When most people hear the phrase, "productive government meetings," they cast a wary glance based on the preconceived notion that the words "productive" and "government" are rarely paired together.
Yet, that’s how one could classify OSHA’s stakeholder listening sessions on its "Safety as a Core Workplace Value" campaign and VPP modernization in June at the Department of Labor’s Frances Perkins Building in Washington, D.C.
Instead of meetings where agency heads and staff make presentations on predetermined outcomes, OSHA did something that, in recent years, it has become quite good at: listening.
Environment, Health, Safety and Sustainability (EHS&S) stakeholders like VPPPA and our members have been privy to OSHA’s willingness to engage with key constituents, take their feedback and implement recommendations to advance health and safety industry wide.
But, for the general EHS&S public, being able to participate in a true listening session — and walk away with the sense that their voices were heard and their ideas on improving workplace safety were acknowledged — helps build relationships that yield collaboration and results.
OSHA kicked off its listening week by engaging with the EHS&S community on how we define safety as a core value. From my experience at the table, the opportunity to not only share how VPP sites build the safety and health culture around the single core value of "if it can’t be done safely, it won’t be done," but to learn from other stakeholders what core value means to them was invaluable. OSHA allowed the two, three-hour sessions to develop organically rather than being steered by a predetermined outcome.
That is, they listened and took notes. One of the key points made by multiple participants centered around the age-old "priority versus core value" debate, which continues among safety professionals to this day, and I talked about in the March/April 2023 issue of BIC Magazine. While no surprise to BIC readers, many of whom committed to this philosophy a decade or more ago, it was refreshing to see agreement among such a diverse group — labor, management, EHS&S professionals and trade associations — that portends an OSHA-led leap forward in how we spread this message to a broader audience.
OSHA continued the dialogue with another in its VPP modernization listening sessions. Having conducted multiple listening sessions at VPPPA’s regional conferences, including four at VPPPA’s Region VI Conference in Corpus Christi, Texas, one session was designed to give an audience to representatives from across the safety and health spectrum. If anything, support for VPP is stronger than ever, as is the desire to identify paths forward that maximize the talents and time of OSHA personnel. Going further, the focus on growing the number of VPP sites will be paramount in any modernization initiatives, with OSHA and stakeholders identifying opportunities to work together to create a roadmap for third-party consensus standard safety and health management system users, such as ISO45001 and ANSI Z10, to gain entry into VPP.
I’d be remiss if I did not mention that, during OSHA’s listening session, VPPPA and the American Society of Safety Professionals signed a memorandum of understanding that brings together the knowledge and resources of both organizations to create a detailed comparison of ISO45001, ANSI Z10 and VPP for the purpose of developing the roadmap to VPP participation. Just as important, both organizations have committed to working together to develop the framework for a "VPP for Construction" that, if adopted, would open the door for contractors across the country to begin the journey toward VPP Star status.
In two days, OSHA and stakeholders in high-performing EHS&S programs came together to lay the groundwork for what could result in the next "great leap forward" in workplace safety and health. Just as important, OSHA showed its willingness to work alongside this diverse group to further our shared goal of protecting America’s workers through sharing of the best practices and processes developed by the "best of the best" in both VPP and other exceptional cultures.
Labor, management and OSHA are working together to protect lives. That’s productive government.
For more information, visit vpppa.org.
