Chicago Region - Alliance Agreement - August 19, 2025

Chicago Region - Alliance Agreement - August 19, 2025

AGREEMENT ESTABLISHING AN ALLIANCE
BETWEEN
CHICAGO SOUTH AND NAPERVILLE ILLINOIS AREA OFFICES
THE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
AND
THREE RIVERS MANUFACTURERS’ ASSOCIATION (TRMA)

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Chicago South and Naperville Area Offices and Three Rivers Manufacturers' Association (TRMA) recognize the value of establishing a collaborative relationship to foster safety and health practices and programs to improve American workplaces. To that end, OSHA and TRMA hereby form an Alliance to provide members and the public with information, guidance, and access to training resources that will help them protect workers by reducing and preventing exposure to General lndustry and Construction lndustry hazards as well as PSM related hazards, and understand the rights of workers and the responsibilities of employers under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act).

This agreement provides a framework and objectives for the Alliance's activities. Alliance participants also agree to meet the "Fundamental Requirements for OSHA Alliance Program Participants" and the "Guidelines for OSHA's Alliance Program Participants: Alliance Products and Other Alliance Projects."

Through the Alliance, the organizations will use available injury, illness, and hazard exposure data, when appropriate, to help identify areas of emphasis for Alliance awareness, outreach, and communication activities. The Alliance will also explore and implement selected options, including but not limited to member surveys, to evaluate the Alliance and measure the impact on improving workplace safety and health. In developing this Alliance, OSHA and TRMA recognize that OSHA's State Plan and On-Site Consultation Program partners are an integral part of the OSHA national effort, and that information about the products and activities of the Alliance may be shared with these partners for the advancement of common goals.

Raising Awareness: Outreach and Communication

The Participants intend to work together to achieve the following objectives:

  • Distribute key information on OSHA's National, Regional, and Local Initiatives, including Emphasis Programs, Regulatory Updates, and Outreach Efforts, while promoting opportunities for industry participation in safety initiatives and the rulemaking process.
  • Educate employers and workers on occupational safety and health laws and standards, emphasizing their rights and responsibilities to create safer workplaces.
  • Engage with industry stakeholders by speaking, exhibiting, or participating in OSHA and TRMA conferences, local meetings, and other industry-related events to promote best practices in workplace safety.
  • Host and contribute to forums, roundtable discussions, and stakeholder meetings focused on New to lndustry, New to Site, New to Craft, and Process Safety Management (PSM) to foster collaboration and innovative safety solutions.
  • Develop and share resources on workplace hazard recognition and prevention, ensuring clear and effective communication with employers and workers across the industry.
  • Promote inclusivity by ensuring all safety information is culturally relevant, reflects workforce diversity, and is accessible in multiple languages and formats.
  • Facilitate knowledge sharing among OSHA personnel and safety professionals by organizing training programs, workshops, seminars, and industry discussions to highlight best practices and effective safety strategies.
Training and Education

The Participants intend to work together to achieve the following objectives:

  • Develop and implement comprehensive training programs for the local manufacturing and construction communities, focusing on New to Industry, New to Site, and New to Craft workers and Process Safety Management (PSM). These programs will emphasize hazard recognition, accident prevention, and workplace safety while ensuring information is effectively communicated to employers and workers. Training materials will be made accessible in multiple languages and formats to meet the diverse needs of the workforce.
  • Provide targeted training courses on hazard recognition and accident prevention for workers who are new to the industry, site, or craft, equipping them with the necessary knowledge to work safely and effectively.
  • Educate the local manufacturing and construction workforces on workers' rights and employer responsibilities under OSHA regulations, including the OSHA complaint process. Ensure training materials are developed in inclusive, multilingual, and accessible formats to effectively reach all employers and workers.

OSHA's Alliances provide organizations an opportunity to participate in a voluntary cooperative relationship with OSHA for purposes such as raising awareness of OSHA's initiatives, outreach, communications, training, and education. These Alliances have proven to be valuable tools for both OSHA and Alliance participants. By entering into an Alliance with an organization, OSHA is not endorsing or promoting, nor does it intend to endorse or promote any of that organization's products or services.

An implementation team made up of representatives of each organization will meet one to two times per year to track and share information on activities and results in achieving the goals of the Alliance. OSHA team members will include representatives of the Chicago South and Naperville Area Offices. OSHA will encourage State Plans' and OSHA On-Site Consultation program participation on the team.

This agreement will remain in effect for two years. Either signatory may terminate their organization's participation in the agreement for any reason at any time, provided they give 30 days' written notice. This agreement may be modified at any time with the written concurrence of both signatories.

Signed this 19 day of August, 2025.

Raymond Woodworth
Executive Director
Three Rivers Manufacturers' Association

James Martineck, Area Director
Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Chicago South Area Office

Jacob Scott, Area Director
Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Naperville Area Office

Partnership #1428 - Agreement - September 5, 2025

Partnership #1375 - Signing Photo - September 10, 2024

Matthew Thurlby, Area Director, Omaha Area Office, US DOL-OSHA, with representatives from Nebraska On-Site Consultation and Holder Construction Goup, sign the Partnership agreement.
Matthew Thurlby, Area Director, Omaha Area Office, US DOL-OSHA, with representatives from Nebraska On-Site Consultation and Holder Construction Goup, sign the Partnership agreement.
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Partnership #1375 - Agreement - September 10, 2024

ReMA - Alliance Renewal Agreement - September 4, 2025

ReMA - Alliance Renewal Agreement - September 4, 2025

AGREEMENT RENEWING AN ALLIANCE
BETWEEN
THE OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH ADMINISTRATION
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
AND
THE RECYCLED MATERIALS ASSOCIATION
(FORMERLY KNOWN AS THE INSTITUTE OF SCRAP RECYCLING INDUSTRIES, INC.)

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Recycled Materials Association (ReMA), formerly known as the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries, Inc. (ISRI), continue to recognize the value of maintaining a collaborative relationship to foster safety and health practices and programs to improve American workplaces. To that end, OSHA and the ReMA hereby renew, in part, the Alliance signed October 19, 2015, and renewed December 7, 2020, with a continued emphasis on protecting the health and safety of workers in the recycling industry. Specifically, the organizations are committed to providing ReMA members and the public with information, guidance, and access to training resources that will help them protect the health and safety of workers, and understand the rights of workers and the responsibilities of employers under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act). Through the Alliance, the organizations will continue to address recycling industry hazards, such as slips, trips, and falls; heat and cold stress; lithium battery and needlestick injuries; and other topics as appropriate, with particular emphasis on outreach to small- and medium-sized employers.

This agreement provides a framework and objectives for the Alliance's activities. Alliance participants also agree to meet the requirements for program participation laid out in the "Fundamental Requirements for OSHA Alliance Program Participants" and the "Guidelines for OSHA's Alliance Program Participants: Alliance Products and Other Alliance Projects."

Through the Alliance, the organizations will use relevant injury, illness, and hazard exposure data, when appropriate, to help identify areas of emphasis for Alliance awareness, outreach, and communication activities. The Alliance will also explore and implement selected options, including but not limited to member surveys, to evaluate the Alliance and measure the impact on improving workplace safety and health. In renewing this Alliance, OSHA and ReMA recognize that OSHA's State Plan and On-Site Consultation Program partners are an integral part of the OSHA national effort, and that information about the products and activities of the Alliance may be shared with these partners for the advancement of common goals.

Raising Awareness: Outreach and Communication

The Participants intend to work together to achieve the following objectives:

  • Share information on OSHA's National Initiatives (Emphasis Programs, Regulatory Agenda, Outreach), and opportunities to participate in initiatives and the rulemaking process.
  • Share information on occupational safety and health laws and standards, including the rights and responsibilities of workers and employers.
  • Develop information on the recognition and prevention of workplace hazards such as back overs and distracted driving; slips, trips, and falls; needlestick injuries; heat and cold stress; musculoskeletal injuries; and other recycling industry hazards, and communicate such information (e.g., via educational webinars, the EHS Update e-newsletter, ReMA Safety Stand-Down Day materials, the OSHA and ReMA websites, and other mechanisms, as appropriate) to employers and workers in the recycling industry. Ensure information developed reflects the workforce and is available in multiple languages and formats.
  • Speak, exhibit, or appear at OSHA and ReMA conferences, local meetings, or other events such as ReMA's Safety & Environmental Council meetings and the Annual ReMA Convention & Exposition.
  • Convene or participate in forums, roundtable discussions, or stakeholder meetings on recycling industry hazards to help forge innovative solutions in the workplace or to provide input on safety and health issues.
  • Ensure Alliance activities are informed by the perspectives of non-managerial workers employed in the recycling industry by establishing a worker safety and health advisory committee of non-management level employees that is reflective of the recycling industry's workforce to: share information about workplace rights and responsibilities; gather information about safety and health practices in member facilities; and collect feedback on Alliance activities.
  • Encourage recycling industry participation in and support of OSHA events and programs such as the National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls in Construction, and the Safe + Sound Campaign.
  • Collaborate with other Alliance participants to address workplace safety and health issues, such as lithium battery hazards in recycling collection and processing.
  • Encourage ReMA members and other industry stakeholders to build relationships with OSHA's Regional and Area Offices; participate in OSHA's Cooperative Programs, such as the Safety & Health Achievement Recognition Program and the Voluntary Protection Program; and utilize OSHA's On-Site Consultation Program to improve health and safety in recycling workplaces.
Training and Education

The Participants intend to work together to achieve the following objectives:

  • Develop effective training and education programs for the recycling industry regarding transportation hazards; slips, trips, and falls; needlestick injuries; heat and cold stress; musculoskeletal injuries; and/or other industry specific hazards and communicate such information to constituent employers and workers. Ensure training materials/programs are made available in appropriate languages and formats to meet the needs of their target audiences.

OSHA's Alliances provide organizations an opportunity to participate in a voluntary cooperative relationship with OSHA for purposes such as raising awareness of OSHA's initiatives, outreach, communication, training, and education. These Alliances have proved to be valuable tools for both OSHA and Alliance participants. In entering this Alliance, OSHA and ReMA acknowledge that this agreement is not legally binding. This agreement does not obligate or authorize the expenditure or reimbursement of appropriations or other funds, nor does it require the parties to enter into any contract or other obligations. It does not confer any rights or responsibilities under U.S. law, nor does it limit or restrict the parties from participating in similar activities or arrangements with other entities. This agreement does not limit, supersede, or otherwise affect OSHA's normal operations or decisions in carrying out its statutory and regulatory duties and functions. OSHA's entering an Alliance with an organization does not imply the agency's endorsement or promotion of that organization's products or services.

An implementation team made up of representatives of each organization will meet one to two times per year to discuss the responsibilities of the participants, to share information on activities, and to track results in achieving the goals of the Alliance. OSHA team members will include representatives of the Directorate of Cooperative and State Programs, the Directorate of Construction, the Directorate of Enforcement Programs, the Directorate of Standards and Guidance, and any other appropriate offices. OSHA will encourage State Plans' and OSHA On-Site Consultation programs' participation on the team.

This agreement will be executed in full compliance with all applicable federal laws. It takes effect on the date of signing and will remain in effect for two years. Either signatory may terminate their organization's participation in the agreement for any reason at any time, provided they give 30 days' written notice. This agreement may be modified at any time with the written concurrence of both signatories.

Signed this 4th day of September, 2025.

Amanda Wood Laihow
Acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health

Colin Kelly
Chair
Recycled Materials Association

Partnership #1433 - Signing Photos - August 28, 2025

Karena Lorek, Area Director, Kansas City Area Office, US DOL-OSHA; Wayne Alley, Executive Vice President, VCC, LLC and Eli Pano, Project Compliance and Risk Manager, VCC, LLC sign the Partnership agreement.
(left to right): Karena Lorek, Area Director, Kansas City Area Office, US DOL-OSHA; Wayne Alley, Executive Vice Pr
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Partnership #1433 - Agreement - August 28, 2025