Alliance -- An OSHA Cooperative Program<< Back to Region II


The United States Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the United States Department of Labor, Wage Hour Division (USDOL-WH), the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE), the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (LWD), the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey - School of Public Health (UMDNJ-SPH) and the Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute (EOHSI) recognize the value of continuing a collaborative relationship to foster safer and more healthful New Jersey workplaces for students and youth workers by providing information on youth employment issues, hazardous occupations and safety and health issues.

In December 2003 and March 2005, the New Jersey State Board of Education adopted new certification and training requirements for teachers who place and supervise students in work sites, which include N.J.A.C. 6A:9-13.19 Cooperative Education Coordinator – Hazardous Occupations, N.J.A.C. 6A:9-13.20 Cooperative Education Coordinator, N.J.A.C. 6A:9-9.2 Endorsements and Authorizations, and N.J.A.C. 6A:9-5.22 Structured Learning Experiences/Career Orientation Coordination. All teachers who place and supervise students in work site experiences are now required to receive training on workplace safety and health, federal and state labor laws, developing student training plans, and student safety and health. In support of these new requirements, and in support of promoting safer and more healthful workplaces, OSHA, NJDOE, LWD, USDOL-WH, UMDNJ-SPH and EOHSI therefore agree to renew their Alliance signed on October 31st, 2005 to provide school administrators, school personnel, teachers, students, youth workers and others, including parents, guardians, and employers of students and youth workers, with information, guidance, and access to training resources that will help them protect the safety and health of students and youth workers, as well as the safety and health of teachers and school personnel.

The Alliance will focus its efforts on reducing and preventing student and youth worker exposure to hazards most common to youth workers, including retail, service and health industries. Training on hazards found in many other occupations in which high school students are trained for and frequently participate in will also be included. The training will include, but not be limited to, such topics as electrical safety, machine guarding, slips trips and fall prevention, hazard identification and blood - borne pathogens. In addition, information about occupations, equipment and materials that are either restricted or prohibited to students and youth workers who are minors will be addressed.

The USDOL-WH, in consultation with the above named participating organizations, will develop and implement a training program for teachers who place and supervise students in work sites. This training will cover the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Child Labor Standards and Regulations, Sheltered Workshops (Section 14 of FLSA) and other appropriate laws related to youth employment. The training may consist of presentations, on-line training and/or dissemination of training materials or other publications.

In developing this Alliance, the participating organizations recognize that OSHA’s NJ State Plan (PEOSH) and the On-Site Consultation Program partners are an integral part of the OSHA national effort. To that end, the Alliance will promote PEOSH and its On-Site Consultation Program as a resource for New Jersey’s school districts, which must also comply with federal and state safety and health laws and regulations.

For the purposes of this Alliance, UMDNJ – SPH and EOHSI provide educational and technical support to vocational-technical student and teacher safety and health programs through the NJDOE’s Safe Schools Program. The Safe Schools Program is administered through the UMDNJ–SPH.

OSHA and the participating organizations, as appropriate, work together to achieve the following training and education goals:
  • Provide expertise to develop training and professional development programs to address on-the-job safety and health awareness for school administrators, teachers, youth workers, parents, guardians and employers associated with school sponsored learning, training and employment activities taking place in the worksite.

  • Provide expertise to deliver or arrange for the delivery of the OSHA 10 Hour General Industry course for school administrators and teachers. Included in the OSHA 10 Hour General Industry course, as appropriate, will be an additional two hours of instruction on NJDOE safety and health administrative code and an introduction to school safety and health issues associated with placing students at work sites. This will be referred to as the “OSHA 10 Plus Program.”

  • Deliver or arrange for the delivery of the OSHA 10 Hour General Industry, OSHA 10 Hour Construction or the OSHA 2 hour Safety and Health Awareness Programs for students and for teachers who do not need to take the OSHA 10 Plus Program.

  • Deliver or arrange for the delivery of the OSHA Train-the-Trainer Courses for school staff to enable them to conduct OSHA 10 Hour courses for teachers, school personnel, students and other interested parties.

  • Deliver or arrange for the delivery of training on occupations, equipment and materials that are restricted or prohibited for students and youth workers to school administrators, teachers, new coordinator certification applicants, parents and guardians, and employers that hire students and youth workers.

  • Provide expertise to develop training on the N.J. Public Employees Occupational Safety and Health Act (PEOSHA) for school administrators, teachers and other school personnel such as maintenance staff.

  • The Alliance partners will collaborate to create a youth safety and health resource website that will include links to health and safety resources and will distribute announcements for health and safety related resources, events and activities via the NJDOE.

  • Employ the Youth@Work and Youth Rules curriculum or suitable alternatives along with the OSHA and USDOL-WH standards, to teach school administrators, teachers, students, youth workers, parents and employers about occupational safety and health, recognizing workplace hazards, workplace rights, prohibited occupations and communicating workplace concerns.
OSHA and the participating organizations, as appropriate, will work together to achieve the following outreach and communication goals:
  • Conduct at least one PEOSH On-site Safety & Health Consultation in a high school. PEOSH staff will work with the school administrator of the school selected to obtain a Safety & Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP) Award.

  • Promote the NJ Governor’s Safety and Health Awards Program to community boards of education and school superintendents.

  • Develop and distribute information to employers that hire students and youth workers on the recognition and prevention of workplace hazards and compliance with child labor regulations, especially those that have the most impact on students and youth workers.

  • Speak, exhibit, or appear at Alliance participants’ conferences, local meetings, or events such as the State Apprenticeship Conference to promote young worker safety and health.

  • Share information among the Alliance participants on best practices in training those associated with youth employment, and publicize those results through Alliance materials, training programs, workshops, seminars, websites, lectures or any other applicable forum.

  • Encourage school administrators and employers of students and young workers to participate in OSHA’s cooperative programs such as compliance assistance, the PEOSH Consultation Programs and the Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program and the Voluntary Protection Program.

  • Work with other Alliance participants on specific issues and projects on reducing and preventing student and young worker exposure to electrical hazards, unguarded machinery, falls, and blood borne pathogens, and increasing student and young worker knowledge of the requirements for hazard communication and personal protective equipment.
OSHA and the participating organizations, as appropriate, will work together to achieve the following goals related to promoting the national dialogue on workplace safety and health:
  • Raise the awareness of others by demonstrating their own commitment to workplace safety and health whenever Alliance partners address groups. Where practical invite OSHA Alliance partners such as the Partnership for a Drug Free NJ, the NJ State Safety Council and Prevent Blindness Tri-State to make presentations.

  • Develop and disseminate case studies and success stories illustrating the business and social value of workplace safety and health and publicize their results in OSHA newsletters and other media such as local and school newspapers.

  • Convene or participate in forums, round table discussions, and meetings to provide input on safety and health issues regarding student and youth worker job placements, and forge innovative strategies to reduce student and young worker accidents and injuries in the workplace and on the road.
OSHA’s Alliances provide partners and their constituents with an opportunity to participate in a voluntary cooperative relationship with OSHA for purposes such as training and education, outreach and communication and promoting a national dialogue on workplace safety and health. OSHA Alliances have proved to be valuable tools for both OSHA and its Alliance partners. By entering into an Alliance with a party, OSHA is not endorsing any of that party’s products or services; nor does the Agency enter into an Alliance with the purpose of promoting a particular party’s products or services.

An implementation team made up of representatives of OSHA, USDOL-WH, LWD, NJDOE, UMDNJ-SPH and EOHSI will meet 4 times a year to develop a plan of action, determine working procedures, and identify the roles and responsibilities of the participants. In addition, they will track and share information on activities and results in achieving the goals of the Alliance.

This Alliance Agreement shall remain in effect for two years. Any signatory participating organization may withdraw its participation in the Alliance Agreement for any reason at any time, by giving 30 days written notice to OSHA and the other participating organizations. The Alliance Agreement shall continue in effect for all other signatory participating organizations. This Alliance Agreement may be modified at any time with the written concurrence of all signatories, and may be terminated in its entirety before the expiration of two years by process.
 
Signed on this 30th day of October, 2007


Occupational Safety and Health Administration



 
Patricia K. Clark
Regional Administrator		  


 
Lisa Levy, Area Director
Hasbrouck Heights Area Office



 
Robert D. Kulick, Area Director
Avenel Area Office		  


 
Philip M. Peist, Area Director
Parsippany Area Office



 
Gary Roskoski, Area Director
Marlton Area Office		    


U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division



 
Corlis Sellers
Regional Administrator		  


 
Dominick Denato
Southern District Director



 
Joseph Petrecca
Northern District Director		    


New Jersey Department of Labor & Workforce Development



 
Leonard Katz, Assistant Commissioner
Labor Standards and Safety Enforcement		  


 
Michael McCarthy, Director
Div. of Wage and Hour Compliance



 
Howard Black, Director
Div. of Public Safety & Occupational S & H


New Jersey Department of Education



 
Jay Doolan, Ed.D, Assistant Commissioner
Division of Educational Standards & Programs		  


 
Marie Barry, Acting Director
Office of Career & Technical Education


University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey – School of Public Health



 
Audrey R. Gotsch, DrPH, CHES, Dean
UMDNJ – School of Public Health		  


 
Francis X. Colford, Vice President
for Finance and Treasurer, UMDNJ


Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute



 
Kenneth Reuhl, PhD, Acting Director
EOHSI		  


 
Philip Furmanski, PhD
Executive VP for Academic Affairs
Rutgers, The State University of NJ