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Workers Learn to Reduce Hazardous Materials Risks
Dozens of CWA and IUE-CWA members are learning to identify hazardous materials at work, prevent spills and respond in emergency situations thanks to union-sponsored training sessions made possible with grant funding.
The most recent workshop was held in Dayton, Ohio, in March at the IUE-CWA Delphi Joint Activities Training Center, where 14 workers from various plants and three managers took part in “train the trainer” sessions.
“It was excellent training,” said Henry Reichard, director of safety and health for the IUE-CWA Automotive Conference Board, which oversees contracts at GM, Delphi, Valeo and D-MAX, a joint venture of GM and Isuzu. “Technical training is sometimes kind of dry, but the instructor really presented the material in a way that held everybody’s interest.”
The newly schooled trainers will now teach fellow workers basic skills to recognize hazardous chemicals — including industrial-strength paint solvents, cleaning solutions and fuels — and protect themselves and others. “It’s an effective, grassroots way to teach critical skills to as many people as possible in a relatively short period of time,” said Charlie Barrett, IUE-CWA health and safety director.
The classes are taught by instructors from the hazardous materials program at the University of Alabama-Birmingham’s Center for Labor Education and Research. Three more sessions are planned this year, an advanced course April 17-18 in Lawrence, Mass., and beginning classes May 16-17 in Milwaukee and July 25-26 in New Brunswick, N.J.
The five-year grant, from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, is in its second year. Barrett said at least one course annually will offer workshops in Spanish. This year, 16 of 27 participants in Los Angeles attended Spanish-language sessions.
The sessions have also highlighted the union’s effort to work with management on safety issues.
“It’s hard to argue about safety,” Reichard said. “Sometimes there’s a difference of opinion about how to get there, but the ultimate goal is to eliminate injury and illness in our facilities.”
Members interested in attending the upcoming hazardous materials training sessions can contact CWA’s Safety and Health Department at (202) 434-1157 or e-mail Jesse Davis, health and safety grants coordinator, at jdavis@cwa-union.org.
The most recent workshop was held in Dayton, Ohio, in March at the IUE-CWA Delphi Joint Activities Training Center, where 14 workers from various plants and three managers took part in “train the trainer” sessions.
“It was excellent training,” said Henry Reichard, director of safety and health for the IUE-CWA Automotive Conference Board, which oversees contracts at GM, Delphi, Valeo and D-MAX, a joint venture of GM and Isuzu. “Technical training is sometimes kind of dry, but the instructor really presented the material in a way that held everybody’s interest.”
The newly schooled trainers will now teach fellow workers basic skills to recognize hazardous chemicals — including industrial-strength paint solvents, cleaning solutions and fuels — and protect themselves and others. “It’s an effective, grassroots way to teach critical skills to as many people as possible in a relatively short period of time,” said Charlie Barrett, IUE-CWA health and safety director.
The classes are taught by instructors from the hazardous materials program at the University of Alabama-Birmingham’s Center for Labor Education and Research. Three more sessions are planned this year, an advanced course April 17-18 in Lawrence, Mass., and beginning classes May 16-17 in Milwaukee and July 25-26 in New Brunswick, N.J.
The five-year grant, from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, is in its second year. Barrett said at least one course annually will offer workshops in Spanish. This year, 16 of 27 participants in Los Angeles attended Spanish-language sessions.
The sessions have also highlighted the union’s effort to work with management on safety issues.
“It’s hard to argue about safety,” Reichard said. “Sometimes there’s a difference of opinion about how to get there, but the ultimate goal is to eliminate injury and illness in our facilities.”
Members interested in attending the upcoming hazardous materials training sessions can contact CWA’s Safety and Health Department at (202) 434-1157 or e-mail Jesse Davis, health and safety grants coordinator, at jdavis@cwa-union.org.