![]() ![]() ![]() So they don't count SHARP as a quote-unquote stand-alone cooperative program, it's within the consultation program. OSHA considers SHARP to be a consultation-funded program, OK, and VPP to be an enforcement-funded program. ![]() There are a couple more, but those are the MAIN ones. They have partnerships providing stakeholders with avenues to improve safety and health while working with OSHA in a non-adversarial way. They have their consultation program, providing consultative assistance to employers who request them. Mark Hurliman: OSHA's cooperative programs include their Alliance Program, which is working with industry groups to prevent workplace fatalities, injuries, and illnesses. I wonder if you can tell us in general terms about OSHA's Cooperative Programs-the names of several specific OSHA or Oregon OSHA cooperative programs, and the ones you work with most closely, which you've already touched on a bit already. A nice explanation of some of the other programs, a distinction between federal OSHA and Oregon OSHA, and also the organizations that are promoting these programs. These are not the programs-they are organizations developed to promote the programs and assist companies in participating in the programs. In Oregon, the Oregon SHARP Alliance is also a member-based, non-profit organization comprised of Oregon employers who currently are part of SHARP or VPP or are working toward SHARP or VPP, and then other companies that are just interested in promoting safety and health at the workplace. It's member-based, with a network of more than 2,300 companies or worksites that have achieved or are striving for occupational safety and health excellence. So the VPPPA, the Voluntary Protection Program Participants Association, is a national, non-profit, 501(c)(3) charitable organization. The other thing I want to be clear about, and we'll talk about it throughout this interview, is that SHARP and VPP are not the same thing as the VPPPA and the SHARP Alliance-people tend to confuse them. The programs are parallel, but they're not connected. Both programs are run by OSHA or the state plans in their respective states. So as we talk today, I'm going to talk a little bit about OSHA, meaning federal OSHA, but also about Oregon OSHA.Īnother thing that I'd like to clarify up front, if I could, is that the Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP) is a consultation program that exists in all 50 states, and that the Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) is an enforcement program that also exists in all states. The Act allowed individual states to enact their own state-run programs as long as they would meet or exceed OSHA requirements, and in 1973 Oregon passed the Oregon Safe Employment Act and became the second state in the union to have a federally approved state plan. In 1970, president Nixon signed the OSH Act, superceding all occupational safety and health programs in the nation and mandating that Americans should have a safe and healthy place to work. If I could, I'd like to take just a minute to tell you I work for Oregon OSHA, not federal OSHA. I manage the day-to-day operations of the VPP (or Voluntary Protection Program) and I assist Oregon OSHA consultants and the consultation management team with day-to-day operations of SHARP ( Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program). I'm certified through the National Safety Management Society as a certified safety and health manager, I've been that since 2003, and in Oregon I've been managing the voluntary compliance programs since 1996. I was raised on a dairy farm, I've been in construction as a laborer, a framer, a roofer, a commercial fisherman, truck driver, bridge builder, logger, heavy equipment operator, and a mill worker. They changed my title and gave me a raise and called me a coordinator. I've been with Oregon OSHA now since 1990, first as a compliance officer and then as a consultant, and I'm a Program Coordinator now, I was a Program Manager for a number of years. I guess I'm a safety professional-I've got a little bit more than 28 years in the field. Mark, hello, thanks for joining us, and I wonder if you could tell us a little bit about yourself. We have Mark Hurliman, who is the VPP and SHARP Program Coordinator with Oregon OSHA, and he's going to talk with us about OSHA Consulting Services and in particular VPP and SHARP. This is Jeff Dalto, Senior Learning & Development Specialist with Vector Solutions, doing another one of our semi-regular webinar/interview/podcast series, and today we have an exciting guest. Introduction to Mark Hurliman, VPP, and SHARP ![]()
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