OSHA is looking for suggestions on how to strengthen the agency’s Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) so that they continue to represent safety and health excellence, leverage partner resources and recognize the successes of long-term participants.

To that end, the agency plans to hold a stakeholder meeting July 17, 2017, in Washington, D.C., to gather comments and suggestions from the public on potential avenues for action.

Some of the questions for which OSHA invites stakeholder input include:

• What can the agency do to enhance and encourage the efforts of employers, workers and unions to identify and address workplace hazards through the VPP?
• How can the agency support increased participation in VPP while operating with available resources and maintaining the integrity of the program?
• How can the agency modify VPP to enhance the efforts and engagement of long-term VPP participants?
• How might the agency modify Corporate VPP for greater leverage and effectiveness?
• How can the agency further leverage participant resources such as Special Government Employees?

Attend in person or provide comments online

The meeting will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Frances Perkins Building, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20210. If you’d like to attend you must register by July 10 at VPP Stakeholder Meeting Registration. (Attendees can choose from several levels of participation in the discussion.)

If you can’t attend in person, a docket has been opened to receive comments. You can provide your input and/or read others’ comments here https://www.regulations.gov/docket?D=OSHA-2017-0009. The docket closes Sept. 15, 2017.

OSHA says it will hold a second stakeholder meeting tentatively scheduled to occur in conjunction with the VPPPA National Conference the week of August 28th in New Orleans.

For more information about the stakeholder events, click here.