Why Should Your Organization be an Evergreen Safety Council Member?

Contributed by Star Conrad, Director of Operations, Evergreen Safety Council 
“Member Only” Benefits:

John D. Spellman Safety Award:
Be recognized for your organization’s safety achievements. Tell us about your safety efforts undertaken for the year, including examples of employee involvement and management commitment that helped foster a positive safety culture within your organization. Applications are being accepted until February 24, 2012.


2010 Award winner: IMCO General Construction
employees  with John D. Spellman (right)


General Membership Meeting & Luncheon
Date: Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Location: Mirabella, 116 Fairview Avenue N, 10th Floor West Dining Room, Seattle, WA 98109
Time: 10am – 1pm
Cost: $25, includes plated lunch
Agenda: Business Meeting, Spellman Safety Award Presentation, ESC 80 Years Young, Special Recognition of long term supporting members, Workplace Safety guest speaker

Scholarships
Monty C. Lish & Stanley O. McNaughton Scholarship for Safety & Health Careers
Employees of a member company of ESC, children or stepchildren of employees, or children or stepchildren of member company owners are eligible to apply. Two awards of $1,000 each can be granted. Applications are due February 15, 2012

American Association of Safety Councils Scholarship
A maximum scholarship of $500 per year. Eligibility:

• Any employee or family member of an AASC Safety Council or any individual, whose parent, or legal guardian, is employed at an AASC Safety Council for a period of not less than twelve months.
• Any member or family member of an AASC Safety Council who has been a member of not less than twelve months.

Application deadline is March 12, 2012

Consultation Services
Does your safety question start with:

• Do I need...?
• What does __________ mean?
• How often do I need to...?
• LNI visited me, what do I do about…?
• How do I make a plan to...?
• I'm the new Safety Manager, how do I...?
• Does the ESC have training on...?

We can match our expert trainers / consultants to your organization and the topics you need or the situation you're facing. Their expertise in regulatory compliance, ergonomics, industrial hygiene, commercial vehicle issues, and traffic safety can help you answer questions and address critical workplace safety needs. Use any of our many consulting services:

• On-site consultation and training
• Walk-through evaluations
• Safety program revisions/audits
• Policy development assistance

If this kind of assistance will help your organization's safety environment and you want more information, contact Stephanie Dyck or Eric Tofte or call 800-521-0778

43 deaths is 43 too many

Contributed by Eric Tofte, Director of Training
As we leave the year 2011, it is time to reflect on the fatalities that occurred on the job in Washington State. According to the Department of Labor & Industries 43 workers were killed on the job in 2011 (as of 12/13/2011). When reviewing the types of fatalities, it is all over the board from workplace violence to allergic reactions to bee stings. Here are just a few from DOSH:


October 22, 2011 - An employee of a self storage unit was stabbed and killed while performing his usual work duties.

September 28, 2011 - A worker who was hanging sheetrock, was stung by a bee and died.

September 15, 2011 - A worker died in a 10 car motor vehicle accident.

August 18, 2011 - A worker surveying fish was found unconscious face down in the water.

August 12, 2011 - A worker was stung by wasps or hornets and died due to venom.

June 6, 2011 - A worker was caught and crushed between a protruding door on the shovel and a stump.

February 19, 2011 - A worker was caught between two tractor trailers as one was pulling out of a designated parking area.

The list does go on, and if you would like to see the complete list it can be found on L&I’s web site.
The point is that 43 on-the-job fatalities is 43 too many. In some of the cases it was just an accident, but in others it was poor training and poor safety programs.

It is imperative that employees receive training on the hazards that they face on the job. This can be anything from working around heavy equipment to protecting oneself from workplace violence.  It is also important that every employer determines what hazards their employees face and how they can be protected from these hazards by appropriate training and/or PPE and the like.

We at Evergreen understand that these can be daunting tasks, but also understand they are extremely important to do. If you need to develop and/or update your company's safety programs or training, please email me or give us a call 800-521-0778.

Recertifying Forklift Operators

Evergreen’s Eric Tofte and intern John Neibel started November off with some onsite training. We spent the first two days of the month working with a local utility company; their employees welcomed us with warm wishes even though it was  literally freezing outside. Approximately 30 people were recertified to operate the forklifts at this location over two days.


Machine inspection

 Some things to note from the class: most of us have our bad habits when it comes to operating Forklifts, but we kept seeing some more than others and they warrant mentioning here.



1) When backing look over both shoulders to ensure that there are no obstructions or personnel in the area behind the lift. We noticed that almost everyone likes to look over their right should, but never looked to the left.

2) Keep all body parts inside of the cab of the forklift.  This means - no you cannot hang onto the frame of the overhead protection or hang onto the side of the forklift to steady yourself. A small impact could cause a very serious injury.



Reviewing a driver in action



3) Pedestrians should be trained too - the driver of the forklift may be the one who is responsible for the accident should some one get hurt, but who is the one that is hurting? The Pedestrian. 



4) Horns are there to be used—even though the machine has a back-up alarm. Use the horn to raise the level of awareness of the hazard that is presented, use the horn at any and all blind corners – if you can’t see around it, then they cannot see you; let them know that you are there.

Safety & Health Solutions - February edition

Evergreen Safety Council produces a monthly newsletter covering a variety of safety topics. Each month we will provide a link here to the online PDF.

Inside this Issue:
Lead Article – Why is safety training for employees important?
People in Safety – Brion Beaver, Safety Manager, Cascade Natural Gas
Articles -
Another life saved because two individuals were trained in first aid/CPR
Tractor Safety
How to Brake-Release-Steer
Improve Response to Major Incidents with Better Preparedness and Training
Fun with Forklifts

You can also sign up to receive an electronic copy via email or hard copy via the mail. This link will also take you to a full archive with over four years of past issues.

So pour yourself a cup of coffee, sit back and read all about what's going on in the world of safety & health.

Friends in High Places

Contributed by Norm Nyhuis, Trainer, Evergreen Safety Council
Recently, Evergreen Safety Council was contacted by Nancy Abel, the Risk Manager for the City of Marysville, Washington, requesting training for employees in the Public Works department who operate the city’s Terex Highranger equipped “bucket truck”.

The truck has a 40’ maximum reach and is specially equipped; from a load leveling suspension system, to copious numbers of public warning lights, to allow for safe work on traffic lights, and other tasks requiring access to elevated locations, such as placing banners over the street, announcing special events and activities around the city.

The training consisted of a half day of class room time, and an opportunity for each participant to demonstrate their proficiency in operating the truck in performing a task that required the precise positioning of the truck and basket, to place an object in an elevated location.

The classroom portion of the training stressed the full spectrum of safety issues, from identifying site specific concerns and hazards, to the importance of a thorough inspection of the boom and basket assembly, starting with a visual inspection, and performing a functional test of the lifts’ lower controls, before entering the basket. Other topics addressed included selection of the proper PPE for the task, such as the appropriate wearable fall protection, as well as other PPE such as high visibility garments, hard hats and gloves.

On the second day of training, the weather cooperated and allowed each of the 23 participants to demonstrate their proficiency in the actual set up and operation of the truck and lift. Each student donned the appropriate PPE and then determined how best to place a traffic cone on the arched roof of a storage area in the Public Works equipment and materials yard.

Part of the practical test was to demonstrate the ability to understand and comply with the standard hand signals customary to industries that perform their jobs in an elevated location, and where instruction from the ground may be needed for the safe maneuvering around obstacles to reach the work area.

All participants, from those who had never operated a bucket truck previously, to the most experienced operator, successfully completed the training.

At the conclusion of the training, Nancy had the following comments,” I had numerous participants tell me this was “great training”, “very thorough”, and that they all “learned something”, which isn’t always easy to accomplish when you have seasoned operators. I would say that in particular, the hands-on practical demonstration under the instructor’s watchful but encouraging eye made this very effective training.”

ESC extends congratulations to the workers in the Marysville Public Works Department for a job well done.