The next best thing

Rent-a-Safety-Director saves lives and money

AGC, state programs fill in where companies fear to spend

By Sean Ryan
Daily Reporter Staff

A full-time safety director position can strain a contractor's already tight budget, but when money is scarce, companies can turn to at least two sources for part-time solutions.

"A lot of companies have (a safety director) who's wearing two or three hats, and that person's time is very valuable," said Dan Bolle, Associated General Contractors of Greater Milwaukee associate safety director. "It's very hard for them to take time out for safety."

"Housekeeping on a job site is very important because it's not like your house where you trip and fall on something and you land on a carpet." Dan Bolle Associate Safety Director AGC-GM

The AGC of Greater Milwaukee Rent-a-Safety Director Program can solve the time and funding needs of companies that care about safety but don't have the means to follow through. Started in 1994, the program provides contractors statewide with experienced part-time safety consultants for job site inspections and worker training.

The program rents out Bolle, who spent 25 years as a glazier before becoming a safety director, for $50 an hour to AGC members and $100 an hour to nonmembers. Dan Burazin, AGC of Greater Milwaukee safety director, said Bolle handles on-site training, job site safety audits, safety program reviews as well as class organization to teach proper procedures in, among other things, first aid or forklift operation.

"He would review your training records and assist you in creating a training program," Burazin said. "He'll go out to your job site and inspect it much as an (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) inspector would do, which is something that OSHA requires all contractors to do anyway."

Bolle said the audits could improve job site safety by exorcising little devils in the details, such as incorrect ladder use or frayed cords on power tools, which could result in serious injuries.

"Housekeeping on a job site is very important because it's not like your house where you trip and fall on something and you land on a carpet," Bolle said.

Program in action

Joe Widmann, vice president and safety director for Milwaukee-based The Bentley Company, said his company started renting safety directors from AGC in 1999 to spot potential job site hazards and train workers and superintendents. He said the inspections and written reports made job sites safer, but, more importantly, the training helped to prevent future hazards.

"(Superintendents) see it as a tool they can use to help identify the safety hazards and how to deal with them," Widmann said. "It has assisted us in performing site audits on a regular basis and assisting our superintendents in identifying potential hazards.

""It has assisted us in performing site audits on a regular basis and assisting our superintendents in identifying potential hazards. Obviously it's a more cost-effective way to upgrade our safety program." Joe Widmann Vice President and Safety Director The Bentley Company

Obviously it's a more cost-effective way to upgrade our safety program."

Widmann said AGC's safety directors have helped keep him up to date on new OSHA standards and what OSHA is on the lookout for.

"The AGC works very closely with OSHA and they are able to keep us well informed with OSHA standards," he said.

Burazin said using AGC safety directors could help contractors garner some slack from OSHA for minor violations found during inspections.

Some companies that rent from AGC have lowered their insurance rates because they use the program, Burazin said.

Widmann agreed, pointing to the impact AGC has had on his company's insurance payments and his hopes for an even greater effect in the future.

"I think it has enabled us to achieve some benefit in our insurance premiums," he said. "It's something we're still working to improve, and I think they'll help us do that in the long run."

State options

For those who don't want to shell out $50 or $100 an hour for job site safety audits, the Wisconsin Safety Consultation Program, run through the state Department of Commerce, will do it for free. The program provides consultants who review safety programs and inspect job sites for OSHA compliance.

Jim Lutz, WSCP manager, said the program has inspected 14,000 different sites since it started in 1977, but lately they've received fewer calls from contractors.

"We'll get out and talk to the employer about some of the latest and greatest things that OSHA has come up with," he said. "We look at safety programs, training, job sites, or we'll just inspect for fall protection. The emphasis of our program is not really to OSHA-proof sites but really to instruct the employer on how to operate more safely."

Burazin said many of AGC's members use his program rather than WSCP because the association has faster service and because it is not as closely affiliated with OSHA.

"Theirs is free and ours is for a fee," he said. "The problem with theirs is that you have to get in line and wait a while. Also, if you don't fix (hazards) later they'll call OSHA on you."

Lutz said WSCP usually inspects within two or three weeks of a call. He also said that although they are required to report serious hazards to OSHA if they are not fixed within a few days, it's only happened with three contractors since 1977.

Widmann, who said he's used WSCP at other companies, said he prefers AGC's program because it provides training opportunities the state's program doesn't offer.