employers that
is available for conduct by PESH staff members or can be delivered independently by local trainers.
The specific topics of this training program are ones that most employers requested on a safety and
health survey that was begun in federal fiscal-year 2005. A training package includes Microsoft
PowerPoint presentations for municipal workers, copies of the appropriate OSHA standard and sample
tailgate meeting information. This information is also available on CD for training and
distribution. Topics include:
- welding and cutting;
- lockout/tagout and safe electrical work practices;
- flagging and traffic control;
- hazard communication and right-to-know;
- confined space;
- back safety;
- rabies, west nile and Lyme disease; and
- trenching and excavation.
Fire and ambulance services
The Fire Protection/Ambulance Service Strategic Plan Committee continues to focus on reducing
injuries and fatalities to individuals, both paid employees and volunteers, who provide these
services. This committee has established partnerships with the New York State Association of Fire
Chiefs, State Office of Fire Prevention and Control, State Emergency Management Office, the New York
State Department of Homeland Security CBRNE Task Force and the New York State Safety Officers
Association.
One area of current focus is the physical ability of interior firefighters when performing strenuous
work. This group is now promoting fitness evaluation and training. Recently, they worked with an
occupational health physician to better understand the synergistic effect of stress as related to
body condition. Future activities will focus on the cause of worker illnesses and fatalities while
performing emergency response duties.
This group is interested in developing a universal tracking method for training of all fire
departments and county and state emergency services and will provide more awareness activities aimed
at reducing injuries by preventing firefighter exhaustion. The committee will also examine
accountability, hydration, team rotation, mutual assistance, physical fitness and newer/lighter PPE
as ways to reduce such stress and will work with fire departments in an effort to reduce injuries
through rehabilitation of firefighters by promoting the set-up of rehabilitation stations,
incorporating EMS response for structure fires and establishing guidelines for mandatory evaluations
after two SCBA bottles are used.
North Carolina
North Carolina is currently pursuing the goals contained in the state’s Strategic
Management Plan representing the second five-year strategic planning cycle, which began in
fiscal-year 2004. The success of the strategic planning process is reflected in the state’s 4.1 injury
and illness rate in 2004. The overall number of fatalities declined from 90 in fiscal-year 2004 to 72
in fiscal-year 2005. This included a drop in construction fatalities from 35 to 23.
The goals for the current five-year Strategic Management Plan include
continued reduction of the state’s injury and illness rate and reduction of the workplace fatality rate.
One strategy for reaching these goals is by placing emphasis on a number of specific industries and
workplace hazards. These include: construction; logging; lumber and wood products, furniture and fixtures;
long-term care; and health hazards including lead, crystalline silica, styrene, asbestos and
isocyanates. Additional rate reduction strategies include: site-specific targeting of employers with
high injury and illness rates; public-sector targeting; safety and health program assistance;
partnership development; and expanding the safety and health recognition programs. A
multidisciplinary resource allocation, including compliance, consultation, education and training,
will also continue to be used.
Oregon
Oregon OSHA’s (OR-OSHA’s) nationally recognized lab analyzes silica samples received from
enforcement inspections, consultations and general technical assistance. Analyzing the sample data
from fiscal-year 2005 showed silica over-exposures in a broader base of industries than initially
expected, which may cause OR-OSHA to revise target SIC codes in the future.
At the end of the first five-year plan (2001 through 2005), data showed an 11 percent reduction in
fatalities from the previous five-year period. Targeted efforts, consultation outreach and education
have helped achieve this reduction.
Puerto Rico
By combining results from multiple program areas, Puerto Rico OSHA (PR OSHA)
has been successful in meeting the goals and objectives outlined in its strategic plan, and complying
with its mandated activities. Most often, the office adapts to ever-changing conditions in the industry
and has been able to respond well to emerging issues. For example, due in part to the aggressive efforts
and campaigns of the office, the fatality rate in the construction industry remains significantly lower
when compared to the average baseline.
Tennessee
Tennessee OSHA continues to focus resources, through its strategic plan, on the elimination of
workplace hazards by intervening in workplaces where serious hazards are observed. Special emphasis
programs about fall protection, carbon monoxide, noise, amputations, and trenching and excavation
are currently in place. Training employees and employers about safety and health issues continues to
be part of the strategic plan. During 2005, Tennessee OSHA trained more than 12,000 people about
workplace safety and health topics.
This concentration of resources has produced tangible results. Fatalities from falls have decreased
by 33 percent and the DART rate in construction and in metal-working industries have been reduced
21.6 percent and 20.1 percent respectively.
Utah
Utah completed the first year of its second five-year strategic plan. The plan essentially mirrors
the federal plan. The plan includes a focus on reductions in amputations, ergonomics-related
injuries and blood-lead levels; the second-year results achieved significant reductions in
amputations and ergonomics-related injuries. Also of note was a 12 percent decrease in the general
industry fatality rate.
Vermont
Vermont OSHA’s (VOSHA’s) strategic plan for 2004 through 2008 focuses on all food processing and on
reducing worker injuries in highway workzones. The Vermont State Police set up radar in highway
workzones and issue tickets to speeders.
Virginia
Virginia Occupational Safety and Health (VOSH) is in the last year of its current strategic plan and
is in the process of preparing its new multi-year plan.
Washington
Washington’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH) completed its 2001 through 2005 plan
and has adopted a new five-year strategic plan. Some of the 2006 through 2010 performance goals are:
- reduce the number of workplace fatalities by 15 percent;
- reduce the rate of workplace injuries and illnesses by 20 percent;
- develop or continue at least two industry or hazard-based initiatives each year to provide
additional attention to areas contributing to high fatality or injury and illness rates;
- greatly expand online or downloadable employer assistance tools by at least 50 percent; and
- encourage voluntary efforts to improve occupational safety and health and expand worker protection
systems through approval of at least 10 new Voluntary Protection Program sites.
Some of Washington’s accomplishments during the 2001 through 2005 plan include the
following.
- For each of the five years, time-loss claim rates for fixed-site employers that DOSH visited
(enforcement inspections or consultation visits) declined between 7.8 percent and 29.9 percent more
compared to worksites in the same industry that DOSH did not visit.
- DOSH conducted special-emphasis programs for nursing homes, sawmills, residential framing and
masonry. Back injury claims for nursing homes participating in a zero-lift initiative decreased 23.2
percent compared to 20.8 percent for other nursing homes. Shoulder injuries decreased 41.3 percent
for participating nursing homes compared to a 5 percent increase for other nursing homes. Injuries
in the framing industry declined from a baseline of 46 per 100 workers to 30.7 per 100 workers in
the second year of the initiative.
- It rewrote the core safety and health standards, plus 36 industry or subject matter rules, in
plain language. Employers can access Washington’s workplace safety and health rules by CD or on the
Web site at www.lni.wa.gov/Safety/Rules/Find. The plain language rules have received national
recognition, including receiving the Council of State Governments’ 2002 Innovations award and being
a finalist for the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University’s Innovation in
American Government Award.
- The time it takes to issue a citation with hygiene violations decreased from a high of 110 days to
an average of 66 days between the inspection opening conference to the citation issue date. DOSH
reduced the average time for safety violations from a high of 76 days to an average of 41 days.
- DOSHA verified correction of serious hazards identified by consultants within 14 days of the
abatement date in 97 percent of cases. For serious violations identified by inspectors, DOSH verified
correction within 30 days of the abatement date in 95 percent of the cases.
- Of Washington’s safety and health professionals (consultants, inspectors, supervisors, hearing
officers and technical staff members), 94.5 percent completed at least 40 hours of safety and health
training annually.
- DOSH improved the timely completion of discrimination investigations from less than 50 percent to
a high of 92 percent in 90 days or fewer.
Wyoming
Wyoming’s new five-year strategic plan for fiscal-years 2004 through 2008 measures three areas:
fatality reduction, reduction in workplace hazards and injuries, and workplace safety culture.
The first strategic goal is to "improve workplace safety and health for all Wyoming workers by
reducing fatalities." In the strategic plan, the performance goal is to "reduce workplace fatalities
by minimizing occupational hazards, promoting safety and health cultures, and maximizing Workers’
Safety and Compensation Division effectiveness and efficiency."
The second strategic goal is to "improve workplace safety and health for all Wyoming workers as
evidenced by fewer hazards, reduced exposures, and fewer injuries and illnesses."
The third strategic goal is to "promote a safety and health culture in Wyoming through a strong and
effective consultation program." The strategic plan performance goal is to increase participants in
VPP and SHARP.
No progress was achieved in meeting the first goal (fatality reduction): fatalities increased over
the benchmark used for comparison. Mixed results were noted with the second goal for reducing
workers’ compensation injury claims for companies receiving a Workers’ Safety Compliance or
Consultation intervention. And excellent results were achieved in the third strategic goal (CVPP and
SHARP growth).
A successful method of reducing claims has been the 75/25 plan, where an employer is offered a 75
percent penalty reduction if workers’ compensation claims are reduced by 25 percent
during the next 12 months.
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