Bethlehem Area School District Workplace Safety Committee

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Workplace Safety Committee Bylaws

Purpose
The purpose of the Bethlehem Area School District Safety Committee (the committee) is to promote a safe and healthy working environment for each employee by creating and maintaining an active interest in safety by each employee and to assist in the overall effort to minimize the frequency of accidents in the workplace.

Goal
The goal of the Bethlehem Area School District Safety Committee is to eliminate workplace injuries and illnesses by involving employees and managers in identifying hazards and suggesting how to prevent them.

Objectives
The Bethlehem Area School District Safety Committee has five major objectives:

1. Involve employees in achieving a safe and healthy workplace;
2. Promptly review all safety-related incidents, injuries, accidents, and near misses;
3. Conduct ongoing workplace inspections as needed;
4. Monitor accident/incident trends and plan prevention;
5. Annually evaluate the Bethlehem Area School District safety program and recommend improvements to management.

Committee Formation and Membership

Formation
The Bethlehem Area School District Safety Committee is formed as a centralized Safety Committee.

Membership
All primary workplaces are represented.

The committee shall be composed of a minimum of two (2) employer representatives and a minimum of two (2) employee representatives.

Employee representatives may volunteer or be elected by their peers. Management will select employer representatives.

The committee will consist of seven (7) employer representatives and ten (10) employee representatives and will represent the following primary workplaces:

Workplace      

• Administration
• Bus Drivers
• Clerical/Secretarial
• Custodial
• Dining Services
• Instructional Meet and Discuss
• Maintenance – Trades
• Maintenance – Transportation Mechanics
• Non-Instructional Meet and Discuss
• Health Services
• Teachers Aides
• Bethlehem Education Association (teachers union)

Committee members shall:

• Be permitted to take reasonable time from work to perform committee duties, without loss of pay or benefits.
• Join the committee for a continuous term of two (2) years from the date of first meeting attended. Terms will be staggered to ensure that a core group of experienced members are retained on the committee at all times.

Officers
The committee shall consist of three (3) officers; two (2) Co-Chairs and a Secretary.

The Co-Chairs and Secretary will serve a term of two (2) years.

Election of Officers:

• The election of a new co-chair(s) or secretary shall be held during the monthly committee meeting before the month in which the incumbent’s term expires.
• If the co-chair(s) or secretary leaves office before the term expires, an election will be held during the next scheduled safety committee meeting; the elected officer will serve for the remainder of the term.
• All elections will be finalized through majority vote of those present.

Duties of the Co-Chair(s)

• Schedule regular committee meetings and notify members
• Develop written agendas for conducting meetings
• Approve committee correspondence and reports
• Conduct meetings in an orderly fashion and ensure that all members are heard
• Hold meeting time to two (2) hours
• Report monthly committee activities to senior management

Duties of the Secretary

• Record, prepare, and distribute meeting minutes
• Conduct meeting in absence of the Co-Chairs
• Maintain a current membership list
• Maintain training records

 

Duties of Committee Members

• Report and discuss unsafe conditions and practices
• Attend all meetings regularly
• Review all accidents, incidents, injuries, and near misses
• Contribute ideas and suggestions for improvement of safety
• Influence others to work safely
• Sponsor or develop programs related to safety

Employee Involvement
The committee will encourage employees to identify health and safety hazards in the workplace. Concerns raised by employees will be presented to the committee in writing. The committee will review new concerns at the next regularly scheduled monthly meeting. The vehicles for reporting concerns shall be:

• Bethlehem Area School District’s website (www.beth.k12.pa.us) and click on the “Staff” link, then click on “Workplace Safety Committee”
• Inter-district mail (send to the Maintenance Department)
• Email to wsc@smtp1.beth.k12.pa.us
• United States Postal Service mail to:

Bethlehem Area School District Maintenance Department
Attn: Workplace Safety Committee
250 E. Fairview Street
Bethlehem, PA 18018

• Safe School Hotline: 610-866-3000
• Phone: 610-867-8635
• Fax: 610-807-5574
• Employee’s Safety Suggestion and Safety Hazard Report

The committee will respond to employee concerns in writing and work with management to resolve them. The committee will present written recommendations for resolving concerns to management. Within sixty (60) days of receiving the written recommendation(s), management will respond in writing to the committee indicating acceptance, rejection, or modification of the recommendations.

The committee will maintain a log of all employee concerns, including the date received, recommendation(s) to managements, the date the concern was resolved, and the date the employee was notified.

Workplace Inspections
The committee will conduct ongoing workplace inspections for the purpose of follow-up to previously reported health and safety hazards. The location and identity of hazards shall be documented in writing, and the committee shall make proposals to management regarding correction of the hazards.

Training
All committee members will receive annual training in the following topics:

• Hazard Detection and Inspection
• Accident and illness prevention and investigation (including substance abuse awareness and prevention training)
• Safety committee structure and operation

Written records of safety committee training shall include:

1. Names of committee members trained
2. Date(s) of training
3. Training time period
4. Training methodology
5. Name and credentials of person conducting the training
6. The training location
7. Training topics

Committee Meetings
Meeting schedule: The committee will meet on the second Wednesday of every month, alternating meeting times of 8:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m.

Quorum: Fifty-one percent (51%) of regular committee members constitute of quorum. A quorum must be present for each monthly meeting.

Conducting Meetings: The written agenda will be used as the order of business to conduct all safety committee meetings and will include:

• Call to order
• Attendance/introductions of guest(s)
• Review and acceptance of previous month’s minutes
• Old business
• New business
• Reports on open action items – hazard tracking log
• Accident/incident, near misses, injury review
• Discussion of workplace safety inspections
• Recommendations to management – hazard tracking log
• Agenda topics for next meeting
• Other

Voting: Motions considered by the committee shall require a simple majority vote of the regular committee members present to be adopted.

Committee Record Retention
The Secretary will be responsible for record retention. The following records will be maintained for a period of five (5) years:

• Meeting minutes
• Accident/Incident, near misses, and injury investigations
• Documentation of annual committee member training
• Safety related recommendations to management
• New safety programs and policies implemented

 

 

Bethlehem Area School District, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania