May 2015 - United Association

UNITED ASSOCIATION
SAFETY NEWS
Dedicated to ensuring the safest and healthiest working environment for our members
May 2015
UA GENERAL OFFICERS
GENERAL PRESIdENt
William P. Hite
GENERAL SECREtARy-tREASURER
Mark McManus
ASSIStANt GENERAL PRESIdENt
Michael A. Pleasant
ExECUtIvE vICE PRESIdENt
Rick terven
GENERAL ExECUtIvE BOARd MEMBERS
John Wende, District 1
Kenneth J. Broadbent, District 2
Kenneth Edwards, District 3
James Buchanan, District 4
Sid Stolper, District 5
John telford, District 6
AdMINIStRAtIvE ASSIStANtS
tO tHE GENERAL PRESIdENt
Larry Cann
Patrick H. Kellett
James P. Moss
t.L. Ranson
I SS U E 0 3
Message from
Laurie Shadrick,
Health and Safety
National Coordinator
Brothers and Sisters,
The Occupational Safety and Health
Administration has issued a final rule
governing confined spaces in the construction industry. It has been 22 years
since OSHA issued the 1993 Confined
Space Entry Standard for general industry and 22 years since the agency
promised to issue a standard for construction. The new rule goes into effect August 3, 2015. I am really excited
about this as I sat on a panel at the Department of Labor in 2006, representing the UA for the Building and
Construction Trades Department. At
that time we asked for this very standard. A confined space has three characteristics: work is going on in an area
that is not designed for continuous
worker occupancy, has a limited
means of entry and exit, and it is large
enough and so configured that an empoyee can bodily enter it.
Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David
Michaels stated it best. “This rule will
save lives of construction workers.
Unlike most general industry worksites, construction sites are continually evolving, with the number and
characteristics on confined spaces
changing as work progresses. This
rule emphasizes training, continuous
worksite evaluation and communication requirements to further protect
workers’ safety and health.”
UNItEd ASSOCIAtION dIRECtORS
tom Bigley, Plumbing Services
Larry S. Bulman, Political & Legislative Affairs
tom Gross, Pipeline & Gas Distribution
James Hart, Metal Trades Department
Christopher A. Haslinger, Training
Brett C. McCoy, Organizing & Recruitment
Michael P. Mulvaney, Jurisdiction
Martin Naseef, HVACR Service
our vision
The United Association and its local unions will apply its best
practices and resources to build the best educated and safest
workforce in all sectors of the piping industry.
United Association • Three Park Place • Annapolis, Maryland 21401 • Telephone: (410) 269-2000 • www.ua.org
STANDARD FOR SAFETY
UA safety news
It is estimated that this new rule could
protect or prevent nearly 800 serious
injuries every year. According to OSHA,
there are five main differences between the “construction industry” and
the “general industry “ when it comes
to confined space regulations. In the
construction sector, the regulation
must:
1. Require continuous atmospheric
monitoring whenever possible;
2. Require continuous monitoring of
engulfment hazards;
3. Allow for the suspension of a permit, instead of cancellation, due
to evacuation of the confined
space, or changes in conditions.
The space must be returned to
original conditions before reentry;
4. Provide more detailed provisions
requiring coordinated activities
on multi-employer worksites, and
5. Require a competent person to
evaluate the work site and identify confined spaces, including
permit spaces.
More information on this new rule can
be found at https://www.osha.gov/
SLTC/confinedspaces/
If you have any safety and health information or events you want to share,
please send these to me at
[email protected] at the UA General
Office, and include as much relevant in-
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SAFETY NEWS
formation as possible. This will allow us
to see what is being achieved at the
local level and to share with everyone
what a safe jobsite can mean to us and
to our contractors and their clients.
2015 Instructor
Training Program
Safety Courses
The UA Director of Training, Chris
Haslinger, has implemented new initiatives to provide safety and health education and awareness for our members.
At the 60th anniversary of the Instructor Training Program, four specialized
classes were offered and upon successful completion of the course, the instructors were provided with materials
to take back to their locals so they
could provide this important training to
their members. Director Haslinger has
announced that this opportunity will
again be available at the Instructor
Training Program this year. It’s important to register early because all of
these classes were filled to capacity.
Course 236-CPR/First Aid
This course will train and/or certify instructors in conducting adult basic life
support. This course includes cardiopulmonary resuscitation, automated external defibrillation and other related
subjects. Upon completion of this
course, the instructor receives DVD’s,
two manikins for hands-on training, an
Automated External Defibrillator (AED),
and an AED trainer, along with all items
necessary to teach this course.
Course 328-ARC Flash Safety NFPA 70E
This class covers NFPA safety requirements and procedures. Topics included
hazardous energy isolation, electrical
safety and arc flash safety. Upon completion, the instructor receives an arc
flash hazard category two kit that contains all the necessary gear to instruct
a class at the local, along with an instructor DVD, PowerPoints®, and an instructor and student manual for the
course.
Course 470-The OSHA 500
This train-the-trainer course certifies our
instructors to teach the OSHA 10-hour
and 30-hour safety and health programs. Upon completion the instructor
receives a Standard for Safety duffle bag
filled with hands-on tools for teaching
these courses.
Course 472-Confined Space
This train-the-trainer course is a combination of OSHA’s (#2260) three-day
confined space course and CPWR’s
two-day, hands-on, simulated entry
training. Participants who complete
this course will receive an OSHA 2260
Certificate, CPWR 16-hour Confined
Space and the Train-the-Trainer certificate. Air monitoring equipment will be
shipped to your training center for your
use in the classroom.
May 2015
standard for safety
Honoring New York’s
Workers on Workers’
Memorial Day
On April 28, 2015
at New York City’s
St. Patrick’s Cathedral, a special
Hardhat Mass was
held in honor of
Workers’ Memorial Day. At the
Hardhat Mass, all
those killed working on construction
sites in New York City are remembered.
Chairs are placed in front of the altar
with a hardhat and a rose to signify
each construction worker who died
from April 28 of
2014 through April
28 of 2015. At the
end of the Mass, a
hardhat and rose
are given to the
family members of
the deceased.
The Cathedral is
packed not only
with union construction workers,
but also with all
those from the
construction industry who are
united on that day
May 2015
to honor our dead. They include family
members and friends of the deceased,
employers such as contractors, developers, and key government agencies.
The Annual Hardhat Mass is normally
celebrated on or near the date of April
28th in recognition of the establishment of OSHA.
This year we remembered 18 construction workers killed on the job since
April 28, 2014.
At this Annual Hardhat Mass, all the deceased are remembered regardless of
their union status. This Memorial Mass
emphasizes the dignity of each human
person. They are not forgotten, for all
human life is precious. They remind us
that the struggle for a safe workplace is
ongoing.
Some of the attending officers and members of UA Plumbers Local 1 assembling
on the steps of the Cathedral before the ceremony.
Free MCAA Videos
The Mechanical Contractors Association of America has now made it possible for the UA to access their library of
safety and health videos. We appreciate this generous opportunity. This entire library consists of mechanical
construction, service, plumbing, and
welding safety videos—and all of this is
free. You can easily download these
videos using an iPad, iPhone, or Android device. You can find these by
searching Apple’s App Store or Android
Play Store under “MCAA Video.” The
username is “UA Training” and the
password is “Safety.” You will find more
than 35 valuable training videos, 22 of
which are now also in Spanish. These
videos are approximately 12-14 minutes long, and are up to date. The most
recently added videos are an Electrical
Arc Welding Safety, and a Fall Restraint
and Arrest Systems video. If you have
already downloaded the App in the
past and are unable to access it now
because of a failure notice, delete the
App and then reload, as Apple has
changed a few things on its server.
SAFETY NEWS
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UA safety news
It’s The Law!
To help ensure that workers have a voice in
their workplaces and the protection they deserve, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has unveiled a new version of its
“Job Safety and Health – It’s The Law!” poster.
The poster informs workers of their rights,
and employers of their responsibilities.
“This poster emphasizes a very important
principle when it comes to prevention –
that every worker has a voice,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational
Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels.
“Workers need to know their rights and be
able to use their rights, without fear of retaliation, when they believe that their
safety or health is at risk.”
The newly designed poster informs workers
of their right to request an OSHA inspection
of their workplaces, receive information
and training on job hazards, report a workrelated injury or illness, and raise safety and
health concerns with their employer or
OSHA without being retaliated against.
The poster informs employers of their legal
obligation to provide a safe workplace. In addition, it has been updated to include the new
reporting obligations for employers, who
must now report every fatality and every hospitalization, amputation and loss of an eye. It
also informs employers of their responsibilities to train all workers in a language and vocabulary they can understand, comply with
OSHA standards, and post citations at or near
the place of an alleged violation.
OSHA’s “It’s the Law” poster is free and can be
downloaded at https://www.osha.gov/Publications/poster.html. Employers must display
the poster in a conspicuous place where workers can see it. Previous versions of the poster
do not need to be replaced.
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SAFETY NEWS
May 2015
standard for safety
MCAA/CNA 2014 Safety
Excellence Awards
The Mechanical Contractors Association of
America (MCAA) is pleased to announce the
winners of the Mechanical Contractors Association of America/CNA Construction
Group Safety Excellence winners for 2014.
The fourth annual awards were presented
in March 2015 at the MCAA’s annual convention to member firms demonstrating the
highest level of safety excellence in 2014.
MCAA 2014 President Chuck Fell congratulated the award winners. He also thanked
the hard-working members of the Safety
and Health Committee, including Chairman
Tom Skaggs of the Murphy Company and
Pete Chaney of the MCAA staff, who serves
as the committee liaison.
Category One, 100,000 work hours and
under: MCAA 2014 President Chuck Fell,
Stephen Affanato (the Executive Vice President of New England MCA/MSCA, who accepted the award on behalf of J. F. White
Contracting Company – Mechanical Division of Framingham, Massachusetts) and
Michael G. Farrington, Program Underwriting Director for CNA’s Construction Group.
May 2015
Category Two, 100,000 to 250,000 work
hours: MCAA 2014 President Chuck Fell,
Project Manager Scott Tower and Vice President Ed Marks (who accepted on behalf of
Beacon Piping Company of Canton, Massachusetts), and Michael G. Farrington, Program Underwriting Director for CNA’s
Construction Group.
Category Four, 400,000 to 1 million work
hours: MCAA 2014 President Chuck Fell, Executive Vice President Mark Webster (who
accepted on behalf of MacDonald-Miller
Facility Solutions of Seattle, Washington)
and Michael G. Farrington, Program Underwriting Director for CNA’s Construction
Group.
Category Three, 250,000 to 400,000 work
hours: MCAA 2014 President Chuck Fell,
CFO Robert P. Armistead (who accepted on
behalf of Armistead Mechanical, Incorporated of Waldwick, New Jersey) and
Michael G. Farrington, Program Underwriting Director for CNA’s Construction Group.
Category Five, over 1,000,000 work hours:
MCAA 2014 President Chuck Fell, President
Kollin Knox and Vice President for Safety
Don Campbell (who accepted on behalf of
P1 Group Inc. of Lenexa, Kansas) and
Michael G. Farrington, Program Underwriting Director for CNA’s Construction Group.
SAFETY NEWS
5
The International Training Fund will cover
course equipment and materials for the
following safety courses:
236 Adult Basic Life Support/First Aid
Adult and Child AMBU, Manikin, Cardiac AED Trainer, Automated External Defibrillator, and a set of two
training DVDs
298 Interactive Teaching Tools (NEW) laptop computer and the Mobi/CPS Kit
470 OSHA 500
472 Confined Space – Train the Trainer
The locals will be granted the materials/equipment when the instructor attending these courses successfully
completes the course. More than one
instructor per local may be permitted in
some of the courses; however, granted
equipment/materials will be limited to
one per local. Locals that were granted
the equipment or materials from the
ITP in 2013 and 2014 will not be eligible
for the equipment.
328 ARC Flash Safety – NFPA 70E arcflash personal protection kit, which
includes coveralls, gloves, leather
protectors, safety glasses, hardhat
and the carrying bag
The Department of Labor
http://www.dol.gov
OSHA Occupational Safety and
Health
http://www.osha.gov
Electronic Library of Construction
Safety and Health
http://www.elcosh.org
Course #328 OSHA / NFPA 70E - ARC Flash Safety
August 8 - 14, 2015 ............................................Washtenaw Community College
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Course #470 OSHA 500 Trainer Course for the Construction Industry(p)
November 2 - 6, 2015 ..........................................UA Great Lakes Training Center
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Course #471 OSHA 510 Occupational Safety and Health Standards for the Construction Industry
August 4 - 7, 2015 ...............................................UA Great Lakes Training Center
Ann Arbor, Michigan
October 5 - 8, 2015..............................................UA Great Lakes Training Center
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Course #474 OSHA 502 Update for Construction Industry Outreach Trainer
June 9 - 11, 2015...................................................................Louisville, Kentucky
December 8 - 10, 2015 ........................................UA Great Lakes Training Center
Ann Arbor, Michigan
2015 safety classes
Below is a list of websites and
links to help you with your
health and safety program.
Many of these sites have
PowerPoints® and pictures
that are free to download for
your use. Please take the
time to look at a few of these
valuable resources.
resources
2015 ITP Safety Courses
Grant Opportunities
Course descriptions for these classes can be found in the Regional Training
Course Catalog on uanet.org at https://uanet.org/regional_training.asp
Center of Disease Control and Prevention
http://www.cdc.gov
NIOSH-National Institute Occupational Safety and Health
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh
Safety Toolbox Talks
http://www.Safetytoolboxtalks.com
EPA-Environmental Protection
Agency
http://www.epa.gov
CPWR-Center for Construction Research and Training
http://www.cpwr.com
http://esmartmark.org
In Canada, the above safety regulations fall
under either the Workers Compensation
Board or the Provincial Safety Authority.
STANDARD FOR SAFETY
United Association • Three Park Place • Annapolis, Maryland 21401 • Telephone: (410) 269-2000 • www.ua.org