More than $1 million available to improve workplace safety

Money to train employers and their workers in recognizing workplace hazards and control measures will be doled out in the fall. Applications are being accepted for the Susan Harwood Training Grant Program.

A total of $1.2 million is available to nonprofit, community, and faith-based organizations; employer associations; labor unions; joint labor/management associations; and colleges and universities. The grants are intended to supply hard-to-reach workers, small businesses, and those in high-hazard industries with tools to support safe and healthy workplaces.

The grant program is named after a former director of the Office of Risk Assessment in OSHA's Health Standards Directorate. More than 1.8 million workers have been trained through the program since 1978.

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The grants are for one year each and support the development of quality training materials and programs addressing workplace hazards and prevention strategies.

Two types of grants. The program will award targeted topic training grants and grants for training and educational materials development.

OSHA says the targeted topic training grants should focus on "the development of quality safety and health training and educational materials, and conducting training for workers and/or multiple employers addressing safety and health hazards associated with one of the OSHA selected training topics listed in Section VI.D.1.c)." Grant amounts will total between $15,000 and $120,000.

For the training and educational materials development category, applicants are expected to "develop, evaluate, and validate classroom quality training and educational materials for one of the audiences listed in Section IV, and on an OSHA-selected training topic as listed in Section VI.D.1.c)," OSHA says. "Limited on-site training should be proposed as part of the evaluation and validation process but should not be a significant work plan element." The maximum funding level will be up to $50,000.

Applicants must first register, and applications must be received by May 17.

Read more at the WorkersComp Forum homepage.

April 23, 2012

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