Hot Enough for You?

Well, due to some technical difficulties, I've not been able to post an informative article about preparation for the hot season. My troubles lasted so long, it's now hot and my info doesn't seem nearly so timely.

I will discuss one issue that seems to come around every year. When it gets hot, many employees feel like it would be a good idea for their employers to provide an eletrolyte-replacement or sports drink. Is this a good idea? Well, for some employees, it is definitely not a good idea. There are numerous medical conditions, such as hypertension, that can be complicated by ingesting these drinks. Hopefully, employees with such medical conditions have been advised of such risks by their doctors. If you choose to provide the sports drinks for your employees, be sure to also provide plain water for those who should not partake. Just about the best way I've seen for handling this issue was an employer who purchased the sports drink powder mix in individual serving-sized foil packets. Those that wanted the sports drink just mixed the powder in their own cup or water bottle. Those that didn't just drank the water. Very clean, and very easy. You don't get that kind of bargain in the safety business often. Good luck and stay cool.

June Meeting

The next meeting of the Des Moines County Safety Exchange will be at 7:00 am, Friday June 9, in the Grayhound Room on the Great River Medical Center campus.

Exchange Members Haul Home the Hardware

Congratulations to Des Moines County Safety Exchange members who were recently honored by the Iowa-Illinois Safety Council. The General Electric Switchgear plant in West Burlington received the council's new Community Enrichment Award. American Ordnance, Federal Mogul Ignition Products, General Electric, and Vista Bakery were all honored for achieving injury/illness rates below their respective industry averages.

What is the Future for OHS?

Where will the focus be for Occupational Health & Safety Professionals? When I first started in the profession in the mid-80's, the focus was clear--compliance. OSHA was churning out new regulations regularly, and with each new regulation, came a predictable set of tasks that "the safety guy" (sorry ladies) needed to do. (1) Set up the written program. (2) Install the required elements of the program. (3) Design and perform training. (4) Monitor the program for effectiveness. Just a couple new regulations could keep you busy for a year. But OSHA seems to have lost its appetite for issuing new regulations. Partisan wrangling has made even common-sense updates and new programs almost impossible to pass.

The next driver for OHS programs seems to be the "systems" approach. OSHA's VPP program and the not-yet-adopted OHSAS 18000 stress the management system in ensuring a comprehensive process to ensure safety and health in the work place. But acceptance of these processes is far from universal. The actual number of participating companies in either of these programs is tiny compared to the total number of companies.

So again I ask, where is the future focus of OHS, and perhaps more importantly, how does a practicing OHS professional prepare for it? Will it be the disappearance of the line between work-related injuries and illnesses and off-the-job issues, with a focus on wellness? Will the political landscape change enough for OSHA to release a flood of pent-up rule making? Will an industrial disaster shake the public apathy and force major changes? I do not know the answer to these questions, but I'd love to know what you all think.

Safety for Young Workers

OSHA is expending quite a bit of effort lately on educating employers and young workers on the special hazards they face. I must admit that this is an area where I haven't spent a lot of concern. For the most part, our new people come to us over 18 and with at least a little bit of work experience.

However, since my son has turned 16 and is in the throes of attempting (I hope successfully) to join the community workforce, the issue commands more of my attention. How sophisticated is the safety program where your children (or grandchildren) work? Did they receive a safety orientation? What type of hazards exist at their job? Whether the work is at a fast-food restaurant, the local pool, a farm, or lawn mowing and maintenance, there are significant physical and chemical hazards that must be recognized and controlled.

As a parent (or grandparent, or perhaps just a family friend), your influence can be one of the most effective tools to protect these kids. Or should I say, a tool to empower kids to protect themselves. As safety professionals, we know that the most effective hazard control we can have in the work place is a well-motivated, well-educated employee who will do the right thing at the right time.

Take the time to motivate a young person to work safely. There is no time better than the present to groom good habits for a lifetime.