The “NEW HIOSH”
The “New HIOSH”
By Nelson Befitel
March 2005
A little over two years ago, “A New Beginning” emerged with the election of Governor Linda Lingle, and a promise to restore trust in government and create a business-friendly environment. One of the Lingle-Aiona Administration’s goals was to assist businesses succeed by keeping workers safe and healthy, while remaining competitive and profitable, in other words, establishing a collaborative partnership to achieve this.
This business-friendly approach has been highly successful with restoring public confidence in the Hawaii Occupational Safety and Health Division (HIOSH).
The HIOSH administers the occupational safety and health laws which protect the working men and women of our island community. As a division of the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (DLIR), the HIOSH is working with labor, management and small businesses to meet regulatory compliance. With the HIOSH’s assistance, employers are able to implement an effective safety and health program or further enhance an existing one.
For decades, there were very few or immaterial changes in the HIOSH’s approach to workplace safety and health. Businesses perceived the division as being heavy-handed, which further exacerbated the anti-business environment.
Restoring public confidence in HIOSH is a major priority for Nelson B. Befitel, Director of the State’s Department of Labor and Industrial Relations (DLIR). Mr. Befitel has reached out to the safety and health community and sought their participation and assistance in improving the service of the HIOSH and helping businesses and employers ensure safe and healthful workplaces for employees.
It did not take very long for the cadre of safety and health professionals to respond with enthusiasm. The HIOSH focused on working with businesses to help them evaluate their safety and health management systems to identify and correct workplace hazards. This proactive, preventative approach benefits employers by reducing potential workers’ compensation injuries and therefore, lower premium costs.
This was not a small feat, considering that only two years ago, the HIOSH had only recognized one company for having an exemplary safety and health management system. Chevron Hawaii Refinery was the State’s sole Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) company. The VPP is a national recognition program that honors companies who have outstanding safety and health systems.
Today, Hawaii is proud to have three companies that have earned the VPP STAR status. Frito Lay of Hawaii and Dick Pacific Construction Company are the two recent recipients of this prestigious award.
Another cooperative program that the HIOSH has promoted for small businesses is the Safety and Health Achievement Program or SHARP. In the past two years, the HIOSH has recognized twelve companies who have demonstrated they possess an exemplary safety and health management system.
Companies that have earned this distinction also benefit by being exempt from the Programmed Inspections List (except in cases of imminent danger, complaints, or fatalities) for one year. The exemption is renewable annually. They also reap the financial benefit of receiving at least a 5% reduction in their workers’ compensation premium costs, and the recognition by their peers as being one of Hawaii’s exemplary companies.
The State’s first five SHARP companies, KD Construction, Nordic Construction, RCI Construction Group, Jayar Construction, and Kimi Hotels dba Maui Seaside Hotel, along with the three VPP companies were recognized by then U.S. Department of Labor Assistant Secretary, John L. Henshaw, Governor Linda Lingle, Lt. Governor James R. “Duke” Aiona, and Director Befitel in a special ceremony at the State Capitol in April 2004.
The HIOSH will be adding two additional companies into the SHARP recognition program by the end of March 2005. With a current list of fifty-nine applications for SHARP in various phases of the evaluation process, the HIOSH is expected to add a dozen new SHARP companies by the end of September 2005. In addition, the HIOSH is working with two companies that are interested in applying for the VPP Star status, one of whom is currently a SHARP recipient.
Seven additional companies have diligently worked with the HIOSH to improve their safety and health management systems to achieve their SHARP status. These companies are: Kimi Hotels dba Kauai Sands Hotel, Integrated Renal Care dba FMC – Dialysis Service of Pearlridge, Master Sheet Metal, Aylward Enterprises Inc., Big Island Candies, JAL Hawaii, and Swinerton Pacific.
While the HIOSH is becoming more “business-friendly”, this does not equate to reducing or minimizing its foundation, which is the enforcement of the OSH Act of 1970. The HIOSH has and will continue to provide “strong, fair, and effective” enforcement, complimented by outreach and education through compliance assistance, and on-site consultations.
The booming construction industry is projected to keep Hawaii’s economy vibrant and lucrative for many years to come. However, a rise in any industry’s activities usually uncovers underlying occupational safety and health issues, along with the possibility of increasing workers’ compensation claims.
Thirty-three (33%) percent of falls from elevations contributed to one of the four leading causes of 90% of all construction fatalities. The HIOSH took the lead last fall to specifically address this alarming statistic and commenced two HIOSH initiatives, the Fall Protection Initiative (FPI) and the Fall Protection Emphasis Program (FPEP).
The FPI is a non-enforcement, compliance assistance initiative designed to heighten the awareness of fieldworkers of the need for fall protection while working at heights of six feet or higher. The FPI reached 262 construction sites, affecting 1,603 workers throughout the state.
The FPEP is a local emphasis program that targets fall-related violations at predetermined geographical sectors throughout the State where these hazards are occurring. During the first three and a half months of the FPEP implementation, the initiative resulted in 54 inspections and 85 fall-related citations (some repeat or willful), being issued, totaling $76,575 in penalties.
Rather than taking a strict, regulatory position, as it has in the past, the HIOSH is requesting that contractors, insurance companies, and interested stakeholders be proactive with addressing industry-specific occupational safety and health issues by establishing partnerships and alliances.
The creation of the Advisory Council on Construction Safety will address historical inspection trends and workers’ compensation loss data, analyze current and emerging industry trends, make recommendations of “Best Practices”, and provide workable solutions for the Director of Labor and Industrial Relations’ consideration. All members of this council will be appointed by the Director. Currently, the HIOSH is working out the specifics of the council with OSHA Region IX, and implementation is estimated to take place by the end of March 2005.
The De Minimus/NOV (Notice of Violation) policy, implemented a year ago, has been successful with assisting employers to be compliant with the OSH laws. The policy allows for the immediate correction of other than serious violations on-the-spot, and quickly eliminates hazards that could potentially lead to injuries, illnesses, and fatalities.
In the next few months, the HIOSH will address several areas, specifically those affecting the construction industry, which includes focused inspections, health hazards, compliance assistance, and cooperative programs.
Focused inspections will permit the compliance officers to concentrate individually on four major causes of workplace fatalities in construction – falls from elevations, struck by, caught in/between, and electrical shock. Ninety (90%) percent of all construction fatalities occur from these four major causes. The goal of the HIOSH’s construction inspections will be to make a difference in the safety and health of employees at the worksite.
OSHA has targeted specific health hazards in construction as a National Emphasis Program (NEP). The HIOSH will follow the OSHA NEP, as well as give special attention to the Hearing Conservation Standard, Hazard Communication Standard, exposure to toxic and hazardous chemicals and Respiratory Protection.
Compliance assistance and support will continue through the HIOSH Consultation & Training (C&T) Branch. Voluntary compliance programs, such as the VPP and SHARP will remain a key priority of the C&T Branch. In addition, partnerships and alliances will also be encouraged between labor, management and employees to reduce the “triple bottom line” which is: reducing injuries, illnesses, and fatalities.
Finally, although the HIOSH has accomplished much, it still has a long way to go. A true indicator of the HIOSH’s success is the increasing approval rate of public confidence and its willingness to partner with a regulatory agency. At the present time, fifty-nine companies are entered in the SHARP certification program, in various phases of evaluation. A great testament for a program that two years ago had zero participants in the SHARP program and only one VPP company in Hawaii.
Nelson Befitel is the director of the state Department of Labor and Industrial Relations
