UNITED ASSOCIATION

S AFET Y NEWSUA GENERAL OFFICERS

GENERAL PRESIDENT

William P. Hite

GENERAL SECRETARY-TREASURER

Mark McManus

ASSISTANT GENERAL PRESIDENT

Stephen F. Kelly

EXECUTIVEVICE PRESIDENT

Rick Terven

GENERAL EXECUTIVE BOARD MEMBERS

John Wende, District 1Kenneth J. Broadbent, District 2Kenneth Edwards, District 3James Buchanan, District 4Sid Stolper, District 5John Telford, District 6

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANTS

TO THE GENERAL PRESIDENT

Larry CannPatrick H. KellettMichael A. PleasantT.L. Ranson

UNITED ASSOCIATION DIRECTORS

Tom Bigley, Plumbing ServicesLarry S. Bulman, Political & Legislative AffairsTom Gross, Pipeline & Gas DistributionJames Hart, Metal Trades DepartmentChristopher A. Haslinger, TrainingBrett C. McCoy, Organizing & RecruitmentJames P. Moss, EnergyMichael P. Mulvaney, JurisdictionMartin Naseef, HVACR Service

Dedicated to ensuring the safest and healthiest working environment for our members

The United Association and its local unions will apply itsbest practices and resources to build the best educated andsafest workforce in all sectors of the piping industry.

United Association • Three Park Place • Annapolis, Maryland 21401 • Telephone: (410) 269-2000 • www.ua.org

Message from

Laurie Shadrick,

Health and Safety

National Coordinator

Brothers and Sisters,

Following passage of the Occupa-tional Safety and Health Act of1970, safety and health condi-tions in our nation’s workplaceshave vastly improved; however,we all have to remain diligent toensure we go home injury freeevery single day. Job safety lawsneed to be continually updated,and many hazards remain unregu-lated. It’s been the job of the UA’s

Safety and Health Department topolice these issues to ensure safeprocedures and workplaces existfor our membership.

This past year, the UA continuedto have a presence on paramountsafety committees, such as theAFL-CIO Safety and Health Com-mittee, and the BCTD Safety andHealth Committee. These commit-tees have worked diligently onthe proposed rule change for con-fined spaces in construction. In1993, Occupational Safety andHealth Administration (OSHA) is-sued a rule to protect employeeswho enter confined spaces whileengaged in general industry work.Because of the unique character-istics of construction workplaces,

February 2014 ISSUE 02

our vision

STANDARD FOR SAFETY

2 SAFETY NEWS February 2014

UA safety newsthis standard had not been ex-tended to cover employees enter-ing confined spaces in constructionwork. As per OSHA’s discussionswith the United Steel Workers ofAmerica that led to a settlementagreement regarding the generalindustry standard, OSHA agreed toissue a proposed rule to protectconstruction workers in confinedspaces as well. This is a ruling thatis important to me, as I spoke onthis exact subject in 2008 on a BCTDS&H panel at the Department ofLabor with anticipation that itwould get passed. Our departmentcontinues to follow these proceed-ings, and we can all hope for recti-fication in early 2014.

Another issue we have been moni-toring involves the ruling on OSHA’sInjury and Illness Prevention Pro-gram initiative. OSHA will issue anotice of a proposed rulemaking inSeptember 2014 that will requireemployers to implement an Injuryand Illness Prevention Program. Thisrule has been described by OSHA’sAssistant Secretary Dr. DavidMichaels as his top rulemaking pri-ority. The initiative would build onthose voluntary Safety and HealthProgram Management Guidelinesthat are currently in place. It is be-lieved that a formal program wouldreduce workplace injuries and ill-nesses through a systematic ap-proach that proactively addresses

workplace safety and health haz-ards.

The Center for Construction Re-search and Training (formerly Centerto Protect Workers’ Rights) and theBuilding and Construction TradesSafety and Health Committee havebeen working on a silica standard.I am scheduled to be a member ofa BCTD S&H panel along with sev-eral other affiliates at a public hear-ing to discuss crystalline silica. Wewill be addressing various methodsof controlling exposure, as well asdiscussing the medical issues asso-ciated with silica dust exposure.This hearing is slated to begin onMarch 18, 2014. We are workinghard to get this topic addressed, aswe have been aware of the dan-gers of silica since 1938 when Fran-cis Perkins was our Secretary ofLabor.

Additionally, the Stop ConstructionFalls Campaign is in its third year.The first week in June will be its roll-out with a “stand down” awarenessto be done on construction sitesacross the nation to ensure safer el-evation environments. To date, fallsare the leading cause of injury anddeath. The links to the webpagesare below:

https://www.osha.gov/stopfalls/index.html and http://stopconstruction-falls.com/.

Moreover, through the AdvisoryCommittee for Construction Safetyand Health (ACCSH), we have beenworking with OSHA on developinga new module for the Introductionto OSHA course, which would entaila one-hour lesson plan. Currently wespend two hours of a 10- or 30-hourcourse on this material. Based onrecommendations from the ACCSHCommittee, OSHA developed aWomen in Construction webpage.The webpage is now up and run-ning and will be expanded in the fu-ture. Below is the link to thewebpage.

https://www.osha.gov/doc/topics/women/index.html?utm_medium

In closing, I am deeply saddenedto report that last year we lostthree members in jobsite fatali-ties. Safety remains a criticalissue, and one that everyone mustremain diligent to enforce. It is themission of the UA Safety andHealth Department that everyonereturns home from the workplacesafely every single day. We willcontinue to work hard to maintaina safe and healthy environment forour membership. If you have anyideas or have implemented safetyprocedures that you feel wouldbenefit our membership, pleasesend them to Laurie Shadrick atLauries@uanet.org. Thank you.

February 2014 SAFETY NEWS 3

s tandard for safety

2014 Safety Courses

The UA Director of Training, ChrisHaslinger, has implemented some newinitiatives to provide safety and healtheducation and awareness for our mem-bers. At the 60th anniversary of the In-structor Training Program three classeswere offered and upon successful com-pletion of the course the instructor wasprovided with materials to go back totheir locals and deliver the training. Di-rector Haslinger has announced thatthis opportunity will again be availableat the Instructor Training Program thisyear. All of these classes were filled tocapacity.

Course 236, CPR/First Aid

This course will train and/or certify theinstructor in conducting adult basic lifesupport. This course includes cardiopul-monary resuscitation, automated exter-nal defibrillation and other relatedsubjects. Upon completion of thiscourse, the instructor receives DVD’s,two manikins, an AED trainer, Auto-mated External Defibrillator and allitems necessary to teach this course.

Course 328, ARC Flash Safety NFPA 70E

This class covers NFPA safety require-ments and procedures. Topics includedhazardous energy isolation, electricalsafety and arc flash safety. Upon com-

pletion the instructor receives an arcflash hazard category 2 kit that con-tains all the necessary gear to instructa class at their local along with an in-structor and student manual for thecourse.

Course 470, the OSHA 500

Train the Trainer course certifies our in-structors to teach the OSHA 10-hourand 30-hour safety and health pro-grams. Upon completion the instructorreceives a Standard for Safety dufflebag filled with hands on tools to teachwith.

Course #328 OSHA / NFPA 70E - ARC Flash SafetyAugust 9 - 15, 2014 ...................................................Washtenaw Community College, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Course #470 OSHA 500 Trainer Course for the Construction Industry(p)April 14 - 18, 2014 ......................................................UA Great Lakes Training Center, Ann Arbor, MichiganNovember 3 - 7, 2014 .................................................UA Great Lakes Training Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Course #471 OSHA 510 Occupational Safety and Health Standards for the Construction IndustryMarch 24 - 28, 2014 ....................................................UA Great Lakes Training Center, Ann Arbor, MichiganAugust 4 - 8, 2014.......................................................UA Great Lakes Training Center, Ann Arbor, MichiganOctober 6 - 10, 2014 ...................................................UA Great Lakes Training Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Course #474 OSHA 502 Update for Construction Industry Outreach TrainerFebruary 18 - 20, 2014....................................................................................Long Island City, NY, District 1June 17 - 19, 2014 .................................................................................................Des Moines, IA, District 4December 9 - 11, 2014................................................UA Great Lakes Training Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan

Course descriptions for these classes can be found in the Regional Training Course Catalog on uanet.org athttps://uanet.org/regional_training.asp.

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UA safety newsShortcuts

are Killers

Most of us have thenecessary skillsand knowledge todo our jobs well,and most of usdon’t want to hurt

ourselves or anyone else. Why thendo we take ‘shortcuts,’ setting upourselves and others for injury? Thefollowing is a list of things we oftendo, even though we know weshouldn’t.

1. You can’t fool safety devices -but we remove or wedge backsafety guards so they won’tprotect us.

2. We know that flames or sparksare not permitted around flam-mable liquids - but some of ussmoke around them.

3. A protruding nail in a guard railcan cause an injury - but wedon’t bother to remove it orbend it over.

4. Horseplay causes a lot of injurieson the job - but many of us con-tinue to play practical jokes.

5. We know the safe way to climba ladder - but we climb it withone hand full of tools.

6. We should wear our personalprotective eye equipment - but

we leave our safety glasses inthe trailer.

7. We know better than to usechemicals without reading theMSDS - but we use the chemi-cal anyway.

8. A bump or bruise to the headcan really hurt - but we continueto work without our hard hats.

9. It’s dangerous to block fire-fighting equipment - but westack boxes of material in frontof fire extinguishers.

10. We know not to work within 10feet of a power line - butthere’s just one more load ofpipe to be unloaded.

This is a short list, you can probablythink of a lot more because we all,at one time or another, have beenguilty of taking shortcuts. Usuallyit’s because we are attempting tosave some time. Occasionallysomeone comes up with an ideathat works, and is a time-saver.That’s great, as long as safety isnot sacrificed. Your life and yourhealth are too important to risk bytaking stupid chances, and that isexactly what 999 out of 1000 short-cuts are—stupid.

Don’t take Shortcuts! If you’re in-jured, the minute you saved maycost you days, weeks, or months ofrecovery time.

UA Safety

Committee Intel

Ocotillo Campus

Visit

From Chris Van Kirk, UA Local 469Business Representative

On November 15, 2012, the UASafety Committee was escorted ona tour of the largest microelectronicmanufacturing facility currentlyunder construction. This campus atthat time had approximately 1,500UA members dispatched by UA Local469 working for an assortment oflocal and national contractors.

Due in large part to this site, UALocal 469 completed over 5,300,000man hours in the previous 12months.

Our determination for the total UAman-hours worked at just this cam-pus since 1994, when the originalFab 12 facility was built, comes inat over 20 million. Since 1994, weconstructed Fab 12, Fab 22, Fab 32,and now Fab 42.

While the client maintains an openshop approach to their construction,we have been successful in theoverwhelming majority of theplumbing and mechanical work per-formed at that site.

Our escort for the tour was RobertJones. Robert is the safety manager

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February 2014 SAFETY NEWS 5

for Brooks Plumbing and Mechani-cal. Robert is a long time UA mem-ber that has been working as asafety professional in the mechani-cal contracting industry for manyyears.

The tour was conducted by DanVigil. Dan is another long time UAmember. He has been instrumentalin the construction of all four of thefabrication facilities at the Ocotillocampus while working as a construc-tion manager for the general con-tractor.

MCAA Safety Video App

Now Available to All UA

Training Centers

United Association training centersmay now access more than 35 me-chanical industry-specific safety

videos that have been developedand produced by the MechanicalContractors Association of America(MCAA). Training centers can accessthe videos for free through an iPad,iPhone or Android device.

The videos, which are quick hitting12 to 14 minute worker and super-visor safety training presentations,cover topics that range from work-ing safely with hexavalent chromiumto safe confined space entry. Themost recent videos addressesOSHA’s new standard on the Glob-ally Harmonize System of HazardCommunication, Jobsite Distractionsand Ladder Safety to name a few.

MCAA produces new videos everyyear, which will also become acces-sible through this App. To downloadthe App, go to the Apple App Storeor Google Play Store and search for"MCAA Video" and install. You'll beasked for a members-only usernameand password. MCAA has estab-lished special ones for the UA train-ing centers.

The username is "UA Training" with aspace between UA and Training. Thepassword is Safety with a capital"S." From there, you'll be able tosearch for and play all of the videos,including 22 of them that have beenconverted to Spanish.

Second Annual

MCAA/CNA

Safety Awards

Honor MCAA

Member Firms

The Mechanical Contrac-tors Association of Amer-ica (MCAA) member firmsthat demonstrated the highest level ofsafety excellence in 2012 were recog-nized at the second annual MCAA/CNASafety Awards during the Awards of Ex-cellence Breakfast in March as part ofthe association’s annual convention.

Pictured in the photos below with theawared recipients are MCAA Presi-dent Mac Lynch (right) and Mike Far-rington, Program UnderwritingDirector - Construction Group of CNA(left) who presented the awards.

Category One, 100,000 Work Hoursor Less

Southwest Town Mechanical of Or-land Park, IL. The award was ac-cepted by Lindsey Grilec, SafetyCoordinator.

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United Association • Three Park Place • Annapolis, Maryland 21401 • Telephone: (410) 269-2000 • www.ua.org

STANDARD FOR SAFETY

Below is a list of websitesand links to help you withyour health and safety pro-gram. Many of these siteshave powerpoints and pic-tures that are free to down-load for your use. Pleasetake the time to look at afew of these valuable re-sources.

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

Center of Disease Control and Pre-

vention

http://www.cdc.gov

NIOSH-National Institute Occupa-

tional 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 Re-

search 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.

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Category Two, 100,001 to 250,000Work Hours

CFI Mechanical, Inc., of Houston, TX. Theaward was accepted by Chuck Fell, Pres-ident.

Category Three, 250,001 to 400,000Work Hours

Greiner Brothers, Inc., of Indianapolis,IN. Accepting the award was Matt Thuer,Senior Project Manager.

Category Four, 400,001 to 1,000,000Work Hours

Baker Group of Des Moines, IA. Theaward was accepted by Kathy Ladd,Chief Operating Officer, and Tracy Haus,Safety Director.

Category Five, over 1,000,000 WorkHours

Matrix SME of Eddystone, PA. The awardwas accepted by Michael Dougherty, Di-rector of Mechanical, Maintenance andTurnarounds.

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