Alliance -- An OSHA Cooperative Program << Back to Concluded Regional Alliances - Region III

  1. Alliance Background

    Date Signed: 12-3-2007

    Date Renewed:

    Alliance Overview.

    The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Pittsburgh Area Office, the Pennsylvania OSHA Consultation Program at Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and the Blair County Pennsylvania Chamber of Commerce aligned to provide Chamber members and others with information, guidance, and access to training resources to promote safe and healthful working conditions at members’ worksites.

    Implementation Team Members.

    Joseph Hurd – Executive Director, Blair County Chamber of Commerce
    Don Imler – Safety/Risk Management Committee Chairperson, Blair County Chamber of Commerce (outgoing)
    April Ressler – Safety/Risk Management Committee Chairperson, Blair County Chamber of Commerce (incoming)
    Mike McMullen – VP Membership Services & Development, Blair County Chamber of Commerce
    John Engler – Project Manager, PA/OSHA Consultation (outgoing)
    Dave Rhodes – Project Manager, PA/OSHA Consultation (incoming)
    Robert Szymanski – Area Director, OSHA Pittsburgh Area Office
    Robert Carroll – CAS, OSHA Pittsburgh Area Office

     
  2. Implementation Team Meetings

    February 4, 2009 In-person Altoona, PA
    February 25, 2009 In-person Altoona, PA
    March 25, 2009 In-person Altoona, PA
    April 22, 2009 In-person Altoona, PA
    June 18, 2009 Conference Call
    October 28, 2009 In-person Altoona, PA

     
  3. Activities and Products

    Evaluation Period.

    December 3, 2008 to December 3, 2009

    Alliance Activity.

    February 20, 2009 – A safety program assessment and self-inspection seminar was conducted by Dave Rhodes (Director PA OSHA Consultation) and Bob Carroll (Pittsburgh AO CAS). The CAS provided a hand-out on the top twenty-five most frequently cited standards in general industry for Region III for the past two years.

    March 27, 2009 – An accident investigation workshop was conducted by Monica Meyer (East Coast Risk Management) and Chris Sloan (PMA Insurance Group)

    April 24, 2009 – A “People Based Safety” program was conducted by panel consisting of safety professional [Ivan Riggle – Albemarle Inc., Joe Adams – McLanahan Corporation, Ned Oliphant – Small Tube Corp., Dr Ed Luke – Health First Blair County, Chris Metzger – Curry Supply). Each person on the panel discussed the implementation and impact of behavior based safety strategies.

    May 15, 2009 – An OSHA workshop was conducted by Ed Selker (Region III DRA), Bob Carroll (Pittsburgh AO CAS), and Dave Rhodes (Director PA OSHA Consultation). The information covered was as follows: OSHA update, inspection policies and procedures, fatality statistics, frequently cited standards, recordkeeping, and fire prevention.

    October 2, 2009 – PennSafe conducted certified safety committee training. In Pennsylvania, this training qualifies companies to receive a five percent reduction on their worker’s compensation insurance premiums.

    October 3, 2009 – A mock disaster drill was conducted. This event was organized by Tom Churbock (Appleton Inc.). It was a community wide disaster hands-on drill. The following groups participated in the event: fire departments; EMS/ambulance services; emergency communication centers; law enforcement departments; hospitals; support services such as: American Red Cross, Salvation Army, PennDOT, PA-DEP, Indiana University of Pa; Media; and local businesses.

    November 20, 2009 – A fire safety program for business and industry was presented by Altoona Fire Marshall Randy Isenburg. The program included discussion of fire inspections, emergency response plans, employee training/education, fire department pre-plan, and practicing for an emergency.

    The Chamber has monthly Safety/Risk Management Committee meetings from September to May. These meetings not only work on planning future events, they act as a forum to exchange safety and health technical information and best practices. In addition, one local company is in the VPP program and at least three companies have safety professionals that have completed the OSHA train the trainer course for general industry.

    Alliance Products.

    A “Safety Bulletin” electronic newsletter was recently developed in June 2009. The newsletter has been e-mailed to approximately three hundred companies. The newsletter contained such articles as “Five Ways to Prevent Your Desk Job from Injuring You”; “What to Expect From an OSHA Inspection”; and “Are You Safe? Exits”. In addition, the newsletter contained electronic links to NIOSH, OSHA, and CDC sites.

     
  4. Results

    The activities provided during this evaluation period were well received. The member representatives and the recipients of the safety and health outreach activities/communications found the information valuable in assisting them in promoting and improving their safety and health efforts at their worksites.
     
    Type of Activity (Conference, Training, Print and Electronic Distribution, etc.) Number of Individuals Reached or Trained
    Safety Progam Assessment and Self Inspection Seminar 20
    Accident Investigation Workshop 30
    People Based Safety Program  
    OSHA Workshop 40
    Pennsafe certification 35
    Mock Disaster Drill 400
    Fire Safety Program 20
    Safety Bulletin (newsletter) 300
    TOTAL 845

    The working relationship between the Alliance Signatories and the feedback on the Alliance continues to be extremely positive. During this annual evaluation period, the implementation team has had two original members leave their positions. These team members have been replaced and a new member has been added. These new members have indicated their support and commitment.

     
  5. Upcoming Milestones

    Organizational concerns at national levels have been expressed as to the direction of the Agency. At the local level, the relationship between the signatories has been one of positive cooperation and respect in promoting workplace safety and health. However, at this time, it has been mutually agreed upon by the signatories to close out the Alliance, leaving the option to revisit a new alliance at a future date. Absent the Alliance agreement, the Pittsburgh Area Office will continue to address Chamber member safety and health outreach needs and concerns as resources permit.

    Report Prepared by: Bob Carroll, CAS, Pittsburgh Area Office

    For more information, contact the Office of Outreach Services and Alliances at 202-693-2340 or go to OSHA's Webpage.