I am proud to be part of an organization that is building opportunities for the enhancement of safety, health and environmental (SH&E) practitioners' careers.

BCSP is collaborating with the Associated General Contractors (AGC) to improve occupational health and safety at construction worksites, as well as with the Ironworker's Ironworker Management Progressive Action Cooperative Trust (IMPACT), reaching out to their service members and signatory contractors. AGC and IMPACT each signed Partnership Agreements with BCSP earlier this year, joining the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) as BCSP Partners.

As we provide more people with a path to certification, we will be studying the monetary benefits of holding a SH&E credential by administering the most expansive BCSP Salary Survey to date. The 2015 survey will include the participation of the American Board of Industrial Hygiene (ABIH), the Alliance of Hazardous Materials Professionals (AHMP), the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA), the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE), and the Institute of Hazardous Materials Management (IHMM). The new data will provide a greater understanding of the connection between the value of certification and employers' recognition of that value.

In support of students who value safety, BCSP has doubled its scholarship contributions for those determined to achieve degrees in SH&E, committing a total of $20,000 dollars to ASSE Foundation (ASSEF) and American Industrial Hygiene Foundation (AIHF) scholarships this year. These students are our future safety professionals.

BCSP is also making use of new technology to build the future of safety professionalism. The BCSP Certification Management System (CMS) continues to develop, with Group Management and Recertification capabilities expected to be available later this year. To support groups of candidates, we have initiated onsite tablet examination delivery.

I look forward to the success of these projects, which would not be possible without the support of our certificants. It will be my pleasure to recognize certificant accomplishments in the annual BCSP Award of Excellence ceremony at the ASSE conference in Dallas, TX on June 10, 2015. SH&E practitioners' commitment to professional development is one of the greatest contributions to the advancement of the safety profession.

Safety is not merely the absence of harm. It is your acting with excellence, using your knowledge and skills, to keep people safe every day. As BCSP's 2015 Board of Directors President, I embrace the opportunity to join my Board colleagues, our staff, and our certificants in service to the safety profession.

 

Experience is the understanding of what knowledge to apply in a situation to achieve a desired result. Knowledge is the certainty you have that your actions will create the result you desire. The greater the combination of knowledge and experience, the greater a safety professional's ability to act effectively.

"A profession is only as strong as its knowledge base, so safety research and the science of safety have a critical role in informing and equipping the practice of safety," explains Theodore Courtney, MS, CSP, Director of the Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety's Center for Injury Epidemiology.

Courtney recently received the 2014 Excellence in Science Award from the Injury Control and Emergency Health Services Section of the American Public Health Association (APHA). In addition to his position at Liberty Mutual Insurance, he is an instructor at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. His work in safety research also recently led to his 2015 appointment to the Board of Scientific Counselors at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, where he began a three year term this January.

Entering the profession in engineering design and system safety, Courtney soon moved into occupational and environmental safety, and eventually into SH&E research. It was, and is, important to him that his research is applicable in the field. "I wrote an article in Professional Safety in 1997 on how practitioners could make effective use of peer-reviewed research in dealing with safety realities," Courtney notes, referring to the piece Applying Research to Reality: A Rationale and Systematic Approach.

"My research with colleagues on slip, trip and fall (STF) risk brought objective, quantitative insight to slip-resistant footwear, floor friction, and floor cleaning in reducing STF," Courtney explains. "Additionally, our work has influenced fatigue risk management systems, professionals' understanding of the burden of workplace injury (through Workplace Safety Index), and how financial decision-makers view safety and health issues." Courtney takes pride in seeing his and his colleagues' research applied by the risk management professionals at Liberty Mutual Insurance.

Courtney emphasizes the importance of teamwork in his own development as a professional. "I have had remarkable mentors, teachers, mentees, students, colleagues, supervisors, staff, and co-workers throughout my career," he recalls. "Professional development is essential for maintaining your professional edge and enhancing your value. Our 21st century global economy never sleeps, is continuously evolving, and is constantly analyzing itself. Safety professionals have to be tuned in to the latest trends, technologies, insights and practices if they want to maximize the impact they can have." Courtney is a member of AIHA, ASSE, and has been a Certified Safety Professional (CSP) for over 20 years.

There are three things Courtney highlights as good practices for those entering the safety profession, and are good habits for SH&E practitioners in general. First, learn everything you can from those in the profession ahead of you. "I was blessed to work with some outstanding professionals when I was on faculty at Georgia Tech early in my career, and eventually with other remarkable talents both in practice and research here at Liberty Mutual as well as at Harvard." Second, learn as much as you can about both safety and also about the system(s) you are working with. "Effective risk management depends on understanding the purposes and intricacies of the processes you aspire to change for the better. The more you understand your industry, organization, and workforce, as well as their contexts, the better positioned you are to achieve the level of safety impact you want to have." Third, take full advantage of those special training opportunities or assignments that come your way, including conference opportunities, work within the professional societies, and special projects. "I had a number of these throughout my career, including serving on a BCSP exam design team. These opportunities stretch both your abilities and your vision in remarkable ways."

Courtney looks forward to continuing his research. He is honored to have the responsibility of sharing his perspective, knowledge, and experience as part of NIOSH's Board of Scientific Counselors. He says he is thankful for the "passion, energy, wisdom, integrity and generosity" of those who have contributed to his professional development.  

 

BCSP has signed partnership agreements with the Association of General Contractors (AGC) and International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers, Ironworker Management Progressive Action Cooperative Trust (IMPACT).

 

Stephen Sandherr, Chief Executive Officer of AGC, and Cece Weldon, CSP, CHST, STS, BCSP Board President, signed the AGC-BCSP partnership agreement at the AGC Safety and Health Committee Conference in January.

 

"Ultimately the Board and AGC share the same goal - a near future where every construction worker goes home safe and healthy every day," said Sandherr.

 

The organizations have committed to collaborating in support of occupational, safety, and health competency at all levels of the construction industry.

 

The BCSP-IMPACT partnership agreement was executed by IMPACT Labor Co-Chairman, Walter W. Wise; IMPACT Management Co-Chairman, William W. Brown; and BCSP Board President, and Cece Weldon, CSP, CHST, STS at the opening of the general session of the Ironworkers/IMPACT Annual Meeting in February.

 

"This agreement presents our organization and its members with new opportunities," Wise said. "With this agreement, and the initiatives we take together, IMPACT and BCSP prove their commitment to safety," added Brown.

 

BCSP and IMPACT have committed to using their collaborative efforts, expertise, technologies, and resources to provide competency-based certification to advance the safety of members and signatory contractor personnel, providing career opportunities and safe working conditions for ironworkers based in the Canada and the United States.

 

AGC and IMPACT are the newest BCSP Partners, organizations that share an interest in the advancement of safety, health and environmental practice and practitioners.

 

In support of future safety professionals, BCSP will continue to offer two ASSE Foundation (ASSEF) scholarships at $5,000 each and double the financial assistance it offers with two new $5,000 scholarships from the American Industrial Hygiene Foundation (AIHF).

"BCSP embraces the opportunity to support safety students and their studies," says BCSP's CEO, Dr. Treasa Turnbeaugh, CSP, ASP, CET. "The potential demonstrated by scholarship recipients from each of these distinguished foundations is great. New safety professionals not only meet industries' safety needs  - They reinvigorate professional safety practice."

BCSP's ASSEF scholarship recipients will be recognized in June at ASSE's Safety 2015 conference.

The AIHF scholarships will be available this year, and will be awarded to SH&E students in 2016.

 

Click here for the full Safety 2015 brochure

The BCSP Award of Excellence (AoE) ceremony recognizes the achievements of BCSP certificants, and celebrates the value of certification. The 2015 ceremony marks the fourth year of these prestigious awards.

 

Recipients of the 2015 Awards of Excellence will be announced on June 10, 2015 at ASSE's Professional Development Conference, Safety 2015, in Dallas, Texas.

 

BCSP encourages all safety professionals to join us in showing AoE recipients appreciation for their contributions to the SH&E profession. To attend, be sure to register for the Wednesday Luncheon when you register for Safety 2015.

Many BCSP certificants shared our desire to ensure safety through certification last year. We proudly include those who mentored in our 2014 Mentor Honor Roll.

"Along the journey of achieving 34 years of experience, I have been aided and mentored by a plethora of individuals and organizations," says Paul Esposito, CSP, CIH. "We can all learn from each other, and I have found mentorship in the past to be a two way street. Mentorship can not only be personally rewarding, but can help make our profession better and stronger, it helps us impact the lives of many of the workers in today's industry."

We appreciate these individual's efforts, each taking the time to share their knowledge and skills with others. We welcome all of our certificants to join them in the BCSP Mentor Program, and wish all the best in 2015. 

 

Falls cause thousands of injuries in construction and are the leading cause of death in the industry each year. At the same time, the absence of proper fall protection is the most cited violation of the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations. This harm is preventable, and in 2014 tens of thousands of employers and more than a million workers across the country joined OSHA for the National Safety Stand-Down.

"With the economy on the rebound and housing starts on the rise, now is the time for all of us to renew our commitment to sending workers home safe every night," said Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez. "Last year's Stand-Down showed us what employers and workers sharing that commitment can accomplish. Responsible employers understand that safety is not a luxury - it is a necessity."

BCSP encourages participation in this year's National Safety Stand-Down, scheduled May 4-15, 2015. Employers and workers will pause during their workday for topic talks, demonstrations and training on how to use safety harnesses, guard rails and other means to protect workers from falls.

"No child should lose a parent, no wife should lose a husband and no worker should lose their life in a preventable fall," said NIOSH Director Dr. John Howard. "The Stand-Down serves as an important opportunity for worksites to recognize the hazards that cause them, train employers and workers how to avoid them so that these senseless tragedies can be prevented once and for all."

The National Safety Stand-Down 2015 website provides details on how to: conduct a Stand-Down; receive a certificate of participation; and access free education and training resources, fact sheets and other outreach materials in English and Spanish. Check the website for these and, as soon as they become available, a list of stand-down events free and open to the public.

 

The Current Changes Index provides a quick list of upcoming changes to BCSP policies. The 2015 Current Changes Index went online in January, and you may want to check it out if you have not yet done so.