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Regional and Area Office Alliances > Region V > Alliance Final Report	Printing Instructions
FINAL AREA OFFICE ALLIANCE REPORT Ohio Landscapers Association Cleveland Area OSHA Office June 7, 2005
I. Alliance Background Date Signed October 15, 2003 Overview To provide OLA members with information, guidance, and access to training resources that will help them protect employees’ health and safety while performing landscaping activities. Implementation Team Members Julie Weis-OSHA Sandy Munley-Executive Director OLA II. Implementation Team Meetings Numerous meetings between OLA and OSHA were held prior to the signing of the Alliance. On February 2, 2004, talked with S. Munley regarding presentations on the OLA Expo, March 8th talked with S. Munley on possibility of upcoming session for hands on training for workers. This did not materialize due to the extremely busy spring and summer seasons for landscapers. The session was postponed until November 2004. CAS visited OLA and provided landscaping brochure to hand out to members. Multiple other informal meetings were held with both Ms. Munley and the OLA Board Members to assure we were on track with the progress of the alliance. III. Activities and Products Evaluation Period. This final report covers from November 2004 until the end of the alliance, April 2005. Alliance Activity. Training and Education CAS and other Cleveland OSHA personnel provided training at OLA’s expo conference in Feb. 2005, where over 1,500 people attended. The focus for those four separate sessions included developing a written safety and health program, recent fatalities/accidents, required documentation to provide for OSHA inspectors, and a hands-on training session for employees to observe the correct methods for utilizing some of the most common pieces of equipment during landscaping activities, such as weed trimmers, skid steers, lawnmowers, etc. Emphasis was placed on the correct type of personal protective equipment to be used including importance of hearing protection. Outreach and Communication CAS wrote monthly articles for the OLA’s Growing Concern Publication with timely topics addressed during the course of the alliance. OLA has placed a link to the OSHA website on their website, thereby encouraging visitors to become involved in the safety and health process. Promoting the National Dialogue on Safety and Health During the course of the alliance, OLA has promoted safety and health in general during their internal meetings as well as conferences held with other organizations throughout the country. Alliance Products. Training and Education (same as above) Outreach and Communication –CAS developed and distributed during the above February 2005 conference, spiral bound pamphlets holding valuable information geared directly toward the landscaper. These were designed to be utilized as tool box topics for the foreman to review on a routine basis with the frontline worker. The handout includes approximately 37 different topics including some to be used while back at the shop area. Numerous compliments were received on this handy and easy to read safety and health brochure. Promoting the National Dialogue on Safety and Health (same as above) IV. Results This final report outlines the success that has been achieved during the 18 month time period. OSHA has opened the door to communicating with an industry that historically hasn’t seen very much interaction or enforcement activity with safety and health. There have been positive responses from the OLA members regarding the helpfulness of the monthly articles in the "Growing Concern" publication as well as opening the lines of communication during their annual conference and expo.   Type of Activity (Conference, Training, Print and Electronic Distribution, etc.) Number of Individuals Reached or Trained Expo and Conference 1,500 Spiral bound handout 200 Monthly Association Article 500 TOTAL 2,200 IV. Upcoming Milestones Since the Alliance was mutually agreed upon by both signatories to conclude, there are no upcoming milestones. However, the impact this alliance has made will hopefully be realized when enforcement begins its activities. At this time, it has not been decided whether a LEP on landscapers will be implemented. In conclusion, the OLA was a wonderful organization to work with over the course of the 18 month agreement. They definitely have the best interest of their members in mind regarding improving the overall safety and health programs of the companies. This alliance provided those members with numerous educational sessions, training materials and a forum to discuss issues, particularly for an industry not very well versed in OSHA protocol and all that it encompasses. Report Prepared by: Julie Weis For more information, contact the Office of Outreach Services and Alliances at 202-693-2340 or go to www.osha.gov.

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