Welcome to our Statewide Conference on Occupational
Safety & Health. The week will demonstrate that CSEA
is Leading the Way to Worker Safety.
Occupational Safety & Health continues to be one of
the most important areas of concern for CSEA members
and our union as a whole. This year's program will
provide valuable and practical information workshops
that will empower participants to help make their
worksite safer and healthier.
CSEA will also be "greener"
at this workshop as we lead the way for a
healthier environment. There will be less printed
material and more opportunity to download
presentations and other resources from our website
both before and after the conference. For those
without Internet resources, our Safety & Health
Department will be able to assist you in obtaining
what you need.
CSEA is approaching our 100th anniversary. This is a
time of great opportunity and excitement. I look
forward to sharing the enthusiasm when all of you at
this great event.
Danny Donohue, CSEA President
Statewide Officers
Danny Donohue,
President
Mary E. Sullivan,
Executive Vice President
Denise Berkley,
Secretary
Joe McMullen,
Treasurer
Standing Safety and Health Committee
James McHugh, Chair,
Region 5
George Walsh, Region
1
Frank Cosentino,
Region 2
Karen Pecora, Region
3
Anthony DeCaro,
Region 5
Jeanette Engle,
Region 5
Paul Blujus, Region
6
NYS Labor Law Article 2, Section 27-b
Public Employer Workplace Violence Prevention To-Do List for Union
Leaders
The Department of Labor has not yet published a final
rule to address workplace violence. A final rule is
not expected to be in place before Spring of 2008.
Many public employers have already begun to implement
various requirements of the draft code rule. Even
without a final rule, many workplace violence
prevention program areas can be addressed. As CSEA
leaders, it is expected that we do all that we can in
anticipation of a final rule.
The Public Employer Workplace Violence Prevention Law
is somewhat employee friendly. A key part of the law
requires employee involvement. This employee
involvement is a critical element of a successful
program. Workers who perform a task know what the
hazards are for that task. Naturally, the worker is an
invaluable tool in determining the relative risk that
each job entails. Worker involvement will ensure that
the right hazards are addressed. You can ensure that
the right hazards are addressed at your worksite by
following these tips.
Form a local or unit safety and health committee. You
will need their help!
Create a list of authorized local or unit
representatives. Officially present it to management.
Inform / educate your members about this new law.
Know the type and extent of violence you encounter at
your workplace.
Review the Log of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses,
incident / accident reports, workers' compensation
data, and other statistics.
Survey your membership. Find out where and what
problems are out there.
Physically inspect your workplaces for potential
sources of workplace violence.
Create a list of areas of concern, unsafe procedures,
known security problems, and risk factors that can
lead to workplace violence incidents.
Create a list of ideas and solutions to reduce or
eliminate those areas of concern.
Know what the problems are and how to fix them before
going to the bargaining table.
Be prepared to take a lead role in this process at
your workplace and drive the process.
Ensure that the hazards that you have identified are
addressed in your employer's workplace violence
prevention plan.
NYS Labor Law, Article 2 Section 27-b
Public Employer Workplace Violence Prevention Seven Steps to Comply
with 27-b
1. Establish a Workplace Violence Committee.
Labor-Management Committee (authorized employee
representatives & managers with authority).
Employees are given time to attend committee meetings.
Set time, date & frequency of meetings.
Inform staff who is on the committee to encourage
communication.
2. Develop and Implement a Workplace Violence Policy
Statement.
Address all potential "types" of workplace violence.
Should not contradict established contractual
procedures.
Discuss the incident alert & notification procedure.
Provide for employee involvement.
3. Conduct a Workplace Examination to Identify
Hazards.
Record Examination;
Review any & all
appropriate records,
Identify trends,
Determine the level
of relative risk.
Workplace Evaluation and Determination;
Address all jobs &
work locations,
Use a combination of
methods to identify risk factors; physical
inspections, employee surveys, focus groups, hazard
mapping, & others.
4. Implement Hazard Control Measures.
Protective devices, procedures, or rules the employer
will take to
prevent workplace violence incidents.
Must address all specific hazards identified in the
workplace
examination.
5. Develop a Written Workplace Violence Prevention
Program.
List the risk factors identified in the workplace
examination.
List the specific hazard control measures implemented
for each risk
factor identified.
Provide for a workplace violence incident reporting
system.
Include an outline or lesson plan of the training
program for workers.
Should address crisis counseling if necessary.
Update annually.
6. Worker Training.
Must train all workers at initial hire & annually
thereafter.
Requirements of 27-b.
Risk factors identified in their workplace.
Control methods implemented to protect them.
Procedure for providing crisis counseling.
7. Program Evaluation and Modification
Compare & contrast the data reviewed in the Record
Examination
annually.
Review & identify trends from the previous year's
workplace violence
incident reports.
Adjust or modify the workplace violence prevention
program as
necessary.
Statewide Conference on Occupational Safety &
Health
Employees’ Rights and Responsibilities under the New
York State Public Employee Safety and Health Act.
New York State's Public Employee Occupational Safety and
Health Act of 1980 provides safety and health coverage
to all public employees at the State and local levels.
The Act provides that the same safety and health
standards that apply to workers in the private sector,
OSHA Standards, will be applied to employees in the
public sector. This brochure is designed to give you a
broad understanding of the features of the law.
Employee
Responsibilities:
Under the Act, employees include all employees of the
State, any political subdivision of the State, and
public authorities created by the State. An employer is
required to furnish a workplace that is free from
recognized hazards to employees. The employees also have
responsibilities to comply with the safety and health
standards (OSHA Standards) and other regulations that
apply to their own actions and conduct on the job.
Penalty Assessment:
An
employer who fails to correct a violation by its
abatement date is subject to a PER DAY penalty
assessment. A penalty of up to $50 per day for each
non-serious violation, and of up to $200 per day for
each serious violation, will be assessed until the
violations are com- plied. The penalty assesses for each
violation will be listed in the Failure to Abate Notice.
Standards:
The law requires the Commissioner of labor to adopt all
standards promulgated under the United States
Occupational Safety and Health Act
Inspections:
The Commissioner of labor has been given exclusive
authority to enforce the safety and health standards
promulgated under the Act. An inspection can result from
a complaint, an accident, or as part of a regularly
scheduled inspection program. Imminent danger complaint
inspections receive the highest inspection priority.
A
representative of the employer and a representative of
the employees are entitled to accompany the inspector
during the course of an inspection. This is known as the
"walk around."
Enforcement:
If
a Notice of Violation and Order to Comply is issued to
an employer, it will describe the specific nature of the
violation, including reference to the standard alleged
to have been violated, the type of violations (serious,
non-serious, willful or repeat), and set a reasonable
time for compliance. When the Commissioner issues an
order to comply, the employer must post it or a copy
conspicuously at or near each place of violation cited,
where it will be clearly visible to affected employees.
The Commissioner will make copies of Orders to Comply
available to all organizations that represent employees.
Employee Contest:
An
affected employee or authorized employee representative
may submit a notice of contest in writing with respect
to the abatement period in the Notice of Violation and
Order to Comply.
Informal Conference:
An
informal conference is a means for a Supervising
Inspector of the Public Employee Safety and Health (PESH)
Bureau and an employer, employee, or an authorized
representative of the employees to meet and discuss
issues arising from an inspection and the resultant
orders to comply. A request for an informal conference
must be made to the nearest PESH district office by
telephone or letter, within 20 working days from the
issue date on the orders.
Appeals:
When employees do not agree with the Commissioner's
issuance of an order, the employees or their
representative may, (in accordance with Section 1 01 of
the Labor Law), petition the Industrial Board of Appeals
for review. The appeal should be addressed to the
Industrial Board of Appeals, Empire State Plaza, Agency
Building 2, 20th Floor, Albany, NY 12223, as prescribed
by its Rules of Procedure, which may be obtained from
the Board. In cases where an employer or an employee is
dissatisfied with a decision of the Industrial Board of
Appeals, either may begin a proceeding according to
Article 78 of the Civil Practice Law and Rules, provided
they do so within 60 days after the Board's decision.
Alternative Compliance
Agreement:
In
situations where citations have been issued and the
Public Employer proposes an alternative method of
compliance, PESH may enter into an alternative
compliance agreement. PESH will enlist the services of
the Division of Safety and Health's Engineering Services
Unit (ESU) to assist the review of the Employer's
proposal. The Employer will submit a proposal for an
alternative method of compliance to ESU, which will
review it and schedule a meeting to discuss and refine
the proposal. The meeting attendees will be the
Employer, affected Unions and PESH. The results of this
meeting will be written up into an alternative
compliance agreement to which all parties have agreed.
PESH will conduct an inspection to ensure the employer
has complied with the alternative compliance agreement.
Injunctions:
When an inspector observes a situation' believed to
present an imminent danger of serious physical harm or
death to an employee, the inspector shall notify the
employees involved and the employer, and request
immediate corrective action. If the employer concurs
with the inspector and takes action to remove the
imminence of the danger, an injunction will not be
necessary. If the employer does not concur and refuses
to take action to remove the imminence of the danger,
the inspector will advise both parties that a
recommendation will be made that the Commissioner of
labor take legal action to alleviate the situation. In
such situations the Commissioner is required to seek
injunctive relief within 48 hours. If the Commissioner
fails to seek this relief, any person affected by the
situation may do so.
Petition to Modify an
Abatement Date:
An
employer may apply for a Petition to Modify an Abatement
Date. This would be done when the employer is unable to
comply with a violation because of unavailability of
professional or technical personnel, or of materials and
equipment needed to come into compliance. In addition,
the employer must prove that all available steps are
being taken to protect the employees exposed to the
hazard and to institute a program to reach compliance as
quickly as practicable.
Variances:
Permanent variances may be requested by an employer from
a standard promulgated under the Act. Employees must be
given notice of each application and the opportunity to
participate in a hearing.
The Commissioner may issue a permanent variance after
due process, including a hearing, if evidence shows that
the conditions, practices, means, methods, operations,
or processes used or proposed by the employer will
provide employment and places of employment as safe and
healthful as those which would prevail if the employer
complied with the standard.
A
permanent variance may be modified or revoked by an
application by the employer, employee or employee
representative or by the Commissioner after six months
from its issuance.
An
employer may apply for a temporary variance from a newly
promulgated standard if the employer is unable to comply
by the effective date because of the unavailability of
materials, equipment or technical personnel.
Record Keeping:
Part 801 of Title 12 of the Official Compilation of
Codes, Rules and Regulations of the State of New York
specifies the record-keeping requirements established by
the Commissioner of labor under Sec. 27a of the labor
law. Contact one of the offices listed on this brochure
for a copy of the rules.
Discrimination:
No
employer may discharge or otherwise discipline or in any
manner discriminate against any person because the
employee has filed a com- plaint or instituted, or
caused to be instituted, any proceeding under or related
to this program. Employees who consider that
discrimination has been practiced against them may file
a complaint with the Commissioner of labor. The
Commissioner must investigate the allegation and make a
determination in the matter.
For additional information, contact the nearest district
office.
ALBANY 12240 W. Averell
Harriman State Campus
Bldg. 12, Rm. 158
Tel: (518) 457-5508
