A Collaborative Effort Focusing on Training and Safe Work Practices for High Voltage Workers
Participants:
- U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
- Power Generation Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) Workgroup
The Power Generation Workgroup On March 10, 2023, joined forces with Luminant’s VPP Coordinator Alexander Miller; Onward Energy’s Corporate Safety Director Kelli Heflin; and OSHA Regional Administrator Jennifer Rous to sign an alliance agreement aimed at promoting workplace safety and health for folks working near high voltage.
OSHA Region VIII and the Power Generation VPP Workgroup, a group of dedicated industry professionals, have formed an alliance to increase safety for power industry workers.
One of the main goals of this two-year alliance is to develop a Qualified Electrical Worker Training Program, with the purpose of establishing best practices for keeping employees safe and sound while working around high voltage.
The Power Generation VPP Workgroup’s mission is to encourage workplace safety excellence and OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Program participation within the power generation industry. This will be achieved by sharing ideas, networking, and addressing site and industry-wide safety and health concerns.
OSHA’s Alliance Program collaborates with groups committed to worker safety and health in order to prevent workplace fatalities, injuries, and illnesses. These groups include unions, consulates, trade or professional organizations, businesses, faith-based and community-based organizations, and educational institutions. OSHA and these groups work hand-in-hand to develop compliance assistance tools and resources, share information with workers and employers, and educate workers and employers about their rights and responsibilities.
“Our alliance with the Power Generation Voluntary Protection Program will enhance our efforts to provide power generation industry workers with more opportunities to learn and follow federal and industry standards to protect their safety and health,” said OSHA’s Regional Administrator Jennifer Rous in Denver.
Kelli Heflin, co-founder of the PGVPP workgroup, added, “I’m looking forward to getting the QEW training program off the ground, and the continued sharing of best practices and challenges with the group because I find that we do come up with some pretty innovative solutions.”
Co-founder Alex Miller chimed in, saying, “As a workgroup, our growth has been strong and this year should be no different in that respect. I look forward to engaging with our participants and finding out what they are looking to get out of the group and where we can focus our energy to provide value to the industry.”
The Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) acknowledge employers and workers in private industry and federal agencies who have implemented effective safety and health management systems and maintain injury and illness rates below national Bureau of Labor Statistics averages for their respective industries. In VPP, management, labor, and OSHA work together and proactively to prevent fatalities, injuries, and illnesses through a system focused on hazard prevention and control, worksite analysis, training, and management commitment and worker involvement. To participate, employers must submit an application to OSHA and undergo a rigorous onsite evaluation by a team of safety and health professionals. Union support is required for applicants represented by a bargaining unit. VPP participants are re-evaluated every three to five years to remain in the programs. VPP participants are exempt from OSHA programmed inspections while they maintain their VPP status.
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