September 29, 2003—A new lineup of program initiatives will greatly expand the benefits of the Voluntary Protection Program, protecting the safety and health of thousands more workers across the nation, Assistant Secretary of Labor John L. Henshaw told attendees of the Voluntary Protection Programs Participant’s Association’s (VPPPA) 19th annual conference recently.
Expanding on his earlier remarks at the National Safety Congress concerning OSHA’s future goals, Henshaw explained the three new VPP initiatives, which will not affect the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s current VPP program:
- VPP Challenge will be a flexible program designed to reach and assist companies who are willing to make a commitment to excellence, but need assistance in developing effective safety and health management systems. Henshaw said VPP Challenge will be an ideal vehicle for increasing small business participation in VPP by providing more focus and support for small business owners to implement VPP principles in their facilities. Employers will be given incentives, including recognition, for incremental improvements in their management systems.
VPP Corporate will streamline the application review and onsite evaluation processes for corporations that have made a commitment to VPP. The initiative will focus on eliminating redundancy in the application requirements for sites from the same corporation. The initiative will also require participating corporations to provide mentoring and outreach to other corporations.
The VPP Construction initiative will be designed to meet the unique characteristics and needs of the construction industry. The initiative aims to provide the mobile construction workforce and short term projects with the same opportunity for recognition that fixed site employers receive. OSHA intends to develop and launch VPP Construction next year.
VPP is OSHA’s premier cooperative program. VPP worksites save millions each year because their injury and illness rates are more than 50 percent below the averages for their industries, says OSHA. In the VPP, management, labor, and OSHA establish cooperative relationships at workplaces that have implemented a comprehensive safety and health management system. Approval into VPP is OSHA’s official recognition of the outstanding efforts of employers and employees who have achieved exemplary occupational safety and health programs.
