Anthony DeCaro, Safety & Health Committee Chair Colleen Wheaton, Central Region President

Spring 2009

1

The CSEA Central Region 5 Safety & Health Newsletter

On February 1, all government employ-ers must post a summary of the total numberof job-related injuries and illnesses thatoccurred in the previous year. This hasbeen the requirement for several years.

Public sector employers are required tomaintain records of work-related injuriesand illnesses under Part 801 of the NewYork State Department of Labor(NYSDOL) regulations. Copies of thatregulation and others can be viewed onlineat: http://tinyurl.com/dgd6b8

Public employers are required to postthe SH 900.1 form, entitled the AnnualSummary of Work Related Injuries and

Illnesses. Employers are allowed to usealternative forms, if they provide the sameinformation as the NYSDOL forms. TheNYSDOL forms can be viewed online at:http://tinyurl.com/dyqhax

The SH 900.1 form must be postedFebruary 1 through April 30. Additionallyan executive member of management isrequired to sign the summary to certify thatit is correct. For workplaces where therewere no work-related injuries or illnesses,the form must still be posted with zeros inthe total lines.

The form must be displayed in thelocation where the other required notices

for employees are posted. The otherrequired postings include the NYSDOLPublic Employee Safety and Health (PESH)Bureau Public Employees Job Safety andHealth Protection and the “Right-to-Know”Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) posters.

Encourage all members who had awork-related injury or illness last year toreview the summary and determine thattheir incident was properly recorded. Ifsomeone determines that the records are notbeing kept properly or the required postingsare not present, have them immediatelycontact one of their local CSEA officers ortheir CSEA Labor Relations Specialist.

Safety Refresher: Injury Reporting Rules

ALIVE!ALIVE!

A Region Safety Overview from OSHSpecialist Lynnet Witherell:

Workplace Violence Prevention (WVP)Workplace Violence Prevention has

been a key issue for CSEA. Although noCSEA members were directly involved, therecent shooting in Binghamton resulted inthe deaths of 13 people,and that, combined withthe soon-to-be-finalizedDept. of Labor regulation,has heightened awarenessof the potential for work-place violence.

It has kept me verybusy reviewing and mak-ing recommendations onWVP plans, policies andrisk assessments. Otherrelated activities include:distributing informational handouts toeducate our members; promoting unioninvolvement in and encouraging the forma-tion of appropriate Labor-ManagementCommittees; attending WVP Labor-Man-agement Task Force Meetings; and encour-aging the use of risk assessment, security

checklist and inspection tools. CSEA’s goalremains to ensure that employers’ WVPPlans are meaningful, meet the intent of thelaw, and involve input from our member-ship.

Hopefully, as the state moves forwardin finalizing the regulation, employers willdraw upon CSEA, as some already have, as

a resource. To date CSEA has beeninvolved with WVP in the follow-ing workplaces: Central NYDDSO; Herkimer County Commu-nity College; Jefferson County; St.Lawrence County; Madison Coun-ty; Schuyler County; Seneca Coun-ty; Tompkins County; SUNYBinghamton; SUNY ESF; SUNYOswego; Greater BinghamtonHealth Center; and Mohawk Val-ley Psychiatric Center.

In the State Office of Children andFamily Services, a statewide task force isworking on a Workplace Violence Initiativewith investigations, surveys, and a pilotprogram being conducted at Tryon Residen-tial Center, with the anticipation that thefindings and recommendations will result

in a program that will help reduce the riskof violence in all OCFS facilities.

Technical AssistanceWe are providing ongoing technical

assistance on a daily basis to Units andLocals. All of the issues listed below werebrought to the union’s attention and eitheraddressed by management or taken to L-Mmeetings and resolved by implementingcorrective actions. Issues included:� Indoor temperatures less than 65°

(Onondaga County Civic Center)� Electrical safety (SUNY Oswego, On-

ondaga County Parks’ Rosamond Gif-ford Zoo)

� Obstructed means of egress work/ventilation (Auburn Correctional Facil-ity)

� Work zone safety issues (Otsego CountyHighway Department, Oswego CountyDPW, City of Fulton DPW, OneontaState DOT, Syracuse State DOT)

� Equipment safety issues (Cape Vincent

Safety Happenings: Around The Region

Continued on Page 3...

Lynnet Witherell

We recently had twotragedies unfold, one inour Region, and one con-nected to it, and both haveimportant safety lessonsthat we can learn from.

The first tragedy waswhen four consumers inone of our SunmountDDSO group homes diedafter a fire broke out in thehome in the early morninghours. It was thanks to thebravery of two Local 431members that five otherconsumers escaped with their lives. Oneof those workers is still too injured toreturn to work, and both deserve com-mendations for their lifesaving response.

What safety lesson can we learn fromthis? Probably the most important lessonis to be prepared. All signs so far havepointed to an electrical cause of the fire,which may not have been preventable.What could help save lives in incidentslike this are routine safety inspections,checks to make sure smoke detectors andsprinkler systems are working, and

emergency evacuationplans that are routinelypracticed, so that if theneed arises, they can becarried out as quickly aspossible.

This tragedy alsopoints out the need foradequate staffing. Perhapsif the state took emergen-cy evacuations into ac-count when setting theirminimum staffing ratios,more workers could have

been there to rescue moreconsumers that morning. This is simplyspeculation, but I cannot help but worrythat more lives may be placed at needlessrisk if the Governor’s plan to lay off morethan 1,000 workers in OMRDD evercomes to pass.

The second tragedy in our Region wasthe shooting of 13 people at the AmericanCivic Association in Binghamton.Thankfully, no CSEA members weredirectly involved in the shooting, butthere were many CSEA members work-ing in nearby buildings, who were all

locked-down during the crisis. We alsohad CSEA members handling 911 callsand providing mental health counselingafterward.

This incident points out the need forconducting workplace violence assess-ments and having workplace violenceprevention plans in place at all worksites,public and private, to minimize any futuretragedies like this. That’s why CSEA isproud to have been pushing for theregulation that was passed into law in2006 and will soon have enforceablestandards in place.

As we just observed the 20th annualWorkers’ Memorial Day it seems veryappropriate that we honor those whotragically lost their lives by never givingup on our “fight for the living.”

In Solidarity,

A Message From Region President Colleen Wheaton

Learning Safety Lessons from Tragedies

2

We meet forour Region’s Spring

Conference after havingjust observed another WorkersMemorial Day on April 28.

Thankfully, this year’s obser-vance did not include any newnames from our Region to add tothe list, but we mourn the name ofany worker, anywhere, who losttheir life on the job.

Please remember those whohave made the ultimate sacrifice andvow not to let it happen to others.

Remember the fallen and Fightlike Hell for the Living.

Stay safe and be well,

A message from the Chairby Anthony L. DeCaro, Chair,Region 5 Safety & Health Committee

Anthony L.

Is an official publication of theCSEA Central Region

Safety & Health Committee

Colleen Wheaton, PresidentAnthony DeCaro, ChairJoe Miceli, Vice ChairJeff Colburn, Advisor

Lynnet Witherell, OSH SpecialistMark Kotzin, Editor

Send address corrections to:CSEA, 6595 Kirkville Road

East Syracuse, NY 13057

Colleen Wheaton

Alive!

Safety Happenings Around The Region

3

Correctional Facility, Cayuga CountyHighway Department, Oswego CountyState DOT)

� Indoor air quality (City of Ogdensburg,Schuyler County, Utica Family Court*,Onondaga County, Liverpool Library)

� Personal Protective Equipment(Watertown City School District)

� Asbestos issues (SUNY Binghamton*,Otsego County – Meadows*)

� Trenching issue (SUNY Cortland*)* These issues were not adequately ad-dressed by management and resulted inPESH complaints being filed.

Investigations/Inspections/L-M Meetings toaddress Safety concerns

If issues that are brought to managementare not addressed, another option is recordreviews/walkthrough inspections to ensurefollow-up on the unsafe conditions, equip-ment, or environment. Such investigationsrecently took place in:� Utica Housing Authority - Unsafe

working conditions;� Village of Skaneateles - Follow-up on

potential safety issues at Call Center;� Elmira Vocational and Educational

Services for Individuals with Disabili-ties (VESID) - Walkthrough inspectionof new site with PEF and management;

� Rome School for Deaf and SyracuseCSD - Ergonomics - workstationevaluations/follow-up on recommenda-tions for computer users and awarenesstraining.

� Oswego CSD - Violence in schools; and� Oswego County State DOT - Unsafe

equipment.

PESH ViolationsThe State Dept. of Labor’s PESH

Bureau has been active in paying“unannounced visits” to facilities andissuing notices of violations. To ensure theissues have been addressed, I follow up.Recent violations include:� Baldwinsville Central School District -

Transportation Maintenance Garage� Environmental Conservation - NYS-

DEC Oneida Fish Cultural Station� Dolgeville CSD Garage� City of Fulton Water Treatment Plant

Garage� Franklin CSD Garage� Stamford CSD Garage� Oswego County Highway Energy Re-

covery Facility

TrainingsThe following trainings have been

provided in Region 5 in recent months:� Safe Refuse Collection - City of Auburn� OSHA 10-Hour Training - Onondaga

County Facilities Management,Colton/Pierrepont CSD

� Effective Safety & Health Committee(Train the Trainer) - Region 5 Safetyand Health Committee

� Effective Safety & Health CommitteeTraining – SUNY ESF, SUNY Oswego

CSEA SUNY Cortland Local 605 ShopSteward Rick Nauseef reports:

CSEA members Don Gardner and TomHingher have completed AFSCME’s Train-the-Trainer Program for Confined Spaces,which has been an issue at the campus.Following the training, local issues wereaddressed and the workers can now trainothers in CSEA on the topic.

CSEA was also called to address anissue where a contractor was doing trench-ing work around a broken steam pipe thatpresented an explosion hazard to thosenearby, including CSEA members whowere asked to assist. OSH SpecialistWitherell worked with us to notify OSHAand get the proper equipment in use.

CSEA Onondaga County DSS UnitPresident Joseph Alcaro reports:

A recent change moving about 180Onondaga County Workers from an out-door lot to an indoor parking garagebrought about several safety concerns fromimpacted members, including issues of anincreased walk, poor lighting and a lack ofsecurity.

Prior to the move, the members of ourCSEA Parking Committee; I, Linda Parkand CSEA LRSs Marc Heatley and RickBritton, met with management representa-tives to address members’ concerns. It

should be noted that although about 50members had already been parking inthe garage since last October, no safetyissues had previously been reported.

Our investigation found that theSyracuse Police Department reported noincidents of car break-ins at this facilityand no abnormal pattern of thefts,assaults, etc in the area. During themove, one vehicle was broken into,which prompted a meeting with manage-ment and the new parking garage vendor,who agreed to have a security personpresent during the hours of 7 AM to 9AM, 11 AM to 1 PM, 2 PM to 3 PM,and finally at 4 PM to 5:30 PM.

A tour of the garage was conductedwith both labor and management and thelighting and call boxes were all identi-fied. Management is continuing to workon these issues with the vendor, andreports back to the CSEA ParkingCommittee on its progress. This is a jointeffort with the goal of safety for all, andbecause of this process both partiesagreed that communication was a keyarea that needed improvement, andvowed to work on this for any futureevents.

CSEA SUNY Oswego Local 611President Joe Miceli reports:

At a union membership meeting,CSEA members at SUNY Oswegobrought up a concern about a potentialrisk of electric shock to campus workers,due to the location of electrical panelsnear water sources and due to inadequatepersonal protective equipment.

A meeting between management andthe CSEA OSH Specialist, as well as theunion Safety & Health Committee washeld to review deficiencies and recom-mend appropriate measures to remedythem.

Following that meeting, severalsolutions were proposed, includingpurchasing appropriate personal protec-tive equipment, purchasing new lockouttagout equipment and moving or guard-ing panels too close to water sources.

Safety Happenings Around the Region

Region 5 Safety & HealthCommittee Members

If you come across aserious workplace haz-ard or have any type of

emergency situationarise that has or

could jeopardizethe safety ofCSEA mem-

bers, you shouldimmediately notify

your nearest CSEAOfficer, and request that

they immediately reportthe situation to CSEA OccupationalSafety and Health Specialist LynnetWitherell.

CSEA can most effectively respondto emergency situations and protect yoursafety with prompt notification. Thisallows us to assessthe situation andto hopefully ad-dress problemsbefore anyoneis hurt.

OSH Spe-cialist LynnetWitherell canbe reached atthe RegionOffice at (800) 559-7975, ext. 4217.

We needto know!

Keep 5 Alive Spring 2009

Anthony DeCaro, Chair, Cayuga Co.......................................................(315) 283-1608Joe Miceli, Vice Chair, SUNY Oswego....................................................(315) 312-2732Jeffrey Colburn, Regional Advisor...........................................................(315) 366-2221Lynnet Witherell, Staff Advisor................................................................(800) 559-7975Joe Alcaro, Onondaga Co..........................................................................(315) 435-3196Gary Beach, SUNY Binghamton...............................................................(607) 777-2392Cheryl Burns, Jefferson Co......................................................................((315) 785-7810Sharon Connor, Hutchings Psych.............................................................(315) 426-7744Al Crump, Onondaga Co...........................................................................(315) 435-1795Jeannette Engle, Oswego Co......................................................................(315) 963-5287Skip FeFee, SUNY Potsdam......................................................................(315) 267-2578John Frankl, SUNY Oneonta....................................................................(607) 436-3551Barney Freeborn, Madison Co..................................................................(315) 366-2221Tom Gabak, Cayuga Co.............................................................................(315) 729-4939Brenda Harwood, Jefferson Co.................................................................(315) 785-7775James Jackson, Oswego Co.......................................................................(315) 341-2906Norm Jacobson, CNY DDSO....................................................................(315) 336-8413Lynn May, Jefferson Co.............................................................................(315) 486-9958Suz McManus, SUNY Binghamton..........................................................(607) 777-3073Steve Meszko, NYS Barge Canal..............................................................(315) 576-8174Richard Nauseef, SUNY Cortland............................................................(607) 753-2120Linda Park, Onondaga Co.........................................................................(315) 435-3280Andy Roche, Cayuga Co............................................................................(315) 253-6511Eugene Scarsciotti, Syracuse NYS DOT..................................................(315) 672-8152Jennifer Struble, Binghamton Psych........................................................(607) 773-4625Joseph Tartaro, Onondaga Co..................................................................(315) 435-3778Karen Tisci, Southern Tier State Emp....................................................(607) 741-4414Peg Wheeler, Onondaga Co.......................................................................(315) 435-7755Jay Whitehead, Otsego NYS DOT............................................................(607) 433-1576Lynn Wool, Tioga Co.................................................................................(607) 687-8315

Hot Topic: Preventing The Swine FluThe symptoms of Swine Flu are similar to those of the regular

human flu. They include fever, cough, body aches, headache, sorethroat, chills and fatigue. Some people have reported diarrhea andvomiting. Like the seasonal flu, Swine Flu can vary in severity, andmay cause a worsening of pre-existing medical conditions. Peoplewith severe respiratory symptoms or symptoms that worsen shouldcontact their personal physician for care and treatment.

Employees should use common-sense hygiene measures toprevent acquiring or transmitting this illness. To date, the cases ofswine flu reported in New York have been relatively mild.

Precautionary measures include:� Washing your hands often with soap and warm water.

Alcohol-based hand cleansers are also effective, but shouldnot replace proper hand-washing.

� Avoiding people who are ill.� Refraining from sharing personal items such

as forks, spoons, toothbrushes and towels.� Keeping hands away from your face. Avoid touching

your eyes, nose or mouth.� Cleaning shared space more often such as phone receivers, keyboards,

steering wheels and office equipment.� Using a tissue when you cough or sneeze.� Staying home from work or school if you are sick.

New York has established a hotline to answer questions about swine flu.The hotline is 1-800-808-1987. Additional information regarding the SwineFlu outbreak can be found at the following web sites:

Centers for Disease Control - http://www.cdc.gov/swineflu/World Health Organization - http://tinyurl.com/db8oxr

§ NYS Health Dept. - http://tinyurl.com/c8tss2

4