Alliance Logo<< Back to Concluded Regional Alliances - Region VI


OSHA and NORTHROP GRUMMAN SHIPBUILDING
ANNUAL AREA ALLIANCE
Close-Out Report
August 10, 2009
On May 30, 2007, the OSHA Region VI Baton Rouge, Louisiana Area Office; Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding’s New Orleans (NGSB-NO) Operations; and the New Orleans Metals Trades Council (NOMTC) signed an Alliance to explore ways of changing the shipyard’s safety culture and engaging all employees in the process. (NOMTC is the collective bargaining agent that represents many of Northrop Grumman’s 5,200 employees.) The Alliance was designed to be a forum to empower the workforce and drive change.

Through OSHA and Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding’s New Orleans (NGSB-NO) Operations and the New Orleans Metals Trades Council (NOTMC), worked together to meet the agreements’ goals and achieve a number of successes including:
  • August 28, 2008: Convened for OSHA-BR / NOMTC / NGSB-NO Alliance Meeting and VPP MAP site evaluation.
     
  • November 20, 2008: Convened for OSHA-BR / NOMTC / NGSB-NO Alliance Meeting.
     
  • March 12, 2009: NOMTC and NGSB-NO Meeting with OSHA-BR at the area office to set date for NGSB-NO VPP site evaluation.
     
  • March 2009: Published Alliance success story on OSHA’s website
     
  • April 20-22, 2009: Conducted Site evaluation of the NGSB Modular Construction facility located in Waggaman, Louisiana for VPP certification. The VPP team recommended the location for star status.
     
  • June 30, 2009: Baton Rouge VPP Coordinator CAS and SGE, conducted a site visit of the Northrop Grumman Ship Systems in New Orleans, Louisiana.
     
After two years of alliance activities, meetings were conducted with the implementation team, consisting of open discussions/brainstorming sessions, site visits and evaluations, in order to meet established goals that would best serve, promote, and effect a change in the safety culture at the facility.

Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding New Orleans is slated for VPP evaluation in October 2009. As a result, OSHA and NGSB-NO agreed to conclude the alliance as of August 10, 2009.
Report prepared by: Wilfred Hebert, Compliance Assistant Specialist, Baton Rouge Area Office, August 10, 2009.