Alliance -- An OSHA Cooperative Program<< Back to The American Biological Safety Association

  1. Alliance Background

    1. Date Signed

      September 23, 2002

    2. Dates Renewed

      October 13, 2004
      January 29, 2007
      March 3, 2009

    3. Evaluation Period

      September 23, 2011 – September 22, 2012

    4. Overview

      The OSHA and ABSA Alliance focuses on promoting healthy and safe workplaces. The organizations use their collective expertise both to enhance workplace health and safety and to assist employers, including small businesses, in developing a preventive focus for biological safety issues facing the American workplace.

    5. Implementation Team Members

      OSHA
      Sharon Carr Office of Biological Hazards (OBH), Directorate of Standards and Guidance (DSG)
      Nancy Hauter* Office of Health Enforcement (OHE), Directorate of Enforcement Programs (DEP)
      Jack Longmire Office of Occupational Medicine, Directorate of Technical Support and Emergency Management
      Morgan Seuberling Office of Outreach Services and Alliances (OOSA), Directorate of Cooperative and State Programs (DCSP)
      Thomas Nerad OBH, DSG
      Gary Senatore OHE, DEP
      Dionne Williams** OHE, DEP
      Eric Lahaie*** OOSA, DCSP
      ABSA
      David Counts Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory; ABSA Member
      Penny Holeman**** Lovelace Respiratory Research Institute; ABSA Member
      Julie Jackson Amgen, Inc.; Member, ABSA
      Barbara Owen Merck Company; ABSA Member
      Richard Rebar GlaxoSmithKline; ABSA Councilor
      Ed Stygar Executive Director, ABSA
      Brian Petuch Merck Company; ABSA Member


      *Nancy Hauter served on the OSHA and ABSA Alliance Implementation Team until January 31, 2012.
      **Dionne Williams served on the OSHA and ABSA Alliance Implementation Team until June 1, 2012.
      ***Eric Lahaie served on the OSHA and ABSA Alliance Implementation Team until May 31, 2012.
      ****Penny Holeman served on the OSHA and ABSA Alliance Implementation Team until December 31, 2011.

  2. Implementation Team Meetings

    • January 18, 2012
    • May 2, 2012
    • September 13, 2012

    In addition to these formal meetings, the Alliance coordinators from both groups maintained regular contact throughout the reporting period to monitor the Alliance's progress and results.

  3. Results

    The following table summarizes the Alliance's activities in support of the goals in the Alliance agreement.

    Outreach and Communication Goal 1: 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.
    Activity Type Activity Name/Summary OSHA Initiative Supported Number Reached or Trained
    Product Biological Safety Officer (BSO)/Biological Safety Professional (BSP) Competency Fact Sheet.
    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. The fact sheet is posted on the ABSA and OSHA Alliance-related Web page on the ABSA Web site and linked to from the OSHA and ABSA Alliance Web page and the Alliance Program Participants Developed Products page on the OSHA Web site.    		   Data Not Available
    Product ABSA and OSHA Alliance-Related Web Page.
    ABSA continually updates the ABSA and OSHA Alliance Web page. The page includes links to the OSHA and ABSA Alliance agreement, renewal agreements and related documents on the OSHA and ABSA Alliance Web page on the Agency Web site. During the reporting period, links to the ABSA-developed fact sheets created through OSHA and ABSA Alliance were added to the page.    		   Data Not Available
    Product OSHA and ABSA Alliance Web Page.
    OSHA is continuing to update the OSHA and ABSA Alliance Web page posted on the Agency Web site. The page includes information on Alliance events, milestones and successes, and links to the OSHA and ABSA agreement, news releases, and to the ABSA and OSHA Alliance Web page on the ABSA Web site. During the reporting period, links to the ABSA-developed fact sheets created through OSHA and ABSA Alliance were added to the page.    		   Data Not Available
    Other OSHA's Safety and Health Topics Pages.
    ABSA representatives served on the editorial boards of the OSHA Safety and Health Topics pages providing their expertise and technical review for Anthrax; Biological Agents; Bloodborne Pathogens; Botulism; Foodborne Disease; Hantavirus; Hazardous Waste; Indoor Air Quality; Ionizing Radiation; Legionnaires' Disease; Mold and Fungi; Plague; Ricin; Smallpox; Tularemia; and Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers until January 15, 2012.    		   Data Not Available
    Other OSHA's eTools.
    ABSA representatives served on the editorial boards of the OSHA eTools providing their expertise and technical review for Anthrax; Legionnaires' Disease; and Hospital until January 15, 2012.    		   Data Not Available
     
    Outreach and Communication Goal 2: Speak, exhibit or appear at OSHA's or ABSA's conferences, local meetings, or other events such as ABSA's Annual Conference.
    Activity Type Activity Name/Summary OSHA Initiative Supported Number Reached or Trained
    Exhibit 54h Annual Biological Safety Conference, October 27-November 3, 2011, Anaheim, California.
    ABSA’s Alliance Team Members staffed an exhibit booth and disseminated OSHA publications and ABSA Alliance-developed products to attendees.    		   200
     
    Outreach and Communication Goal 3: 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).
    Activity Type Activity Name/Summary OSHA Initiative Supported Number Reached or Trained
      During the reporting period, the OSHA and ABSA Alliance Implementation Team have not completed work on programs or projects to address this goal.    
     
    Promoting the National Dialogue Concerning Biological Safety in the Workplace Goal 1: 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.
    Activity Type Activity Name/Summary OSHA Initiative Supported Number Reached or Trained
    Other North American Occupational Safety and Health (NAOSH) Week, May 6-12, 2012, Washington, DC.
    ABSA and a number of other Alliance Program participants supported 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."

    To help support the event, ABSA disseminated information about the 2012 NAOSH Week to their membership and posted the 2012 NAOSH Week banner to the Alliance-related Web page.    		   Data Not Available
    TOTAL Reached or Trained     200

  4. Upcoming Milestones

    In the upcoming year, OSHA and ABSA will complete and undertake several additional projects through the Alliance to help employers and workers reduce or prevent exposure to health, safety, and biological hazards in a laboratory. For example, through the Alliance, ABSA will complete the fact sheets for the professional lab staff and develop reference guides for general lab workers focusing on Lentiviruses and Adenoviruses.

    ABSA will also continue to provide their expertise to OSHA by providing feedback on draft biological safety and health documents developed by OSHA, as requested. ABSA will host an Alliance Exhibit at the ABSA's 55th Annual Biological Safety Conference, October 19-24, 2012, in Orlando, Florida.

    Finally, ABSA representatives will be joining with other Alliance Program participants to support 2013 North American Occupational Safety and Health Week, May 5 – May 11, 2013.

    Report prepared by: Morgan Seuberling, Safety and Occupational Health Specialist, Office of Outreach Services and Alliances, September 24, 2012.