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President's Message

5/18/2020

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I hope this article finds the safety community doing well in our region.Including at home, family, friends, work, and in all that you do, my hope is that you are safe, well, and looking forward to a prosperous return to day-to-day life.
In the meantime, stating the obvious, we have all had to make adjustments, but most seem to be doing well with the situation. We did our first Webex for a chapter training meeting. Lenny Reierson, OR-OSHA, presented on the Top 18 OSHA Violations. It was very informative, and you could still tell, even through a Webex meeting, that Lenny has a heart for the safety of all workers. He is an outstanding safety consultant, and he was willing to give this Webex process a try to share his message. We had a few technical difficulties, but Mike Hill, who was hosting the event, was prepared for these “hiccups,” and the meeting went off without a hitch as we say in Eagle Point. Thanks to everyone involved in the Webex, we had a very productive meeting. We will be doing a similar event in June.
As you may have heard, Safety 2020 in Orlando has been changed to a virtual 3-day conference. We will now see how attendance at a 3-day virtual event plays out next month. This is a monumental task, but the ASSP is up to it. Numerous training opportunities are now coming available on-line in a virtual setting. As a result, we are seeing some positive responses to the changing work atmosphere.
We have canceled the Southern Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Conference this year as the planning and execution would not line up due to the restrictions in place and the unknown conditions for the remainder of this year for such events. We will be looking at doing a Safety Committee Academy in the future where we will put on classes for Safety Committee Operations, Hazard Identification, and Accident Investigations.  
As noted, there have been a lot of changes in our daily lives and the way we operate, but like a strong America has always done, we are finding our way through this and turning challenging situations into positive outcomes. This is what safety professionals do!

Stay safe and healthy.
 
Chris Lawrence
President, ASSP – Southern Oregon Chapter

​With over 20 years in occupational safety and health, Chris Lawrence is a retired US Air Force Safety Professional who is the Regional Safety Manager for Boise Cascade.

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The Pandemic-Ready Home Office Solutions

5/18/2020

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​​With so many changes occurring lately, many of us have had to adjust to a new workspace: a home office. What was once an occasional occurrence, became much more regular. This has caused so many of us to reevaluate our workspaces to make them work for us without them harming us. While it is not always realistic to expect them to be as nice as the office workspaces that we were accustomed to, we can make small changes that will make a big difference. Let’s looks at some simple solutions and guidelines we can consider:

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Chair
  • Ensure you have appropriate lower back support.
  • Adjust chair height to keep your knees at 90 degrees and hips at 90-110 degrees.
  • Feet should comfortably reach the floor or use an adjustable footrest.
  • If you have armrests, adjust them so that you don’t touch them while typing but can rest your arms periodically between tasks.

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Keyboard and Mouse
  • The keyboard and mouse should be positioned at a height that enables the wrists to be straight and minimize contact pressure or awkward postures.
  • The keyboard and mouse should be positioned so that elbows can be at a 90-degree angle.
    • Position keyboard and armrests to reduce awkward stress on shoulders.
    • The keyboard and mouse on your laptop are not optimal.Use an independent keyboard and mouse to help position them appropriately.

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Monitors
  • Look away from your screen periodically and remember to blink.
  • Make sure you have good lighting and avoid putting screens directly in front of a bright window.
  • Keep monitor about 25 inches away or at arm’slength (adjust as needed for corrective lenses).
  • Ensure your eyes are level with the top third of the monitor screen. Laptop stands can help with this or attach an external monitor.

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Self-Care
  • Make sure you are not sitting or standing for prolonged periods of time.
  • Get up and move every hour.
  • Mix up different tasks periodically to prevent fatigue due to repetition.
  • Stretch and move regularly; microbreaks are a great opportunity to remind our joints of their flexibility.
  • Get regular meals and drink plenty of water.
  • Go ahead and schedule a walk during a break.
 
The concepts we use to set up our office desk still apply at home. Take a look at this great guide for more ideas:
 
https://www.saif.com/safety-and-health/ergonomics-for-the-home-office.html.
 
If you do find that the workspaces you are using at home are not optimal, consider trying different work areas to mix it up so that that one bad posture isn’t being compounded, day after day. The last thing you want to do is settle into one bad system all the time. Keep making small changes to find improvements. The good thing about improving your workspace is that your joints and muscles will often “tell” you if you’ve just made an improvement or not.
 
These are challenging days, and my hope is that none of you will take them sitting down . . . all day that is.
 
 
David Hanson, CSP
Vice President, ASSP – Southern Oregon Chapter
Senior Safety Management Consultant, SAIF Corporation
 
David has an expertise in building dynamic safety teams and developing high-performing safety cultures. He spent 18 years at Timber Products Company as a Supervisor and Safety Coordinator and facilitated continued certification into Oregon OSHA's Voluntary Protection Program (VPP).

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​Southern Oregon Chapter ASSP Executive Committee Officers Start July 1st

5/18/2020

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​Southern Oregon Chapter ASSP Executive Committee Officers Start July 1st
Please help me welcome the new and continuing officers that will be starting on July 1st for your Southern Oregon Chapter. A successful vote of the membership was held online at the May 5th, 2020,chapter meeting. This vote successfully confirmed the slate and was unanimous. Please also consider if you would like to join us for one of the two open positions, and let us know of your interest. We would enjoy having you join the team!
 
2020/2021 ASSP Southern Oregon Chapter Executive Committee Officers and Members
(The 2020/2021 chapter year runs from July 1st, 2020, to June 30, 2021.)
 
President – David Hanson
Vice President – Open Position
Past President – Chris Lawrence
Secretary – Roy Harper
Treasurer – Patti McGuire
Program Coordinator – David Spence
Membership Coordinator – Amy Stonehill
Communications Coordinator – Kyle Valley
Conference Planning Chair – Michael Hill
Government Affairs Coordinator – Ross Olson
Operations Coordinator – Open Position
 
 
Michael Hill
Past President
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Government Relations Update:

5/18/2020

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Southern Oregon is Open for Business
Governor Brown approved of Southern Oregon Counties reopening Friday, May 15th, under Phase 1 guidelines. How will this affect your business or organization? How can you ensure the safety of your workers during this time? Checkout the following resources to help you. Feel free to get in touch with one of us on the Executive Committee if you have questions.
 
What you need to know:
  1. Phase 1 guidelines include staying six feet apart, wearing face coverings, and no groups larger than 25.
  2. After 21 days in Phase 1, counties that do not show a spike in cases can enter Phase2 which is still being defined but may include expanded social gatherings up to possibly 100, some office work, and visitation to congregate care.
  3. Phase 3, which would allow large gatherings of probably over 100 people, will not be considered in Oregon until reliable treatment or prevention is available.
 
Governor Brown’s COVID19 Resource Page
 
Reopening Oregon: Details on Restarting Public Life and Business
 
Oregon Face Covering Requirements
 
CDC Business Guidance Page
 
SAIF Resources for Workplaces During the Pandemic
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