Region 3 - Alliance Annual Report - August 29, 2006

ALLIANCE ANNUAL REPORT

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
HARRISBURG AREA OFFICE
AND
THE PENNSYLVANIA CHAMBER OF BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY
August 29, 2006

  1. Alliance Background

    Renewal Agreement, Date Signed

    August 10, 2005

    Overview.

    Cooperative initiative to assist PA Chamber members with information and out reach assistance in a effort become fully compliant with OSHA Standards and Regulations.

    Implementation Team Members

    OSHA Members: Robert M. Fink, Area Director; David Roccasecca, Assistant Area Director; Dale Glacken, Compliance Assistance Specialist

    PA Chamber Members: Susan Smith, Director, Customer Learning; David Kreider, VP of Finance & Administration

    Evaluation Period

    Aug 10, 2005 thru Aug 10, 2006.
     
  2. Implementation Team Meetings

    Aug 10, 2005: - Harrisburg Area Office - Meeting to discuss the future of the Alliance, "Ask OSHA roundtables", articles for the "Advocate" a newsletter used by the Chamber to reach it's members, means to reach membership, we renewed our Alliance, and began planning future speeches/events for the coming year.

    August 2005 through Aug 2006 - Numerous contacts (telephone conference calls and e-mail exchanges) were made to prepare for each of the sessions.
     
  3. Events and Products

    Training and Education

     

    • Events
       
      1. Sept 15, 2005: Half day, "Ask OSHA roundtable", session 1 was presented to 110 Chamber members. During the session AD and CAS provided participants with an OSHA update, details of the recordkeeping standard and the HAZCOM standard. Session ended with a question and answer session.
      2. Nov 9, 2005: A repeat of the first session previously presented Sept 15, 2006. There were 85 participants at this event.
      3. Mar 14, 2006: Half day, "Ask OSHA Roundtable", AD, Technical Support from the RO and the CAS provided an OSHA update followed by a presentation describing fall protection requirements, exit routes, emergency action plans, fire prevention plans and a question and answer period. There were 152 participants present.
      4. May 23, 2006: A full day Annual meeting, "Ask OSHA roundtable" was presented to 130 members. Five Topics were presented by the AD, RO, CAS and speakers: Mr. Joseph Boslet and Mr. Jeffrey Lee:
        • General OSHA Update,
        • Details of the Pennsylvania Workers Compensation system and Recordkeeping,
        • Requirements for outside vendors and OSHA's Multi-employer Worksite policy,
        • Lockout/Tagout (LO/TO) and Electrical Compliance Standards,
        • Forklift, man lift, aerial lift, crane, hoist and pallet jack compliance
      Products

      The Chamber prepared a "Workplace Safety Manual", 2007/2008 Edition for their members with input from OSHA as part of this Alliance. The document is 333 pages in length, has 15 chapters and covers a range of safety topics starting with Safety Policy Statements and ending with a number of Standard Operating Procedures.
    Outreach and Communication
     
    • Events

      N/A
       
    • Products

      The CAS prepared an article for the "Advocate": OSHA Credentials. Article described the importance of credentials in identifying OSHA representatives.

      Information was also emailed to Chamber members: Lockout/Tagout, fall protection and information about the OSHA website to help members with their safety and health programs.
    Promoting the National Dialogue on Workplace Safety and Health
     
    • Events

      N/A
       
    • Products

      N/A
  4. Results

    The second year of the Alliance has been devoted to presenting information to the Chamber's members at four different "Ask OSHA Roundtable" sessions. Similar activities will occur during the third year of the Alliance, however, we will also develop more materials for the Chamber's 10,000 members.
     
    Type of Activity (Conference, Training, Print and Electronic Distribution, etc.) Number of Individuals Reached or Trained
    Half day, "Ask OSHA roundtable", session 1 110
    Half day, "Ask OSHA roundtable", session 2 85
    Half day, "Ask OSHA Roundtable" 152
    Full day, "Ask OSHA Roundtable" 130
    TOTAL 477
  5. Upcoming Milestones

    1. Two Roundtables will be conducted this coming year with a full day OSHA/Chamber Roundtable in 2007. We will continue to have meetings with the Chamber to work out the details for each. The Pennsylvania Chamber is currently the second largest state Chamber in the United States. They have over 10,000 members; 82% are considered small employers with less than 100 employees and 1/3 of their members have less than 10 employees.

    2. Sept 14, 2006: A half day "Ask OSHA Roundtable" presentation has been set up to review the latest OSHA issues, walking and working surfaces and complying with OSHA's Recordkeeping Requirements.

    3. With support from OSHA, the Chamber is updating their "OSHA Handbook". It will soon be released.