Monsanto to Receive VPPPA Safety Award Today
St. Louis-based Monsanto, an agricultural company that deploys technology-based systems to help farmers around the world, has received the Dale Randall Traveling Award from Chapter VII of the Voluntary Protection Program Participants Association. Monsanto is only the second recipient of the award, which recognizes companies for their dedication to raising safety awareness in the workplace.
The VPPPA chapter's board of directors selects the award recipient based on its performance in occupational safety, health, and environmental management. To earn the award, a company must have at least one VPP site and be dedicated to the success of both the VPP and VPPPA. Monsanto has 14 VPP Star sites in Chapter VII's area, which includes Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, and Missouri. Star certification is OSHA's top safety classification. To earn the designation, a site must undergo a rigorous OSHA audit, demonstrating its safety programs and practices reach high levels of excellence. It must also have an accident rate below the rest of the industry.
Monsanto will receive the award today at VPPPA's Chapter VII regional conference in Des Moines, Iowa. Scheduled guests include David Neil, labor commissioner of Iowa; Charles Adkins, Chapter VII OSHA director; and Davis Layne, executive director of the national VPPPA, a member-based association committed to cooperative OSH&E management systems. The chapter instituted this award in 2006 to honor the memory of Dale Randall, a member who dedicated his life to encouraging others about safety awareness.
"Safety is personal and 24/7 at Monsanto," said Emer O'Broin, Monsanto's vice president of environmental, safety and health. "Our employees are dedicated to the safety of themselves, their colleagues, their families and communities, and it's a distinction to see their work recognized by the VPPPA."