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The OSHA and ABSA Alliance will continue to focus on enhancing workplace health and safety and to assist employers, including small businesses, in developing a preventive focus for biological safety issues. The Alliance's goals include:

Outreach and communication:

• Work with OSHA to provide expertise in developing information on the recognition and prevention of workplace hazards, and to provide expertise in developing ways of communicating such information (e.g. print and electronic media, electronic assistance tools and OSHA's and ABSA's Web sites) to employers and employees in the industry.
• Speak, exhibit or appear at OSHA's or ABSA's conferences, local meetings, or other events such as ABSA's Annual Conference.
• Share information among OSHA personnel and industry safety and health professionals regarding ABSA's best practices or effective approaches and publicize results through outreach by ABSA and through OSHA or ABSA developed materials, training programs, workshops, seminars, and lectures (or any other applicable forum).

Promoting the national dialogue concerning biological safety in the workplace:

• Convene or participate in forums, round table discussions, or stakeholder meetings on Biosafety issues to help forge innovative solutions in the workplace or to provide input on safety and health issues.

Milestones and Successes

• American Biological Safety Association Alliance Milestones and Successes (2010, July).

Related Documents

Alliance Agreements

• Agreement signed September 23, 2002.
• Renewal Agreement signed October 13, 2004.
• Renewal Agreement signed January 29, 2007.
• Renewal Agreement signed March 3, 2009.

Alliance Annual Reports

• Alliance Annual Report 2002-2003, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2003-2004, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2004-2005, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2005-2006, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2006-2007, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2007-2008, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2008-2009, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2009-2010, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2010-2011, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.
• Alliance Annual Report 2011-2012, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances.

Alliance News Releases

• OSHA, American Biological Safety Association Form Alliance. OSHA New Release (2002, September 23).
• OSHA, American Biological Safety Association Renew Alliance Focus Continues on Information-Sharing to Address Biological Hazards in the Workplace. OSHA News Release (2004, October 26).
• OSHA Renews Alliance with American Biological Safety Association. OSHA News Release (2007, March 1).
• OSHA, ASSE, CSSE and Industry Groups Team Up to Increase Job Safety for North American Occupational Safety and Health Week. OSHA News Release (2007, May 4).
• OSHA and American Biological Safety Association Alliance Addresses Biological Safety Hazards. OSHA News Release (2009, March 23).
  

• May 5-11, 2013: 2013 North American Occupational Safety and Health (NAOSH) Week. The American Biological Safety Association (ABSA) and a number of other Alliance Program participants support 2013 NAOSH Week. Sponsored annually by the American Society of Safety Engineers and the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering, the Week focuses on the importance of preventing injuries and illnesses in the workplace. 2013 Theme: "Worker Safety Works for Everyone."
• May 6-12, 2012: 2012 North American Occupational Safety and Health (NAOSH) Week. The American Biological Safety Association (ABSA) and a number of other Alliance Program participants support 2012 NAOSH Week. Sponsored annually by ASSE and the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering, the Week focuses on the importance of preventing injuries and illnesses in the workplace. 2012 Theme: "Safety, What Every Business Needs."
• May 1-7, 2011: 2011 North American Occupational Safety and Health (NAOSH) Week. The American Biological Safety Association (ABSA) and a number of other Alliance Program participants supported 2011 NAOSH Week. Sponsored annually by the American Society of Safety Engineers, an Alliance Program participant, and the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering, the Week focuses on the importance of preventing injuries and illnesses in the workplace. The theme for 2011 was "Celebrating a Century of Safety."

Products and Resources

• Alliance Program Participant Background

Alliance Program Participant Developed Products

• Lentivirus Vector Fact Sheet [PDF^* - 114 KB]. Through the OSHA and American Biological Safety Association (ABSA) Alliance, ABSA developed a fact sheet that provides professional staff a reference tool on the proper handling and safety procedures for working with these infectious systems in a laboratory. (2012, October)
• Biological Safety Officer (BSO)/Biological Safety Professional (BSP) Competency Fact Sheet [PDF^* - 155 KB]. Through the OSHA and American Biological Safety Association (ABSA) Alliance, ABSA developed a fact sheet providing the definition, skills level, knowledge, and experience required for the BSO and BSP. (2011, November)
• Principles of Good Microbiological Practice Fact Sheet [PDF^* - 135 KB]. Through the OSHA and American Biological Safety Association (ABSA) Alliance, ABSA developed a fact sheet providing laboratory workers with a reference tool on the proper handling and safety procedures for working with infectious agents or materials. (2011, May)
• General Microbiology Fact Sheet [PDF^* - 3 MB]. Through the OSHA and American Biological Safety Association (ABSA) Alliance, ABSA developed a fact sheet providing laboratory workers with a reference tool for the most common diseases including information on transmission, signs and symptoms, and incubation period as well as a micrograph visual aid. (2010, December)
• Select Agent Diseases Fact Sheet [PDF^* - 367 KB]. Through the OSHA and American Biological Safety Association (ABSA) Alliance, ABSA developed a fact sheet providing laboratory workers with a reference tool that includes the symptoms, transmission, and treatment for some of the most commonly encountered pathogens or biological toxins that are federally regulated and have the potential to pose a severe threat to public health and safety. (2008, July)
• Zoonotic Diseases Fact Sheet [PDF^* - 478 KB]. Through the OSHA and American Biological Safety Association (ABSA) Alliance, ABSA developed a fact sheet providing laboratory workers with a reference tool that includes the symptoms, transmission, and treatment for some of the most commonly encountered diseases that are generally found in animals but can be spread to humans. (2008, July)
• Principles of Biosafety Fact Sheet [PDF^* - 57 KB]. Through the OSHA and American Biological Safety Association (ABSA) Alliance, ABSA developed a fact sheet providing laboratory workers with safety information through twelve valuable rules of biosafety. (2008, April)
• BioSafety Levels (US) [PDF^* - 88 KB]. Through the OSHA and American Biological Safety Association (ABSA) Alliance, ABSA developed a document that describes the four levels of biosafety. (2008, April)

• Anthrax
• Avian Flu
• Biological Agents
• Bloodborne Pathogens and Needlestick Prevention
• Botulism
• Foodborne Disease
• Hantavirus
• Hazardous Waste
• Indoor Air Quality
• Ionizing Radiation
• Legionnaires' Disease
• Mold
• Plague
• Ricin
• Smallpox
• Tularemia
• Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers (VHFs)

OSHA eTools

• Anthrax⁺
• Hospital⁺
• Legionnaires' Disease

Publications and Newsletters

• On-line Resource: OSHA Infectious Dose White Paper [PDF - 191 KB]. ABSA Alliance News.
• On-line Resource: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration Web Site on Legionnaires' Disease Bacteria [PDF - 102 KB]. ABSA Alliance News.

Additional Resources

• ABSA/OSHA Alliance page

⁺Alliance Implementation Team members participated in the development of this resource.

Areas of Emphasis

• Small Businesses

Accessibility Assistance: Contact the OSHA Directorate of Cooperative and State Programs at 202-693-2200 for assistance accessing PDF materials.

^*These files are provided for downloading.