will understand who is responsible for what,” says
Sharon Pancamo, area safety manager for Columbus, IN-based Elwood Staffing Services. “This
aspect is critical to providing safe work environments for our employees,” she adds.
Pancamo, who also serves as chairman of the
ASA safety committee, is responsible for providing
Elwood Staffing managers with OSHA outreach
training, “which ensures that Elwood branches are
knowledgeable enough to proactively change the
client environment so it is safer for associates.” As
part of the ASA safety committee, Pancamo and
representatives of several ASA member companies have played an active role in engaging with
OSHA officials and educating them about staffing
company operations.
The ASA-OSHA alliance also gives ASA member
staffing companies immediate and comprehensive
access to any information, regulations, resources, and
announcements that could affect their businesses.
Honing the Safety Message
Staffing professionals, particularly those who
have mastered specific aspects of employment law
as it pertains to the staffing business, are quite
familiar with temporary worker safety issues and
regulations. But when OSHA’s top official talks,
American businesses listen.
“Host employers need to treat temporary workers
as they treat existing employees,” says Michaels
of OSHA. “Temporary staffing [firms] and host
employers share control over the employee, and
are therefore jointly responsible for the employee’s
safety and health. It is essential that both employ-
ers comply with all relevant OSHA requirements.”
Building upon that message, ASA and OSHA
have agreed to cooperatively work toward
n Developing information on the nature of work-
place hazards, including strategies for communi-
cating such information to staffing firms, client
companies, and temporary workers
n Supporting information-sharing among OSHA
personnel and industry safety and health profes-
sionals regarding temporary worker safety best
practices through training programs, workshops,
and seminars
n Fulfilling commitments to present information
through exhibitions and appearances at OSHA
and ASA conferences, local meetings, and other
events
The formal alliance between ASA and OSHA
has two prevailing goals:
sure to safety and health hazards during assign-
ments
n To educate staffing companies, their clients, and
temporary workers about temporary worker
rights and employer responsibilities under the
Occupational Safety and Health Act
Additionally, from a staffing industry perspec-
tive, the ASA-OSHA alliance also works toward
educating federal officials about the often misun-
derstood relationship between staffing companies
and their clients.
“The more OSHA understands the specifics of
the relationships between staffing companies and
client locations, the more
OSHA compliance officers
Download ASA Safety Best Practices
Remember that ASA member staffing companies have access to valuable
safety best practices documents online. “Employee Safety Best Practices and
Operating Information” addresses best practices in staffing firms’ general
operations and management of workplace incidents. The best practices include
interactions between internal and temporary employees as well as clients,
secondary suppliers, vendor management systems providers, and managed
service providers.
Additional safety best practices are available for companies operating in
industrial, nurse, office–clerical, professional–managerial, and technical–
information technology staffing. Go to americanstaffing.net/safetymatters.
New ASA Video Focuses on Worker Safety
ASA has produced a new video that succinctly addresses the topic of temporary
worker safety. Use the video to spark conversations at your staffing firm. Share
the video with your clients. Post it to your company’s social media sites to
promote safety messages. View the three-minute video at americanstaffing.net/
safetymatters.
