DES PLAINES, IL (February 23, 2010) – Thousands of people and businesses worldwide will again join with the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), representing more than 32,000 occupational safety, health and environmental professional members, the Canadian Society of Safety Engineering (CSSE), and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Alliance Program participants, in raising awareness of the importance of being safe at work during the annual North American Occupational Safety and Health (NAOSH) Week this May 2-8 and Occupational Safety and Health Professional (OSHP) Day May 5.
In addition to activities scheduled worldwide by ASSE members and OSHA Alliance Program participants, NAOSH week events and educational programs are scheduled for Washington, D.C., May 2 and 3, along with a roadway safety event May 5 in Portland, Oregon. The NAOSH kick-off events in D.C. will be held at the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Capitol, the Smithsonian and the National Zoo and will feature panel discussions on new industry workplace safety and health efforts as well as recognizing the winners of the 8th annual ASSE kids’ ‘safety-on-the-job’ international poster contest for children aged 5-14. The NAOSH 2010 theme is ‘Mission NAOSH 2010: Safe Workplaces’. Attending the events will be ASSE members and their families from around the globe, federal and state officials, and officials from ASSE, CSSE and OSHA and OSHA’s Alliance Program participants.
“ASSE members continue to lead pioneering efforts in work safety for businesses, workers and communities,” ASSE President C. Christopher Patton, CSP, said today. “NAOSH week is another tool we use to educate people on the positive benefits of protecting people, property and the environment. While millions of people go to work each day and leave there injury and illness free, still close to 6,000 people in the U.S. die each year from on-the-job injuries and 4.4 million more suffer illnesses. We continue to provide services and information that will reduce that number. NAOSH helps us reach millions of people and tens of thousands of businesses on the importance and long-term benefits of workplace safety and health and provide them with resource information.”
Past NAOSH Week events have included fleet safety classes, ergonomic awareness events, a workplace-oriented one-day free preparedness Web Expo, update on mining safety programs, a laser safety seminar, roadway work zone safety programs, corporate workplace safety and health days, teen worker safety programs, city and state work safety fairs, symposiums on a variety of topics, projects to assist charities, personal protective equipment (PPE) fashion shows, and much more. For a listing of activities from last year along with photos please go to www.asse.org/naosh09.
“Today’s economic downturn is tough for everyone and some businesses believe they can save funds by cutting back in safety. That’s not a good move from a business perspective,” Patton added. “Businesses have spent about $170 billion a year on costs associated with occupational injuries and health care, and about $1 billion every week on injured employees and their medical providers – costs that take away from company profits, research and growth-- costs that continue to go up as cuts in safety are being made. Indirect tangible costs of injuries may be as much as 20 times the direct costs, including costs from accident investigation, low employee morale, retraining workers and repairs and production delays, while the intangible costs of losing a loved one, a friend and a co-worker go beyond a price tag.”
Founded in 1911, the Des Plaines, IL-based ASSE is the largest and oldest professional safety society and is committed to protecting people, property and the environment. Its more than 32,000 occupational safety, health and environmental professional members lead, manage, supervise, research and consult on safety, health, transportation and environmental issues in all industries, government, labor, health care and education. For more information on how you can participate in NAOSH Week please go to www.asse.org/naosh10.
-- 30 --
Addendum, OSHA Alliance Participants Supporting NAOSH Week include: Airline Group; American Biological Safety Association (ABSA); American Foundry Society (AFS); American Heart Association (AHA); American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA); American Pipeline Contractors Association (APCA); American Red Cross; American Supply Association (ASA); Association for High Technology Distribution (AHTD); Association of Occupational Health Professionals (AOHP); Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN); Concrete Sawing and Drilling Association (CSDA); Coordinating Committee for Automotive Repair (CCAR); Crane, Hoist and Monorail Alliance; Independent Electrical Contractors, Inc. (IEC); ISSA: The Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association; Lamar Advertising Company; Laser Institute of America (LIA); National Hearing Conservation Association (NHCA); National Maritime Safety Association (NMSA); National Safety Council (NSC); National Telecommunications Safety Panel (NTSP); Precision Metalforming Association (PMA); Process Safety Alliance – which includes the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), American Chemical Society (ACS), American Chemistry Council (ACC), American Petroleum Institute (API), Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS), the Chlorine Institute, Inc. (CI), National Petrochemical and Refiners Association (NPRA), and the Synthetic Organic Chemical Manufacturers Association (SOCMA); the Roadway Work Zone Safety and Health Partners Alliance -- which includes the American Road and Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA), Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE), Laborers' International Union of North America (LIUNA), LIUNA Training and Education Fund, the National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA), and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH); Safe Tank Alliance which includes API, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), and the Steel Tank Institute (STI); Scaffold Industry Association, Inc. (SIA); Sealant Waterproofing and Restoration Institute (SWR); Shipbuilders Council of America (SCA); Society for Chemical Hazard Communication (SCHC); and the URS Corporation.
No comments:
Post a Comment