Tap into VPP to discover how it can benefit your organization.
By Mark D. Norton, Assitant Director, Arizona Division of Occupational Safety & Health, VPP Coordinator Many companies within the manufacturing sector are looking for help when it comes to getting the most out of their occupational safety & health management system. You noticed I did not use the term “safety program?” There is a reason for that. The way in which you minimize your losses due to injuries and illness in the workplace is not by merely having a safety program. You need an entire safety & health management system. A system which incorporates several core elements used to create the desired culture. One in which management and labor understand that safety and health within the organization is of prime importance and is necessary to minimize injuries and illnesses to the workforce. Ultimately, allowing your most precious resource to go home at the end of the day, in the same condition that they came to work in.
Such a system exists in the model that is the Voluntary Protection Program or VPP for short.
The VPP program is OSHA’s premiere level of recognition when it comes to the management of safety and health within an organization. It is based on four core elements, each of which contain several sub-elements. Companies who have discovered this approach and have implemented it effectively have seen tremendous rewards and exhibit best practices in the safety and health area. The Voluntary Protection Program centers around the following core elements:
• Management Leadership & Employee involvement
• Worksite Analysis
• Hazard Prevention & Control
• Safety & Health Training
As I said, within each of the core elements are sub-elements, which when applied
can be extremely effective in changing the culture. The resulting benefits come not just in the form of reduced injuries, illnesses or events, but in areas such as production, morale, absenteeism, workers compensation costs, and even retention.
Many employers who have successfully achieved the VPP designation have seen significant savings as a result. In fact many of them did not start out with effective programs, they had to work at it, but over time were able achieve something they thought at one time, they never could.
On average employers within this VPP program show that they are 54 percent below the national average for injuries and illnesses in their market, and 53 percent below the rate for injuries involving days away from work or restricted activity. Some employers I work with fall some 90 percent or more below their industry average. Savings from those reductions are huge. Some estimates from the National Safety Council indicate that VPP participants saved some 300 million dollars in 2007 simply as a result of fewer injuries involving lost work days. Currently there are a little over 2200 companies with this designation across the country.
MAKING A CASE FOR VPP
After 29 years in the occupational safety and health field, 22 of which have been working for a state plan OSHA program I can tell you I have seen the VPP model work time and time again. As the VPP program coordinator for the state of Arizona’s Occupational Safety & Health Division it is my responsibility, no let me rephrase that, my pleasure, to introduce the VPP concepts and benefits to employers in all sectors so that they may discover for themselves one more tool that can help make their organization more effective and efficient, and more competitive within their market sector.
When I started working for state OSHA I started in the compliance side of the agency. Honestly, in the beginning I thought the way to compliance was through enforcement only. After almost 12 years of issuing citations, going to court, arguing with employers and conducting fatality investigations I moved into the consultation section and started working with employers on a more proactive level. I was working with employers who truly wanted to improve workplace safety within the organization but may not have known how to get there. I was soon introduced to the concepts behind the Voluntary Protection Program and was amazed at what employers could accomplish when applying this model. Even more impressive to me was the level of employee pride, and “buy in” with respect to what these companies had accomplished.
While it is true that the VPP program is an exemption program, (from planned inspections only) those employers whom I have encountered across the county, are committed to this program and do not do it because of the exemption. They do it because it is the right thing to do and it makes good business sense.
In making a case for the VPP, I was able to point out to a room full of OSHA attorneys from across the United States at an ABA sponsored event, that most employers will never see an OSHA inspector, and the level of scrutiny encountered when applying for and being approved as a VPP site, is many times that of a compliance visit, minus the fines of course.
Those who tell you employees are giving up their rights, or OSHA is taking the wrong direction, are not armed with enough information about the program to make that call. I challenge them to speak to, or even tour a facility that has accomplished this designation. My guess is that they will change their mind. This is a model of management, labor and government working together to enhance workplace safety and improve the quality of life for everyone involved. Isn’t that what OSHA intended from the very beginning? What better way to demonstrate your commitment and concern for the health and wellbeing of those employees who keep your company going, day in and day out. These companies exhibit best practices in multiple areas by adhering to the values and philosophies embodied in the Voluntary Protection Program.
Mark Norton has been involved in over 40 VPP audits and would love to speak to you about the benefits or workings of the program. If you would like to learn more about the the program you can contact him at norton.mark@dol.gov or call him at 520-320-4222.