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ARTICLE 11 - HEALTH AND SAFETY

11.01 - General Duty

Occupational health and safety are the mutual concern of the Employer, the Union and employees. The Union will cooperate with the Employer in encouraging employees to observe applicable safety rules and regulations. Employees or the Union shall report safety and health violations of which they are aware to their supervisor. The Employer and employees shall comply with applicable Federal, State and local safety laws, rules and regulations, and Agency safety rules and regulations. The Employer will consider ergonomics when selecting products. Nothing in this Agreement shall imply that the Union has assumed legal responsibility for the health and safety of employees.

11.02 - Personal Protective Clothing and Equipment

Personal protective clothing and equipment required by the Agency to preserve the health and safety of employees shall be furnished and maintained by the Agency without cost to employees. The Agency may initially purchase other clothing items without assuming any further responsibility to maintain those same items, except as specifically required by law and this Agreement. Disposable gloves, disinfectant, and mouth pieces will be accessible to employees while directly caring for patients, residents, clients, inmates or youth.

11.03 - Unsafe Conditions

All employees shall report promptly unsafe conditions related to physical plant, tools and equipment to their supervisor. Additionally, matters related to patients, residents, clients, youths and inmates which are abnormal to the employees’ workplace shall be reported to their supervisor. If the supervisor does not abate the problem, the matter should then be reported to an Agency/Facility safety designee. In such event, the employee shall not be disciplined for reporting these matters to these persons. An Agency/Facility safety designee shall abate the problem or will report to the employee or his/her representative in five (5) days or less reasons why the problem cannot be abated in an expeditious manner. The appropriate Health and Safety Committee(s) will be provided the name(s) of the Agency/ Facility safety designee(s).

No employee shall be required to operate equipment that any reasonable operator in the exercise of ordinary care would know might cause injury to the employee or anyone else. An employee shall not be subject to disciplinary action by reason of his/her failure or refusal to operate or handle any such unsafe piece of equipment. In the event that a disagreement arises between the employee and his/her supervisor concerning the question of whether or not a particular piece of equipment is unsafe, the Agency/Facility safety designee shall be notified and the employee shall not be required to operate the equipment until the Agency/Facility safety designee has inspected said equipment and deemed it safe for operation.

An employee shall not be disciplined for a good faith refusal to engage in an alleged unsafe or dangerous act or practice which is abnormal to the place of employment and/or position description of the employee. Such a refusal shall be immediately reported to an Agency/Facility safety designee for evaluation. An employee confronted with an alleged unsafe situation must assure the health and safety of a person entrusted to his/her care or for whom he/she is responsible and the general public by performing his/her duties according to Agency policies and procedures before refusing to perform an alleged unsafe or dangerous act or practice pursuant to this Section.

Nothing in this Section shall be construed as preventing an employee from grieving the safety designee's decision.

11.04 - Workplace Violence

The Employer and the Union recognize that violence against employees is serious and requires violence prevention programs. Agencies will develop practices and procedures aimed at reducing risk of job-related violence. Agency plans shall consider OSHA guidelines for preventing workplace violence to guide development of each agency plan. Agency plans shall be reviewed with the agency Health and Safety Committee which shall be provided an opportunity for input.

11.05 - Communicable Diseases

Upon written request, an employee shall be provided with information on all communicable diseases to which he/she may have routine workplace exposure. Information provided to employees shall include the symptoms of the diseases, modes of transmission, methods of self-protection, proper workplace procedures, special precautions and recommendations for immunization where appropriate. The communicable disease policy and any subsequent revisions will be disseminated to the Agency Health and Safety Committee(s).

The Employer recognizes that some employees who work with individuals infected with hepatitis B virus may be at increased risk of acquiring hepatitis B infection. In accordance with the U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) guidelines, hepatitis B vaccinations shall be made available to all employees who have high risk occupational exposure to the virus. Low risk employees will have vaccinations made available post exposure, within the timelines required under federal regulations, i.e., if exposed to blood or other potentially infectious materials. Post exposure evaluation and follow-up consultations will be made available for all employees who experience an exposure incident. "Occupational exposure" shall have the same meaning in this Agreement as is contained in the OSHA guidelines. Hepatitis B vaccinations shall be offered within ten (10) working days of initial assignment to employees who have occupational exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials. Employees who decline the initial vaccination may, at a later date, request and obtain the vaccination from the Employer. All hepatitis B vaccinations and related medical procedures pertaining to its administration are to be made available at no cost to the employee.

Mandatory Tuberculosis screening may be conducted annually for all employees in Agencies with higher incidence of risk. Based on the risk assessment, some employees or work areas may need to be tested more often than annually. Such additional testing will be based upon Centers for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines. The Employer will hold the employee harmless from any costs incurred as a result of additional tests or x-rays incurred as a result of a positive reaction.

If a resident or inmate is found to carry a communicable disease, all appropriate precautions shall be taken.

11.06 - The Right-to-Know About Toxic Substances

All employees shall have access to information on all toxic substances in the workplace pursuant to current O.S.H.A. regulations.

11.07 - First Aid and C.P.R

Adequate first aid equipment, supplies and training shall be provided by the Agency on an ongoing basis. Where not required by actual job responsibility, employees may volunteer for first aid training. All agencies shall make available C.P.R. training on a regular basis where feasible.

All employees at worksites where there is a dispensary staffed by a medical professional shall have access to the dispensary.

11.08 - Video Display Terminals

The Employer shall provide ergonomically appropriate VDT equipment at all computer and word processing stations purchased or installed after the effective date of the Agreement, whenever the employee has principal job responsibilities which involve the use of such equipment for a majority of his/her time.

The Employer will make every effort to schedule at least fifteen (15) minutes of non-VDT work every two (2) hours for those employees who work for extended periods of time at video display terminals. Non-VDT work is in addition to rest periods provided by Section 13.04.

Any employee who regularly operates a VDT may obtain an annual eye examination paid by the Employer up to thirty-five dollars ($35) unless paid by insurance. The employee may obtain an optical exam annually and submit a claim to the State's insurance carrier for vision benefits. If that claim is denied, the Employer will reimburse up to thirty-five dollars ($35) upon presentation of a denied claim form.

11.09 - Working Alone

Agencies will develop practices and procedures to minimize as much as possible any situations where employees work alone in potentially hazardous areas and, in those cases where employees are required to work alone, Agencies will develop practices and procedures to minimize as much as possible any potential risk to the affected employees. A periodic check on the safety of employees who work alone in potentially hazardous areas will be made or a means of communication to the worksite base location will be provided to employees who work alone in potentially hazardous areas.

11.10 – Asbestos

If an employee from an agency not housed in a state-owned facility has reason to suspect that there may be friable asbestos in that building, he/she may request an asbestos inspection by the Public Employees Risk Reduction Program (PERRP). PERRP will investigate the complaint and issue a report to the appropriate agency, to the employee, and to the appropriate Health and Safety Committee if such committee participated in the filing of the complaint. If asbestos is found in sufficient quantities to require abatement, the Employer will inform the building owner of the need to comply with the abatement order as required under the terms of State leases.

An employee who works in a state owned building who suspects the presence of friable asbestos should report the condition to his/her supervisor and to PERRP.  PERRP will investigate the complaint and issue a report to the appropriate agency, to the employee, and to the appropriate Health and Safety Committee if such committee participated in the filing of the complaint. Any friable asbestos will be abated by the Employer.

The appropriate Health and Safety Committee will be provided with a copy of the Employer's asbestos abatement plan and only licensed asbestos abatement firms will be used to perform necessary asbestos removal or abatement work.

Any employee engaged in maintenance, plumbing, electrical work, renovation or repair who may disturb or damage, or work with asbestos-containing materials, will be trained as to the proper procedures to follow. No employee shall be required to work around friable asbestos without proper training and equipment.

11.11 - Concern for Pregnancy Hazards

The Employer will make a good faith effort to provide alternative, comparable work and equal pay to a pregnant employee upon a doctor's recommendation.

11.12 - Health and Safety Committees

The Agencies and the Union shall establish Labor/Management Health and Safety Committees. Each agency shall have a Health and Safety Committee.

In each Agency that operates with institutions/geographic districts or regions, there shall be a Health and Safety Committee per institution/geographic district or region, unless otherwise mutually agreed upon.

Unless mutually agreed otherwise each committee shall be composed of no more than three (3) representatives appointed by the Employer and three (3) employees appointed by the Union and shall be co-chaired by a Union and an Employer representative.

Each facility operated by agencies required to meet health and safety standards established by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Health Care Organizations (JCAHCO) or the Accreditations Council for Services for MR/DD (AC MRDD and/or the Medicaid/Medicare reimbursement programs shall have one (1) Health and Safety Committee. The Committees shall be chaired by the Agency designee. In addition to the Health and Safety Committee membership required by the JCAHCO or the AC MRDD and/or Medicaid/Medicare, the Union shall appoint two (2) representatives to serve on the Committee within thirty (30) days after the effective date of this Agreement.

The general responsibility of all the Committees will be to provide a safe and healthful workplace by recognizing hazards and recommending abatement of hazards and recommending education programs. To fulfill this responsibility the Committees shall:

A.     Meet on a definitely established schedule, but in no case more frequently than once a quarter, unless otherwise mutually agreed;

B.     Arrange periodic inspections to detect, evaluate and offer recommendations for control of potential health and safety hazards including working alone situations;

C.     Appoint members of the Union to accompany inspections;

D.     Discuss Agency plans and policies for preventing workplace violence.

E.      Receive copies of all accident and illness reports, lists of toxic materials and exposure records; when incident reports involve resident(s), client(s), patient(s), youth(s) and/or inmate(s), for purposes of confidentiality, a separate accident report will be prepared omitting the name(s) of the resident(s), client(s), patient(s), youth(s) or inmate(s);

F.      Promote health and safety education; and

G.     Maintain and review minutes of all Committee meetings.

H.     The Employer will make available to agency Health and Safety Committees information regarding ergonomic requirements that can be used to make appropriate adjustments in existing workplace settings.

Members of the Health and Safety Committee shall be allowed paid time off from their regular work while performing Committee duties and shall also be allowed paid time off for training relating to health and safety.

Each Committee shall establish rules consistent with the above principles. A mechanism to coordinate the efforts of individual Committees shall be established at each Agency.

11.13 - Physical Exams

The Employer agrees to provide physical exams without cost to employees when such tests are necessary to determine whether the health of employees is being adversely affected by exposure to potentially harmful physical agents or toxic materials.

The Employer agrees to provide to each employee and his/her personal physician a complete and accurate written report of any such medical examination related to occupational exposure.

Additionally, written results of any industrial hygiene measurements or investigations related to an employee's occupational exposure shall also be provided upon request of the employee or the Union. All physical examinations required by the Federal Aviation Administration for pilots shall be paid for by the State.

11.14 - Duty to Report

All employees who are injured or who are involved in an accident/incident during the course of their employment shall file an accident/incident report, on forms furnished by the Employer, no matter how slight the accident/incident.

11.15 - Vehicle Inspection

All state vehicles which are operated by employees shall be inspected annually by the Agency. The State shall maintain a program to certify qualified inspectors who shall make a comprehensive inspection. Any deficiencies revealed by such inspection shall be promptly corrected by the Agency.

11.16 - Water and Restroom Facilities

Safe, chilled drinking water will be provided to all employees. Employees shall have access to restroom facilities in close proximity to their place of employment except for road or field crews. Road or field crews working at a fixed location such as a construction site shall have access to a port-a-john. Whenever restroom facilities are not available, the Employer will make a good faith effort to provide transportation for employees to travel to a restroom upon request. In institutions, employees' restrooms shall be separate from those used by residents or inmates whenever practical. The discussion of separate restrooms shall be an appropriate topic for labor/management meetings.

11.17 - Personal Property

Employees shall receive reasonable reimbursement for the cost of any personal property worn by the employee destroyed or damaged in the line of duty providing there is no finding of negligence on the part of the employee.

11.18 - Lounge Areas

Existing lounges shall be maintained by the Employer.

11.19 - Emergency Phone Use

Employees shall promptly be notified of and permitted to answer incoming emergency phone calls and make return emergency calls on a state phone.