OSHA Strategic Partnerships Program > Region 2

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OSHA Strategic Partnerships Program > Region 2 > #297 Partnership Agreement

Printing Instructions

CITY OF BUFFALO SCHOOLS PROJECT
BUFFALO, NEW YORK

Comprehensive Safety and Health Partnership Agreement

Between

Louis P. Ciminelli Management Company, Inc.

United States Department of Labor
Occupational Safety and Health Administration
Region 2, Buffalo Area Office

New York State Department of Labor
Division of Safety and Health
On-Site Consultation Program

Buffalo Building and Construction Trades Council,
AFL-CIO

Ciminelli Construction Companies
	Division of Safety and Health New York Department of Labor On-Site Consultation Program

Table of Contents

Section 1.0 Background
Section 2.0 Definitions
Section 3.0 Objectives and Measurements
Section 4.0 Participation Criteria
Section 5.0 Statement of Agreement
Section 6.0 Employee Participation & Employee Rights
Section 7.0 Eligibility of Program Participation
Section 8.0 Project Safety Analysis
Section 9.0 Project Inspections
Section 10.0 Evaluations
Section 11.0 Amendments to the Partnership Agreement
Section 12.0 Termination

1.0 BACKGROUND

The City of Buffalo Schools Project (herein referred to as the "Project") is a multi-faceted, large-scale construction project involving the renovation and updating of numerous public buildings in the Buffalo City School District. Additionally, there is potential for construction of new schools. The overall Project is estimated to be completed in ten years at a cost estimate of just under one billion dollars. At the height of this project, it is anticipated that there will be approximately 150-200 contractors working on-site with approximately 500-700 employees. The first phase of the Project consists of the renovation of nine school buildings as well as one district-wide initiative . The estimated completion time for the first phase is September 2004. This Project is unique in both scale of the project and activities, the duration of the Project and the continual operation of the existing public schools during the major portion of the renovation activities.

Louis P. Ciminelli Management Company, Inc. (herein referred to as either "Ciminelli" or "Program Provider") is the Program, Packaging, Development, Services Provider for this project. Louis P. Ciminelli Management Company, Inc., OSHA's Buffalo Area Office, the NYS Department of Labor 21(d) Consultation Service, and the Buffalo Building and Construction Trades Council, AFL-CIO have agreed to the joint implementation of this partnership with the common goal of reducing occupational-related fatalities and serious injuries and illnesses during all phases of the Project. This will be accomplished by developing a tripartite contractor/labor/government partnership that requires all contractors to meet minimum Safety and Health Program Standards, encouraging and assisting Ciminelli, general contractors, prime contractors and all subcontractors to improve their safety and health performance, and assisting them in doing so. By recognizing these contractors with exemplary safety and health programs, we jointly strive for the elimination of fatalities, serious accidents and illnesses during the term of this agreement.

The Partnership is exclusive to the City of Buffalo Schools Project, over approximately a 10-year period, the terms of the agreement will be adopted by all contractors on the Project and enforced by the Program Provider.

Expected outcomes of the partnership include: significantly reducing serious hazards at the worksite along with resultant injury or illness; developing and enhancing criteria for a model contractor safety and health program; making safety and health training available to all contractors employed on the Project; and reducing OSHA resources required for effective enforcement on the Project.

The Partnership will provide incentives to the contractors on this project who meet the enhanced requirements for safety and health performance and all other pertinent criteria listed in this partnership agreement. Incentives will include OSHA's public recognition of the Project's efforts to foster a safe and healthful work environment, limited scope "focused" inspections, and maximum Good Faith reductions in penalties. Off-site technical assistance from OSHA as well as limited on-site training will be available as needed and as resources permit. Priority from the NYS 21 (d) Consultative Services including on-site technical assistance and/or training will also be available.

This Partnership is consistent with OSHA's long-range efforts to develop a contractor/labor/government partnership approach to safety management. It allows for innovation in safety management, encourages more participation in the safety process from the construction companies and labor and for better use of OSHA resources.

Therefore, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Ciminelli, the State 21(d) Consultation Service, and the Buffalo Building and Construction Trades Council, AFL-CIO are entering into this partnership to foster a safer and healthier workplace for employees by having joint cooperation as prescribed within the terms and conditions set forth in this agreement.

2.0 DEFINITIONS

AFL-CIO	American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations
Competent Person	Means one who is capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards in the surroundings or working conditions which are unsanitary, hazardous, or dangerous to employees, and who has authorization to take prompt corrective measures to eliminate them.
DART	Incidence rate for recordable cases involving days away from work, days of restricted work activity or job transfer.
Job Enlargement	Expanding the job duties of a worker to encompass more diversified tasks so that the individual is not exposed to a hazard(s) for a prolonged period of time.
NYSED	New York State Education Department
OSHA	Occupational Safety and Health Administration, U.S. Department of Labor
OSH Act	Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, Public Law 91-596
OSHA 300 log	Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses
Qualified	Means one who, by possession of a recognized degree, certificate, or professional standing, or who by extensive knowledge, training, and experience, has successfully demonstrated his ability to solve or resolve problems relating to the subject matter, the work, or the project.
SIC Code	Standard Industrial Classification Code (Refer to Executive Office of the President Office of Management and Budget Standard Industrial Classification Code Manual 1987)
TCIR	Total Case Incidence Rate

An Effective, Comprehensive Safety and Health Program consists, at a minimum, of the following elements:

Management Commitment - Provides the motivating force and the resources (time, expertise, financial) for organizing and controlling activities within an organization. In an effective program, management regards worker safety and health as a fundamental value of the organization and applies its commitment to safety and health protection with as much vigor as to other organizational purposes. Management serves as a role model in safety and health matters for employees to emulate. Management commitment requires a leadership role when it comes to such matters as planning, written programs, authority and resources, line accountability and contract worker coverage.
Employee Involvement - Provides the means through which workers develop and/or express their own commitment to safety and health protection, for themselves and for their fellow worker. Employee involvement must be meaningful and without fear of reprisals. Examples of employee involvement include, but are not limited to:
1. Conducting site inspections, safety and health audits, job hazard analyses, and other types of hazard identification;
2. Developing and using a system of reporting hazards;
3. Developing and revising the site's safety and health rules and safe work practices;
4. Participating on workplace teams charged with identifying root causes of accidents, incidents, or breakdowns;
5. Implementing controls to eliminate or reduce hazard exposure;
6. Collecting samples for monitoring;
7. Making presentations at safety and health meetings;
8. Participating on safety and health committees, joint labor-management committees, and other advisory or specific purpose committees, if otherwise lawful and appropriate;
9. Delivering training to current and newly hired employees; and
10. Participation in safety and health program reviews
Worksite Analysis - Involves a variety of worksite examinations, to identify not only existing hazards but also conditions and operations in which changes might occur to create hazards. Worksite analyses can include, but are not limited to the following: physical inspections of the workplace to observe existing and potential hazards, conducting accident and near-miss investigations, evaluating trends in injuries and illnesses, evaluating trends in the severity of worker injuries and illnesses, evaluating worker's compensation trends, evaluating new and emerging hazards, and conducting medical symptom surveys of employees.
Hazard Prevention and Control - Triggered by a determination that a hazard or potential hazard exists. Where feasible, hazards are prevented by effective design of the job site or job. Where it is not feasible to eliminate them, they are controlled to prevent unsafe and unhealthful exposure. Elimination or control is accomplished in a timely manner, once a hazard or potential hazard is recognized. A few examples of hazard prevention and control include, but are not limited to: substitution of a toxic material with a less toxic material, rotating employees so that no one employee is exposed to a hazard, job enlargement, guards on machinery, fall protection, general or local exhaust ventilation.
Safety and Health Training - Addresses the safety and health responsibilities of all personnel concerned with the site, whether salaried or hourly. It is often most effective when incorporated into other training about performance requirements and job practices. Its complexity depends on the size and complexity of the worksite, and the nature of the hazards and potential hazards at the site.

3.0 OBJECTIVES AND MEASUREMENTS

The goal of this program is to develop a contractor/labor/government partnership that will encourage and assist construction contractors to improve their safety and health performance, strive for the elimination of the four focus hazards (falls, electrical, caught in/between, and struck-by hazards) which account for the majority of fatalities and injuries in this industry, prevent all other serious accidents and illnesses through implementation of enhanced safety and health programs, increase employee safety and health hazard awareness through effective employee training, and recognize those contractors with exemplary safety and health programs. The end result of this partnership is to foster a workplace culture that promotes the added value that safety and health brings to business, to employees, and to the western New York community at large.

The program will be adopted by all contractors on the Project, under the direction of the Program Provider. The Program Provider will exercise the authority to enforce the safety and health program on the Project. Under their contractual control, they will take appropriate action to ensure compliance with each Project site's specific safety and health plan as soon as the Program Provider becomes aware of potential safety and health hazards on the Project. This Agreement does not obviate each contractor's responsibility to provide a safe and healthful workplace for their respective employees.

Objectives include:

Reduce the number of incidents that have the potential to result in worker injury/illness, property damage, and environmental impact to the lowest reasonable level.
Zero exposure of employees to walking/working surfaces (horizontal and vertical) with unprotected sides or edges, which are 6 feet or more above a lower level.
Foster a sustainable working relationship between Louis P. Ciminelli Management Company, Inc., OSHA, New York State Department of Labor 21(d) Consultation Service, and the Buffalo Building and Construction Trades Council, AFL-CIO, local contractors, and other entities involved in this project.
Use the Buffalo Building and Construction Trades Council's framework to encourage positive change within the local construction industry with respect to betterment of construction safety and health in the western New York area.
Development, implementation, and maintenance of an effective comprehensive Project-specific safety and health program in accordance with the OSH Act and Standards, OSHA interpretations & guidelines, and the OSHA multi-employer worksite policy (reference OSHA Instruction CPL 2-0.124, "OSHA Multi-Employer Citation Policy"). These programs will be evaluated during OSHA verification inspections.
A project DART rate which is 25% less than the national average for Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Code 1542. Upon attaining this objective, strive to further reduce incident rates by 3% per year for the duration of the project.
Conduct a gap analysis of all participating contractors' site-specific safety and health programs and, through resource sharing, enhances these programs to meet the Partnership Agreement performance criteria. "Gap analysis" is the difference between the contractor's site-specific programs and Ciminelli's requirements for work procedures each contractor is to perform. Ciminelli will evaluate each contractor's site-specific safety and health program to ensure that it meets the required safety and health performance criteria for the site prior to commencement of their onsite activities. Ciminelli will provide assistance, if necessary at no cost, to upgrade contractor safety and health programs that are lacking any of the site safety and health performance criteria requirements.
Identification and correction of primary causal factors of employee injuries and illnesses, in particular those behind the top four causes of injuries: falls, electrocution, struck-by and caught in/between. Injury and illness incidence in these four targeted areas will be evaluated through the OSHA 300 log and any other relevant accident reports.
Zero fatalities.
Employees of all contractors performing work on this project will receive and complete, at minimum, the OSHA 10-hour construction industry safety training course. This will normally be accomplished within two months of starting work on this project. Contractors will be responsible for ensuring that this training requirement is met for their respective employees.
All foremen, supervisors and superintendents of all contractors performing work on this project will receive and complete, at minimum, the OSHA 30-hour construction industry safety training course. This will normally be accomplished within two months of starting work on this project. Contractors will be responsible for ensuring that this training requirement is met for their respective foremen, supervisors and superintendents.
Within three years of the commencement of this project, it shall be a goal of this partnership agreement, that the Project will have in effect all the necessary elements for it to qualify for application into OSHA's premier partnership program, the Voluntary Protection Programs.

4.0 PARTICIPATION CRITERIA

All participating Project contractors must comply with the terms of the partnership to work on the Project.

Contractors will be required to adopt and implement the Project-specific safety and health program developed by Ciminelli, which includes the following elements:
1. Management Leadership
2. Employee Involvement
3. Identification of Hazards through Worksite Inspections/Job Safety Analysis
4. Hazard Prevention and Control
5. Employee and Supervisory Orientation and Training
The contractors will be required as terms of their contracts to adopt these "enhanced" safety and health requirements as well as all the other provisions of this agreement:
1. A permit requirement and prior approval for confined space work, hot work, and excavation work.
2. Compliance with the Ciminelli's Project visitor, vendor, and security policies.
3. Prior approval for use of non-conventional fall protection measures. Fall protection will be required for work at all heights of six feet or greater from the lower work surface. It is expected by this partnership that it will only be rare instances when fall protection will be infeasible for work over six feet, but less than 10 feet. In those rare circumstances when fall protection is deemed to be infeasible after exhausting all possible alternatives, and only after prior discussion with either OSHA or the NYS 21(d) Consultation Service, will employees on this project be allowed to work at heights over six feet, but less than ten feet from the lower work surface without the use of personal fall arrest systems.
4. Mandatory use of Ground Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFCIs) throughout the project.
Contractors will be required as terms of their contracts, to have competent personnel on site that are responsible for, possess the authority to, and are capable of effectively implementing the overall Project-specific safety and health program as well as their own safety and health program.
Contractors shall be required to complete a successful monthly assessment of the implementation of their own work experiences in the Project-specific safety and health program as well as the implementation of their own safety and health program. In addition, each contractor will have an assessment performed by the Program Provider. These assessments shall be performed bi-monthly. If any contractor is working on this Project for less than two months, then their assessment will be completed at the halfway point from their anticipated completion date. The contractor assessment shall consider:
1. A successful weekly audit
2. The degree to which this program has been implemented
3. The presence of competent persons as required by relevant standards
4. The means by which the program is enforced
5. An evaluation of any near miss or incident, and
6. An evaluation of the effectiveness of their safety and health training program with particular emphasis on safe or unsafe work practices/behaviors observed.

5.0 STATEMENT OF AGREEMENT

OSHA, Ciminelli, the NYS 21(d) Consultation Service, and the Buffalo Building and Construction Trades Council, AFL-CIO agree to work in partnership to improve employee safety and health at the Buffalo City Schools Project. Accordingly they make the following commitments:

OSHA agrees:
1. To help identify programmatic needs at this project by reviewing the documented Project-specific safety and health program and by providing practical help/advice in implementing the program. The Project Safety and Health Manager from Ciminelli will be responsible for development and implementation of the program, with input from the OSHA Compliance Assistance Specialist, offsite. Modifications to the plan will be made in writing within 30 days.
2. To help identify, through the collection of OSHA 300 data or Project accident reports, offsite, the primary causal factors for injuries and illnesses, in particular the four top hazards at this Project, and assist in developing countermeasures for correcting those hazards.
3. To provide access to training resources including onsite training and providing information on other available sources of training.
4. To clarify the intent of OSHA standards and resolve conflicts of interpretation with assistance from the OSHA National Office.
5. To provide appropriate positive publicity when appropriate, which can include, but is not limited to: press releases, media interviews, publicity on the OSHA web page, and attendance at the ground breaking ceremony. Every effort will be made to coordinate positive press releases from all signatories of this agreement prior to their being released to the media.
New York State Department of Labor, 21(d) Consultation Service agrees:
The New York State Department of Labor's On-Site Consultation Program will provide resources, as necessary and available, to support the priority training and technical assistance needs for the participants of this partnership. Such assistance, which is provided only at the request of the employer, may be in the form of onsite or off-site safety and/or health consultations. All consultation findings will be kept confidential, so long as employer agrees to correct any serious hazards that may be identified. There are no costs to the employer for the assistance provided by the On-site Consultation Program under this agreement.
Louis P. Ciminelli Management Company, Inc. agrees:
1. Incorporate specific safety and health program performance requirements into all contracts including new hire orientations, weekly safety and health craft meetings, and incentive programs.
2. Conduct a pre-bid meeting to discuss safety and health performance expectations, prior to receiving bids from prospective contractors.
3. Conduct a pre-construction safety and health meeting with successful bidders to integrate contractor programs into the Project-specific safety and health program and performance expectations.
4. Hold monthly project safety and health meetings to discuss program status and participant performance.
5. Assign a qualified safety and health representative to administer the Project-specific safety and health program.
6. Maintain a project OSHA 300 Log (or equivalent database).
7. To develop and apply all relevant components of the Project-specific safety and health program to the Project relative to the scope of work performed.
8. To incorporate into a written Project-specific safety and health program all essential elements of a basic safety and health program including management leadership, employee involvement, work site analysis, hazard prevention and control, and safety and health training.
9. To comply with all current OSHA standards.
10. To require management from each contractor on the Project to provide visible leadership in the implementation of Project-specific safety and health program. This includes:
  1. Establishing clear lines of communication with Project employees,
  2. Setting an example of safe and healthful behavior, and
  3. Ensuring that all Project employees are provided equally high-quality safety and health protection.
11. That planning for safety and health must be part of each contractor's management planning process. This includes ensuring that pre-job planning and preparation for different phases of construction as the work progresses is performed. Each contractor must prepare written pre-job and pre-phase safety and health planning documents (e.g., job hazard analyses) with the level of detail that is appropriate to the size and type of the site and the types of hazards and challenges presented. Ciminelli agrees to monitor that pre-job and pre-phase written hazard assessments are conducted and are adequate to control or eliminate all foreseeable hazards that may be present.
12. That Project-specific safety and health program responsibilities will be established by Ciminelli and communicated to all employer representatives of each Project contractor prior to any contractor beginning any work on this Project. This will be accomplished by implementation of the following criteria:
  1. Responsibility must be clearly defined by each contractor in writing, for full coverage of the scope of that contractor's work. Every Project employee must be able to describe his or her responsibilities for safety and health
  2. Those who have responsibility and authority must have adequate resources, including staff and equipment, to meet their responsibilities
  3. All contractors performing work on this Project must have and implement an Accountability Program for safety and health matters.
13. To evaluate the Project-specific safety and health program at least annually and prepare a report that evaluates the effectiveness of all elements listed above as well as progress in achieving the goals of this partnership agreement.
14. To submit to OSHA on a quarterly basis a listing of all contractors active on each site of the Project, identifying any contractors that have not fully complied with the terms of this agreement.
15. To establish a Joint Safety & Health Committee that involves employee participation as required by NYSED.
The Buffalo Building and Construction Trades Council, AFL-CIO, agrees:
1. To fully support and encourage employee participation in all matters relative to safety and health during this project with a spirit of cooperativeness.
2. To encourage their members to comply with the Project-specific safety and health program as well as any and all site safety and health rules established for work at any site covered by this Project.
3. To willingly assist in identifying hazard control options and make recommendations as appropriate to the Program Provider.
4. To work with the Program Provider if disputes arise and attempt to resolve them internally to the extent possible. Participation by the Unions in Project safety and health matters will not diminish employee rights or responsibilities under the OSH Act.

6.0 EMPLOYEE PARTICIPATION & EMPLOYEE RIGHTS

This partnership fully endorses and recognizes the value of employee participation. As an integral component of an effective safety and health program the ability of employees to exercise their rights, which are guaranteed under the OSH Act, will not be infringed. This partnership does not preclude employees and/or employers from exercising any right provided under the OSHA Act, nor does it abrogate any responsibility to comply with rules and regulations adopted pursuant to the Act.

The Program Manager will develop and implement a system for all employees on-site to report hazards without fear of reprisal or retaliation. During the orientation session with each contractor, employees will be notified that they may report a potential hazard to the Project Safety Manager's field trailer(s) or field office(s) either verbally or by use of forms that will be made available at the field trailer(s) or field office(s).
The Joint Safety & Health Committee will meet routinely to discuss safety and health initiatives at the Project and to review accidents, incidents and near misses. This committee should consist of: representatives from the City of Buffalo Board of Education, the City of Buffalo School District's Safety and Health Committee, representatives from employers' insurance carriers, representatives from the City of Buffalo Fire Department, representatives from the Program Provider, representatives of the design team, employee representatives including representatives from any designated collective bargaining groups whom may be working at any of the Project's sites, and contractor representatives.
Employee representatives from each contractor will also be allowed an opportunity to participate in their company's weekly work area inspections and any accident investigations that may take place

7.0 ELIGIBILITY FOR PROGRAM PARTICIPATION

By February 1st of each year, contractors will submit to the Program Provider summary injury/illness data and records, which document their DART and TCIR rates for all work on this project. Contractors working less than one year on this project will maintain injury and illness data (DART and TCIR rates) for all work performed on this project and will provide such data and records to the Program Provider after completion of their work on the Project. In addition, each contractor will submit their corporate-wide OSHA history (i.e., for any and all work performed anywhere in the U.S.) to the Program Provider by February 1st for each year of the Project. The Program Provider will use a contractor's OSHA history as a tool to determine each contractor's overall management commitment towards safety and health and to establish if each contractor is attempting to foster a workplace culture that promotes safety and health at work sites not covered by this agreement.
All contractors must have a Competent Person on site that is responsible for recognizing safety and health hazards and has the authority to implement corrective action or remove employees from the hazard or halt work until the hazard is eliminated or controlled. Additionally, each contractor will have a person responsible for effectively implementing the Project-specific safety and health program relative to the scope of the work being performed and has the authority to halt work if necessary. This could be accomplished by use of different individuals or be one in the same.
All contractors must complete a successful assessment of their site safety and health program each month or upon completion of their work on the Project, whichever comes first. This assessment must be submitted to the Program Provider in writing and shall include the following, at minimum:
1. Satisfactory completion of the weekly audit
2. The degree to which this program has been implemented and communicated to each and every employee of that contractor at that site
3. The presence of Competent Person(s) as required by relevant standards and this agreement
4. The means by which the program is enforced
5. An evaluation of any near-miss incidents, accidents, injuries or illnesses.
6. Number of hazards identified, number of hazards eliminated or controlled, and a listing of all hazards still requiring corrective action and the progress of any efforts to correct these hazard
All contractors must implement the Project-specific safety and health program that is appropriate for the scope of the work activities to be performed.

8.0 PROJECT SAFETY ANALYSIS

Management of safety and health depends upon a thorough understanding of the potentially hazardous conditions to which Project workers may be exposed and the ability to recognize and correct all existing hazards as they arise.

Contractor Safety and Health Programs

This will include the contractors reasonably demonstrating the use or existence of the following:
1. Analysis of all new and acquired processes, materials, chemicals, equipment, and any other measures required prior to the start of construction to determine potential hazards and to plan for their prevention or control.
2. Routine examination and analysis of hazards associated with specific projects, construction activities, or phases (Job Hazard Analyses).
3. Routine self-inspections and tracking of hazard abatement, with written reports.
4. A system for Project employees to notify management, without fear of retaliation, about conditions that appear hazardous.
5. A system for investigating accidents and near-misses, for identifying contributing and root causes for accidents and near-misses including written procedures or guidance, written reports of investigative findings, and the tracking of hazard correction to completion.
6. A system to analyze trends through a review of Project injury and illness data, and the hazards identified through inspections so that patterns of common causes can be identified and eliminated.
Hazard Prevention and Control
1. The contractors will be required to eliminate or control identified hazards by the following methods:
  1. Engineering controls;
  2. Administrative controls, such as job rotation and/or job enlargement;
  3. Personal protective equipment; and,
  4. Safety and health rules, including work procedures for specific operations that are communicated to and understood and followed by all affected workers and managers.
  *Note: The preferred hierarchy of controls will be to use engineering controls first and use of administrative controls or work practice controls second. Only when feasible engineering controls, administrative controls or effective work practices are not adequate to eliminate or reduce a hazard, only then is the utilization of personal protective equipment to be used. The use of personal protective equipment alone is not to be considered in the assessment of how to protect employees.
2. Each contractor must have a system for initiating hazard correction actions in a timely manner and for tracking the corrective actions to completion when hazards are identified.
3. Each contractor must have a medical program designed to recognize that injuries and illnesses may occur and must properly assure that prompt effective emergency medical and first aid services as required by OSHA standards is readily available.
4. Emergency response procedures must be written and communicated to Project employees. The procedures must list emergency telephone numbers, signals, emergency routes, emergency exits, safe meeting areas, requirements for personal protective equipment, and include training and regular evacuation drills.
Indoctrination and Training
1. Each contractor will be required to inform its own employees, employees of subcontractors and other employees on the Project how the partnership agreement operates and the rights of employees under the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
2. All contractors and subcontractors must provide safety and health training as required by this agreement and any Federal, State, or local regulation. This training must be performed by a qualified safety trainer.
  
  If any Project entity (i.e., Program Provider, general contractor, prime contractor, contractor, subcontractor or any other entity working on any Project site) does not meet the aforementioned criteria, an OSHA inspection of their work and the safety and health performance of that party shall proceed in accordance with traditional OSHA guidelines for comprehensive inspections.

9.0 PROJECT INSPECTIONS

Program Provider Inspections: Safety and health inspections will be conducted and documented by the Program Provider or its representative, with employee involvement, on a weekly basis and will not be limited to just the four focused hazards (falls, struck by, crushed by and electrical). These weekly documents will state that hazards identified have been corrected and/or employees removed from continued exposure.

The Program Provider may delegate the task of inspecting part or all of the Project inspections to an outside party, provided that representatives of labor and management be afforded the opportunity to participate in such inspections, and provided further that the findings and recommendations of each inspection are reviewed at monthly safety and health meetings and communicated to employees. Those conducting the inspections must have adequate hazard recognition skills obtained through either formal education and/or industry experience.
OSHA Inspections:
1. Onsite Verification: In order to qualify for this partnership, a verification inspection by OSHA will be conducted within three months of the signing this agreement and annually thereafter. This verification inspection will determine if the Program Provider and the contractors on this Project have met the requirements of this partnership. After the initial verification inspection, annual inspections will focus on the most serious hazards (i.e., falls, electrocution, caught in/between and struck-by) in accordance with OSHA's focused inspection policy. Serious hazards in plain view will be subject to citation and penalty. For other-than-serious violations, other than 29 CFR 1903 and 1904, no penalties will be assessed for non-serious violations provided that they are abated the same day as the inspection. Prompt abatement of serious violations will lead to a consideration of the maximum good faith reduction. If considered necessary, additional focused inspections of contractors who have entered the Project subsequent to the last verification inspection may be conducted. Contractors meeting the full requirements will receive a deferral from programmed targeted inspections.
2. Complaint/Referral Investigations: OSHA agrees that a copy of each non-formal complaint/referral related to the work at the Project and filed with OSHA will be forwarded by fax, or by other means, to the Ciminelli's field office or trailer. The name of the complainant will not be revealed. Ciminelli agrees to promptly investigate complaints, regardless of the employer involved, and provide OSHA with a written response within two days for non-formal complaints/referrals alleging a serious hazard, and within three days when an other-than-serious hazard is alleged.
  
  Failure to meet these time frames will place the complaint/referral outside the scope of this partnership and OSHA will respond as it would to any complaint of a similar nature.
3. Formal written and signed complaints from employees or their representatives will be handled in the traditional manner. Upon arrival at the Project site, the Compliance Safety & Health Officer will report to the Ciminelli Construction Companies' field office to initiate the inspection/investigation of the complaint items. This inspection will generally be focused only on the areas of the alleged complaint.
4. Accident Investigations/Imminent Danger Situations. Employers engaged in this partnership recognize that OSHA will fully investigate accidents involving death, catastrophic injuries, imminent danger situations, or significant threat of occupationally-induced illnesses. These investigations will be conducted outside the scope of this partnership agreement in accordance with established OSHA inspection policies.

10.0 EVALUATIONS

All signatory parties will evaluate this partnership annually. Such evaluations will include criteria such as, but not necessarily limited to, the reduction of injuries, illnesses and fatalities, an analysis and trending of contractor DART and TCIR rates, number of hazards identified and eliminated/controlled, effectiveness of safety and health training programs, effectiveness of the Accountability Program and the overall effectiveness of the Project-specific safety and health program. Ciminelli's evaluation will include a comparison of the each contractor's OSHA DART and TCIR rates when compared with the latest US DOL/ Bureau of Labor Statistic data for each respective contractor's SIC Codes. Written summaries will be provided to OSHA. The Program Provider will gather appropriate information which will be used as an evaluation tool to help gauge the effectiveness of the program and will be used to compile the annual evaluation as noted above.

11.0 AMENDMENTS TO THE PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT

This agreement may be modified at any time when all signatory parties agree to the proposed amended language. Any modified agreement requires the signature from a representative from each of the signatory parties.

12.0 TERMINATION

This program may be terminated when any signatory party withdraws. A notice of intent to withdraw will be provided by the signatory party thirty days prior to any proposed termination. Barring any premature termination, this partnership agreement will terminate ten years from the signing date or upon completion of the Project or if the Project is accepted into the Voluntary Protection Programs.

SIGNATURES

___________________________________________ Patricia K. Clark Region 2 Regional Administrator U.S. Department of Labor/OSHA	______________ Date
___________________________________________ Arthur J. Dube Area Director, Buffalo Area OSHA Office U.S. Department of Labor	______________ Date
___________________________________________ Louis P. Ciminelli, Chairman and CEO Louis P. Ciminelli Management Company, Inc.	______________ Date
___________________________________________ Steven M. Rollins, Executive Vice President Construction Operations Louis P. Ciminelli Management Company, Inc.	______________ Date
___________________________________________ Greg Conrad, Supervising Safety & Health Inspector New York State Department of Labor Division of Safety and Health, On-Site Consultation Program	______________ Date
___________________________________________ Daniel Boody, President Buffalo Building and Construction Trades Council, AFL-CIO	______________ Date

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