Region 2 News Release:   N190
October 5, 2001
Contact: Chester J. Fultz
Phone: (212) 337-2319

NEW YORK- OSHA announced the latest round of Susan Harwood Training Grants. A total of $858,642 has been awarded to four nonprofit organizations in New York State, and one in New Jersey, for safety and health training for workers employed in high-risk activities or hazards and for those affected by new or revised OSHA standards.

The training grants are named in honor of the late Susan Harwood, a former director of the Office of Risk Assessment in OSHA's Health Standards Directorate, who died in 1996. During her 17-year tenure with the agency, Harwood helped develop OSHA standards to protect workers exposed to blood borne pathogens, cotton dust, benzene, formaldehyde, asbestos, and lead in construction.

Three new grantees in New York and New Jersey were selected through a national competition open to all non-profit organizations, including those that provide outreach to Hispanic workers. They are: Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, N. J.., which received a grant of $139,831 to develop and conduct blood borne pathogens training for the employees and managers of accredited health care organizations. A six-hour classroom training session will be held, and a one-hour web-based training program and related CD-ROM will be developed for persons without web access.

Arnot Ogden Medical Center, Elmira N. Y., which was given a $246,887 grant to present ergonomic injury prevention training to both employers and workers at small health care facilities and a local labor council that has already been recruited for the program. In addition, the center will host four video conference sessions for managers and health care professionals at ten remote sites.

The Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union, New York, N. Y.., which was granted $196,615 to establish a training program to assist non-English speaking Hispanics in the food processing industry by training people who will then train hard-to-reach line workers. The program will establish and maintain a structure for ongoing health and safety activity through a network of health and safety committees.

Grants were awarded for a 12-month period. The average federal award is $150,000. If first year performance is satisfactory and funds are available, grants may be renewed for an additional 12-month period.

In addition, $275,309 was awarded to renew two existing grants to organizations in New York for another year.

The Union of Needletrades, Industrial and Textile Employees (UNITE), AFL-CIO, New York, N. Y., received a grant of $156,000 to extend its national health and safety training program within target industries, including textiles, apparel, auto-parts, laundry, retail distribution, and related sectors. Train-the-trainer programs will be expanded; regional workshops will be held for active trainers on program development, curriculum development and evaluation, and workplace-specific training will continue to be delivered to workers, local unions and employers.

The Western New York Council on Occupational Safety and Health, Inc., Buffalo, N. Y., p was given $119,309 to address the high rate of ergonomic and other injuries in the nursing home industry by providing worker and employer training on how to recognize and prevent health hazards. The project will train nursing home employees and employers from 60 facilities.

"These grants are a key part of OSHA's safety and health partnership and compliance assistance programs with workers and employers that contribute to our overall safety and health mission," said U.S. Labor Secretary Elaine L. Chao. "Safety and health training add value to all of America's workplace operations and directly impact the bottom line -- fewer injuries and illnesses. Good safety and health practices also add value indirectly by increasing performance, productivity, innovation and creativity."

The grants target safety and health training programs in construction; blood borne pathogens; ergonomics; electrical power generation, transmission and distribution; and hard-to-reach workers. There are five training topics based on injuries and illnesses in selected industries identified in the OSHA Strategic Plan: construction, food processing, institutional competency building, nursing homes, and small business development.

"These grants are part of our comprehensive compliance assistance efforts to help workers and employers create safe work environments," said OSHA Administrator John L. Henshaw. "Training supported by these grants takes a pro-active approach in America's workplaces, focusing on workers who are most at risk."

A complete national listing of grantees with details on their training proposals is available on the OSHA website at www.osha.gov , under training".

The text of this news release is on the Internet World Wide Web at www.osha.gov. Information on this news release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-693-1999.