Region 2 News Release: 08-311-NEW/BOS 2008-085
Mon., March 17, 2008
Contact: Ted Fitzgerald
Phone: 617-565-2074 
 

U.S. Labor Department's OSHA forms alliance with Mohawk Valley Safety Professionals Consortium

SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Enhancing workplace safety and health in the Mohawk Valley is the goal of a new alliance between the Syracuse Area Office of the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Mohawk Valley Safety Professionals Consortium (MVSPC).

"Alliances such as this one are part of U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao's ongoing efforts to improve the health and safety of employees through cooperative relationships with trade associations, labor organizations, employers and employees," said Louis Ricca Jr., OSHA's acting regional administrator in New York.

Under the alliance, OSHA and MVSPC will work jointly to provide the consortium's members and others with information, guidance and access to training resources that will help them protect their employees' health and to develop effective safety and health management systems.

Goals will include delivery of OSHA's 10-hour Occupational Safety and Health Standards course, sharing of best practices and effective approaches to safety and health, and promoting and encouraging MVSPC members' participation in OSHA's cooperative programs, including the Voluntary Protection Programs, the safety consultation service, and the Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program.

"This alliance seeks to equip employers and employees with an invaluable tool: the knowledge to identify and address on-the-job hazards," said Christopher Adams, OSHA's area director in Syracuse. "The effective use of that knowledge will mean safer and healthier workplaces here in the Mohawk Valley."

The alliance was signed by OSHA's Ricca and Adams and by MVSPC board members Scott Millbower, Bruce Kapfer, Scott Wierzbicki, Dave Lyman and Wendy Fical. Founded in 2001, MVSPC is comprised of area manufacturers, educational organizations, health care groups, service providers and other professionals.

OSHA's safety and health alliances provide parties an opportunity to participate in a voluntary cooperative relationship with the agency for purposes such as training and education, outreach and communication, and promoting a national dialogue on workplace safety and health. Alliances have proved to be valuable tools for both OSHA and its alliance partners. For information about OSHA alliances in central New York, contact Dave Heckman; telephone 315-451-0808, ext. 3003.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing a safe and healthy workplace for their employees. OSHA's role is to promote the safety and health of America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards; providing training, outreach and education; establishing partnerships; and encouraging continual process improvement in workplace safety and health. For more information, visit www.osha.gov.
 

###

U.S. Department of Labor releases are accessible on the Internet at www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format (large print, Braille, audiotape or disc) from the COAST office upon request. Please specify which news release when placing your request at 202-693-7828 or TTY 202-693-7755. The Labor Department is committed to providing America's employers and employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit www.dol.gov/compliance.