ColonialVA.asse.org

Founded in 1911, the Des Plaines, Illinois-based American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) is the oldest and largest safety organization and represents more than 30,000 SH&E practitioners committed to protecting people, property and the environment and are at the forefront of safety engineering, design, standards development, management and education in virtually every industry, governmental agency, labor and education. Presently, ASSE has 151 chapters, 56 sections and 65 student sections. There are also members in 64 countries including Mexico, Ecuador, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, Australia, Kuwait and Egypt. ASSE members serve on over 40 safety and health standards committees including the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).

Through its 22 practice specialties and branches, ASSE offers professional development opportunities and technical assistance in various career paths. These practice specialties and branches are: Academics, Agricultural, Construction, Consultants, Engineering, Environmental, Ergonomics, Fire Protection, Healthcare, Human Resources, Industrial Hygiene, International, Management, Manufacturing, Mining, Oil and Gas, Public Sector, Risk Management, Service, Training & Communications, Transportation, and Utilities.

The Colonial Virginia Chapter, part of Region VI, offers localized membership services, networking and professional development opportunities through seminars, conferences, meetings and newsletters. Members are professionals from throughout Central Virginia, who work in the safety field, dedicating our time and expertise to protecting fellow workers from injuries on the job. We meet monthly, usually on the third Monday of the month in the Richmond metropolitan area, to network, learn and share our experience with others. We welcome visitors and guests at any meeting! For a brief Chapter History, check out this page.

Join the Colonial Virginia Chapter email list to receive information about the Chapter and upcoming events via email. Send a request to jmeola@vmsom.com to be added. Join with confidence, as we will never sell or distribute your email address.

Participiate in Auburn University Graduate Student Research Study

I am a graduate student in the Department of Industrial Engineering at Auburn University. I would like to invite you to participate in our research study to evaluate the effect of the use of symbols on GHS format product labels. You may participate if you are age 18 and older and by education, training, or work experience would have a high awareness of hazard communication. s a participant, you will be asked to respond to an electronic survey. It should take one hour to complete the entire process.

If you would like to participate in this research study, please click on the link below or copy and paste the link into an internet browser.

http://surveydirector.qualtrics.com/SD/?Q_SDID=SD_2rctlEzEjEM1T0w&SVID=

If you would like to know more information about this study, an information letter can be obtained by sending an e-mail to Eric Boelhouwer at boelhej@auburn.edu. If you decide to participate after reading the letter, you may use the link above to link to the survey. If you have any questions not addressed in this note or the information letter, you may contact Eric Boelhouwer at (504) 606-9460 or his academic advisor, Dr. Jerry Davis, at (334) 844-1411.

New Changes to OSHA Penalty Policies

Attached please find a copy of an OSHA memo to their regional administrators regarding some new changes to OSHA’s penalty policies. According to this document, OSHA feels the current penalties are not substantial enough to encourage compliance with their standards. Many of us in the safety profession recognize that OSHA sets minimum standards and have instilled a philosophy in our companies that we protect our employees first and OSHA will take care of itself. However, we also recognize that it can be easy to find safety violations on just about any project and when these type of changes take place, they can affect even the most prepared.

Some of the changes include:

  • Expect average penalties to go from $1,000 to $3,000 to $4,000
  • History Reduction – no longer 3 years, but 5 year history.
  • History Increase – If cited in last 5 years for high gravity serious, willful, repeat or failure-to-abate violation; a 10% increase in their penalty
  • Repeat Violations – Increase from 3 to 5 year history
  • Informal Conference Considerations – any reduction over 30% will have to be approved by the Regional Administrator
  • New Penalty Reduction Structure for the size of the company
  • No more 10% good faith reduction for employers in a strategic partnership

Please take a look at the attached document and feel free to share any questions, comments or concerns.

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