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ALLIANCE CLOSE-OUT REPORT
ALLENTOWN AREA OFFICE
LEHIGH VALLEY AREA LABOR-MANAGEMENT COUNCIL
December 14, 2009
  1. Alliance Background

    Date Signed: October 14, 2005

    Date Renewed: December 17, 2007

    Date Renewed/Revised: A new Alliance with The Lehigh Valley Safety Committee – a Consortium of the Lehigh Valley Area Labor-Management Council, the American Red Cross of the Greater Lehigh Valley and Northampton Community College, was signed on December 14, 2009.

    Alliance Overview.

    The Lehigh Valley Labor Management Council is an organization of business, labor and community leaders formed to improve relations between labor and management resulting in a positive image, economic growth, and improved quality of life for unions, companies, and the communities served in Southeastern Pennsylvania. The OSHA alliance will provide Council members and others with training, information, guidance and access to OSHA resources that will help them reduce workplace injury and illness.

    Implementation Team Members.

    Tyrone Reed, Alvin H. Butz
    Mike Tirrell, Lehigh Valley Area Labor Management Council
    Timothy Duncan, City of Allentown
    Joy Zukauskas, American Red Cross of the Greater Lehigh Valley
    Karl Buesgen, Orlando Diefenderfer Electrical Contractor, IBEW 375
    Lee Cunningham, West Side-Hammer Electric, IBEW 375
    Bob Fehnel, Consultant
    Scott Parker, Brandenburg Industrial Service Company
    Andy Kubick, IBEW 375
    Scott Shimandle, USDOL/OSHA Allentown Area Office
    Jacque Creamer, Jr., PPL Corporation
    Deborah Sweinhart, PPL Corporation
    Tom Barnowski, Northampton Community College
    Judith Rex, Northampton Community College
    Scott Lindenmuth, Lehigh Carbon Community College
    Chris Moakley, Northampton County
    Robert Millet, Pa Dept. of Labor, Bureau of Mediation
    Zach Jerrold, Victaulic Corporation
    Cynthia Mellen, PA/OSHA Consultation Program at IUP

     
  2. Implementation Team Meetings

    January 12, 2009 Safety Alliance Committee Meeting at Alvin H. Butz, Inc.

    January 30, 2009 Fall Protection Subcommittee Meeting at Allentown OSHA Office

    February 9, 2009 Safety Alliance Committee Meeting at Cadmus Communications then Fall Protection Subcommittee Meeting

    February 17, 2009 Conference Call with IBEW Local 375 rep. and Executive Director

    February 20, 2009 Fall Protection Subcommittee Meeting at Allentown OSHA Office

    February 24, 2009 Fall Protection in General Industry Part II at Northampton Community College (Main Campus)

    March 19, 2009 Safety Alliance Committee Meeting at Alvin H. Butz, Inc. (CAS not in attendance)

    April 13, 2009 Safety Alliance Committee Meeting at Alvin H. Butz, Inc.

    May 7, 2009 Personal Safety and Domestic Violence Outreach at Northampton Community College (Main Campus) (Pa State Police)

    May 11, 2009 Safety Alliance Committee Meeting at Northampton Community College (Fowler Center)

    June 8, 2009 Safety Alliance Committee Meeting at Alvin H. Butz, Inc.

    July 13, 2009 Safety Alliance Committee Meeting at IBEW Local 375 Training Center

    August 17, 2009 Safety Alliance Committee Meeting at Alvin H. Butz, Inc.

    September 14, 2009 Safety Alliance Committee Meeting at Northampton Community College (Fowler Center)

    September 22, 2009 Fall Protection in Construction Part III Workshop at Northampton Community College (Main Campus)

    October 5, 2009 Safety Alliance Committee Meeting at the American Red Cross of the Greater Lehigh Valley Chapter

    November 9, 2009 Safety Alliance Committee Meeting at Lehigh Carbon Community College

    December 14, 2009 Safety Alliance Committee Meeting at Northampton Community College (Fowler Center)

     
  3. Activities and Products

    Evaluation Period.

    December 17, 2008 through December 14, 2009.

    Alliance Activity.
     
    • Training and Education
       
      1. Fall Protection in General Industry – Part II, was a session, presented by members of the Implementation Team, which discussed the various hazards and abatement of walking and working surfaces as well as elevated work surfaces, including scissor lifts, ladders and scaffolds. Additionally, a portion of the presentation focused on a host site’s control of a contractor providing service(s) and the need to monitor and/or evaluate the contractors’ adherence to the site’s fall protection policy.
      2. Personal Safety and Domestic Violence, was two (2) separate sessions conducted by the Pennsylvania State Police. During these sessions the Trooper stressed every day techniques to avoid being a victim of assaults and discussed the PA laws of domestic violence and State Police procedures.
      3. Fall Protection in Construction - Part III, was a session, presented by members of the Implementation Team (and a guest Architect), to discuss and share abatement efforts for both routine and non-routine fall hazards.
    • Outreach and Communication

      See comments above for Training and Education
       
    • Promoting the National Dialogue on Safety and Health

      No National Events held during this time frame.
       
    Alliance Products.
     
    • Training and Education
    • Outreach and Communication
    • Promoting the National Dialogue on Safety and Health
       
    The only products developed during this evaluation period were two (2) PowerPoint presentations (developed in-house by team members for the Fall Protection Workshops) and flyers which were used to announce/register for the seminars.

     
  4. Results
    1. The Fall Protection Seminars (both for General Industry and Construction) resulted in some very good dialog between the presenters and the audience, as many questions and various scenarios were described and discussed. Numerous OSHA handouts were provided to all the attendees so as to be used by the front-line supervisors and the foremen to aid them in conducting their "Tool-Box/Morning Huddle" meetings. Since fall hazards continue to be a leading cause of work-site injuries, efforts need to be made to keep all employees aware of the potential for fall hazards and that safe precautions are usually feasible.
       
    2. The table below lists each of the activities and the number of individuals reached during the reporting period.
       
      Type of Activity (Conference, Training, Print and Electronic Distribution, etc.) Number of Individuals Reached or Trained
      Fall Protection in General Industry – Part II 26
      Personal Safety/Workplace Violence 40
      Fall Protection in Construction – Part III 50
      TOTAL 116
       
    3. Issues that had a bearing on the Alliance’s implementation.

      It should be noted that this Alliance continues to be a focal point for numerous and various free safety and health events within the Lehigh Valley. Due in part to the "energy" and "leadership" of the organization, more and more employers and organizations are becoming actively involved with this Council.

      As noted in the Implementation Team Members listing above, two organizations - the Red Cross of the Greater Lehigh Valley and Northampton Community College continue to be active participants with the LVALMC, even though each has (had) a separate OSHA Alliance agreement. The Allentown Area Office had an Alliance with the American Red Cross of the Greater Lehigh Valley (which expired back in September 2009) and currently still has an Alliance with Northampton Community College (which is due to expire on December 18, 2009). Both of these organizations continue to support and actively participate with the LVALMC and as a result, are part of this OSHA Alliances.

      It is for this reason – the networking and collective assistance of these organizations that a new Alliance (a consortium of the three entities) has been drafted which will incorporate the LVALMC, the Red Cross of the Greater Lehigh Valley and Northampton Community College.

     
  5. Upcoming Milestones

    The LVALMC Alliance is currently working on a seminar to discuss "The Real Cost of Injuries" or "A Business Case for Safety", which is scheduled for March 16, 2010.
    Additionally, the members have been actively preparing for the third FREE Safety Expo, which is to be held on May 18, 2010 at DeSales University. There will be approximately 18-20 safety and health sessions held during the event, which will include such topics as Safety Committee Operations, Accident Investigation, Hazard Awareness, NFPA 70E, Driver Safety Awareness, Driving Simulator, Safety Accountability and Goal Setting, Incident Command System, Safety and Health and the Aging Worker, Pandemic Influenza, Stress Management, Drug and Alcohol Testing and Awareness and Safety Behaviors.


    Report Prepared by: Scott G. Shimandle, CAS Allentown Area Office

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


Page last updated: 03/12/2010