• Union only -- which all unions can form
• Joint labor-management committees -- where a collective bargaining relationship exists

UNION HEALTH AND SAFETY COMMITTEES
The health and safety committee should be a standing committee of the local and as such it should work closely with building representatives and the union grievance committee. It should meet regularly to be an effective committee.

A high-ranking officer of the union should be named to chair the committee. Other members should be appointed to reflect the interests and diversity of the union. A workable committee should have no more than seven to ten members. When a union has a staff, a staff person should be assigned to the committee.

The primary purpose of the committee is to resolve work-related and environmental health and safety problems in the workplace. An important goal is to work toward the establishment of good health and safety policy at the worksite. Another goal is to educate and inform union representatives throughout the union about hazards which should be reported and corrected.

Health and safety committees are formed for both reactive and proactive reasons. If the committee is formed in response to a crisis such as poor indoor air quality that is contributing to increased illnesses among workers, the committee's immediate focus will be on this issue. The committee will, however need to carefully construct an action plan. (See the TWU Action Plan Fact Sheet)

However, if the committee is formed because there have been diffuse complaints, the committee should strive to define and narrow these complaints to specific issues and prioritize its work. Below are some guidelines for defining the issues and developing a committee's program:

Starting a health and safety committee can seem like a daunting task, but there're several steps that can be taken to organize the committee's work:

First, identify workplace hazards by:
 

• Making a presentation and leading a discussion on health and safety at a union-wide meeting of building representatives or stewards;
• Doing informal surveys with members; distribute surveys through the building representative or steward structure. The TWU Health and Safety Department can provide sample surveys for you to adapt use;
• Collecting background information:
  • 1.requesting information from management that unions have the "right-to-know". For instance, in the private sector and in OSHA state plan states, workers including public employees and their unions have the tight to request the results of any testing done in the workplace such as monitoring for air quality, asbestos or radon. Unions can request the composite results of any testing medical testing performed on all employees such as drug testing;
  • 2.meeting with management health and safety representatives, officials such as environmental health officers, and/or managers responsible for workers' compensation. Such individuals can provide useful information on how health and safety matters are handled by the employer, i.e. current policies on "right-to-know," renovation, asbestos removal, pesticide use, etc.;
• arranging walkaround inspections of all worksites where health symptoms have been reported. If the committee has problems getting access to worksites, providing a check list for the building representative to complete. The TWU Health and Safety Department can provide simple walkaround guides and check lists.

Public employees in the following states have OSHA coverage: Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Virginia, Washington and Wyoming. Other states such as Illinois, Ohio, Rhode Island and Wisconsin have adopted OSHA standards and regulations for public employees but generally provide little enforcement.

Second, find out about all applicable OSHA standards that may apply to the union's members. The TWU Health and Safety Department can provide copies of an applicable standards with easy-to-use interpretations. Form a relationship with an OSHA compliance officer that the union can call during non-crisis periods and get advice/information about standard interpretation or on proper control measures.

Third, make a list and prioritize the health and safety issues of the membership.

Fourth, focus first on health and safety problems that the union can solve. Small victories can win new supporters and demonstrate the union's ability to improve conditions. Some examples of winnable issues include: seeking a policy to restrict pesticide application to times when the least amount of members are present and to provide members with information on the contents of the pesticide and associated health effects of exposure. The union could also seek a broader pesticide policy that instituted integrated pest management programs with control measures which require less pesticide use; requesting that methanol containing duplicating fluid be replaced with safer non-alcohol- containing fluids for all duplicating ("ditto") machines.

These fluids are a bit more expensive but the risk of overexposure is minimal compared with methanol "spirits;" requesting that the company come into compliance with the OSHA blood-borne pathogen standard. The standard requires that any member that reasonably "anticipates exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials" be provided with training to prevent exposure, protective clothing (gloves), the hepatitis B vaccination and immediate medical attention after a significant exposure to blood; requesting that all personal protective equipment be provided and paid for by the employer. For instance, maintenance and operators should not have to pay for gloves, overalls and/or safety shoes and safety glasses.

Fifth, request to meet with management to discuss your concerns and possible management initiatives to correct the identified hazards. Consider asking for corrections that put the administration and the union in a "win-win" position. Be sure to leave behind a written description of the hazards identified and recommendations for change.

Sixth, identify potential allies if your efforts with management are not successful. When management is slow or totally ignores the union's concerns, the union should consider its options. The union may want to reach out to traditional community allies such as the AFL-CIO Central Labor Council, churches, community groups and political figures to build support for action. Such action could include community rallies or highly visible community meetings on the problem featuring victims, union representatives, and experts.

This tactic may work when the union can demonstrate that the very vulnerable, i.e. passengers, customers, as well as workers/staff, are being unnecessarily exposed to dangerous conditions. A media plan should be developed to expand visibility and heighten the pressure on management (see the Health and Safety Action Plan);

Seventh, draft policies for the union to present to management to assure that future exposures or hazards can be avoided. For instance, some locals have successfully negotiated renovation policies that require contractors to seal off construction areas if work is done during work hours and that require noise levels be kept at a minimum. The TWU Health and Safety Department can provide sample policies.

Long Term Activities

Once the committee has "gotten its feet wet" with work on its first priorities, it can develop other functions and activities. Some examples include:

Learning about good policy and procedures as well as employee rights under current laws:

• Learning how to use existing agencies such as OSHA, state health and safety agencies and the health department. The TWU Safety and Health Department can assist with information.
• Inviting local experts to address meetings of the health and safety committee. Many cities have COSH groups (coalitions on occupational safety and health); COSH groups are coalitions of unions and health and legal professionals who are concerned about protecting workers. COSH groups can help train union health and safety committee members, identify union-friendly experts and assist in research.
• Instituting on-going methods to identify problems: several successful health and safety committees have set up on-going structures to find out about health and safety problems as they arise. The committee should consider developing a complaint or incident form that is distributed through the work area representative network. Work area representatives could route complaints or potential problems to the committee for advice and consideration. The committee could also evaluate complaints for possible contractual violations; suspected violations could be turned over to the union leadership for grievance consideration.
• Suggesting health and safety language for the union to consider at contract time: The health and safety committee can start with a "general duty clause" that simply says that management is responsible for providing a safe and healthful workplace free of hazards. The union can then build upon that general duty clause to address more specific issues. Contact the TWU Health and Safest Department for model contract language as well as language negotiated by several TWU affiliates.

The health and safety committee should also actively inform and educate the membership at every stage of their activities by:

• publicizing health and safety problems with stickers, fliers and fact sheets. There is no reason to "reinvent the wheel." The TWU Health and Safety Department can provide a wide range of fact sheets.
• holding educational sessions on health and safety concerns to members; and
• helping to educate all workers on health and safety problems and victories by submitting stories to the union newsletter or paper.

JOINT HEALTH AND SAFETY COMMITTEES
After a union committee is well-established, the local may want to propose a joint labor-management health and safety committee to management. These committees work best when they are negotiated contractually. For this kind of committee to work, there must be mutual respect and a commitment on the part of management to act on the recommendations of the committee.

Labor and management should be equally represented on the committee. At a minimum, a joint labor-management committee should:

• meet regularly and have written minutes of each meeting posted for every employee to see;
• regularly review and recommend revisions of all division health and safety policies; propose new policies such as fire brigade, pesticide application and renovation policies;
• review and evaluate all complaints, investigations and accident reports; the committee should make recommendations for mitigating the problem or preventing future accidents;
• be actively involved with the selection of any consultants chosen to conduct investigations;
• provide adequate information and education for both management and union representatives so that they understand hazard recognition and control as well as relevant OSHA standards and regulations;
• have some assurance that the committee's recommendations will be acted upon by management. When corrections will be costly, there should be a plan of correction with short-term, temporary remedies until the hazard is eliminated.
• have a guarantee that union members have paid time off to participate in the joint labor-management committee.