Labor/Management Forum Among VPPPA Conference Highlights
The forum taking place Monday morning, Aug. 26, will be moderated by VPPPA board member Stephen Gauthier and is scheduled to be attended by OSHA Assistant Secretary Dr. David Michaels.
The educational agenda for the 29th Annual National VPPPA Conference, taking place Aug. 26-29 at the Gaylord Opryland in Nashville, includes many behavior-based safety sessions, as well as sessions on training, heat stress prevention, HazCom and GHS, fall protection, confined space rescue, contractor safety, incentives, ergonomics, electrical safety, and more. Nearly all of the presenters come from VPP member companies.
Numerous sessions focus on achieving and/or maintaining basic or Star VPP status, successfully undergoing a VPP audit, and how to respond to the failure of a re-approval on-site evaluation.
Two NASA speakers are scheduled to give a presentation Aug. 28 explaining how the agency's safety culture works and how several NASA sites have achieved VPP status.
Monday's schedule is filled with the annual membership meeting, opening sessions, a luncheon for all attendees, regional networking meetings, the reception and grand opening of the expo, and an 7:30-8:45 a.m. Labor and Management Forum, which should be a highlight of the day because VPP requires employee engagement and involvement. Moderated by VPPPA board member Stephen Gauthier of General Electric Transportation Aircraft Engines in Lynn, Mass., this forum is expected to be attended by OSHA Assistant Secretary Dr. David Michaels, the association's marketing director, Sara Taylor, said.