# Presentation: 409756

## OSHA/Air Transport Section’s Ergonomic Alliance for Baggage Handling

**National Safety Congress**
**Wednesday, September 10, 2003**
**10:00 a.m.**

## Slide 2

## OSHA/Airline Industry Alliance

- History-OSHA Alliance Program
- 	-Forming the Airline Industry Alliance
- Lee Anne Jillings
- 	Occupational Safety and Health Administration

## OSHA’s StrategicManagement Plan, 2003-2008

- By 2008, reduce fatality rates 15% and injury/illness
- rates 20% through:
- Goal 1 – Reduce occupational hazards  through direct intervention
- Goal 2 – Promote safety and health culture  through compliance assistance, cooperative programs, and strong  leadership
- Goal 3 – Strengthen agency capabilities and infrastructure

## Goal 2: Compliance Assistance, Cooperative Programs & Leadership 

- Promote a safety and health culture through compliance assistance, cooperative programs and strong leadership.
**Strategy 2-1:****	**Improve OSHA’s ability to capture opportunities
- 			where compliance assistance, leadership,
- 			outreach, and cooperative programs will maximize
- 			impact.
**Strategy 2-2:** 	Promote a safety and health culture through
- 			America’s worksites.
**Strategy 2-3**:	Improve the effectiveness of OSHA’s approaches
- 			for promoting safety and health.

## OSHA’s Alliance Program

- Broadly Written Agreements
- Established at OSHA’s
- National, Regional, Area Offices
- or by State Plan States
- Goals focus on:
- Training and Education
- Outreach and Communication
- Promoting the National Dialogue
- Customized Implementation Teams
- Two-years, Renewable
- Quarterly Update Meetings or Conference Calls

## Benefits of an Alliance

- Build a cooperative and
- 	trusting relationship  with
- 	OSHA
- Network with other
- 	organizations committed
- 	to workplace safety and health
- Leverage resources to maximize worker  protection

## Slide 8

## National Alliances

**Signed**
- The Dow Chemical Alliance Company
-  American Biological Safety Association
-  Society of the Plastics Industry
-  The Printing Industry
**Recent/Upcoming**
- International Safety Equipment Association
- National Safety Council
- Network of Employers for Traffic Safety
- Work Zone Coalition for Safety and Health

## Airline Industry Alliance Members

- American Airlines
- American Trans Air
- America West Airlines

- Continental Airlines
- Delta Air Lines
- Jetblue Airways
- Midwest Express Airlines
- Southwest Airlines
- United Airlines
- US Airways
- NSC International Air Transport Section

- Air Canada
- Airtran Airways
- Alaska Airlines

## Airline Industry Alliance Vision

**Year 1**
- Define strategy and best practices
- Educate and communicate process with interested parties
- Share successes with others
- 		-NSC Congress
- 		-VPP Seminar

## Airline Industry Alliance Vision

**Year 2**
- Reaffirm membership
- Review past year and identify specific projects and goals for upcoming year
- Communicate with and educate interested parties
- Expand awareness of the Alliance world-wide

## Alliance Action Items

**Training and Education**
- Develop a baggage handling training manual for employees
**Outreach and Communication**
- Review and provide input on way to improve OSHA’s e-tool
- Develop Safety and Health Topics Page for the Airlines Industry
- Hold a one-day seminar on OSHA’s VPP process
- 		-June 4, 2003, Delta Airlines, Atlanta, Georgia
- Sponsor a workshop on the Alliance Program
- 		-National Safety Council Congress, September 10, 2002, Chicago, IL
- 		-Review the Alliance’s first year for OSHA’s National Office
**Promote the National Dialogue on Workplace Safety & Health**
- Educate interested parties on the ergonomics of baggage 	handling

## Alliance Timeline – Year 1

- December 18, 2002 - Kick-off Meeting
- OSHA, Washington, DC
- January 27 & 28, 2003 - Workshop
- OSHA Salt Lake Technical Center, Salt Lake City, UT
- April 28 & 29, 2003 - Workshop
- 	OSHA Salt Lake Technical Center, Salt Lake City, UT
- June 4, 2003 - VPP Presentation
- Delta Airlines, Atlanta, Georgia
- September 10, 2003 - NSC Presentation/Panel Discussion
- National Safety Council Congress, Chicago, IL
- October 2003 - Group Performance Appraisal

## Slide 15

## OSHA/Airline Industry Alliance

- VPP Seminar
- Jim Swartz
- 	Delta Air Lines

## OSHA Programs

- What is an OSHA Alliance?
- Program created by OSHA to enable organizations committed to safety and health to collaborate with OSHA to prevent injuries.

**Partnerships**

**VPP**

**Alliance**

## VPP Workshop

- Who?
- 16 Airlines and Labor Groups
- 4 Airline Servicing Companies
- 3 Government Agencies
- 4 Other Private Industries
- 3 National Associations

- UAL, IAMAW
- Alliance Members
- COMAIR, Skywest, Northwest, ASA
- LSG SkyChefs, ARAMARK, ITS Aviation, GAT Airline Ground Support
- Corporate Performance Solutions, Marsh, Tropicanna, Georgetown University
- VPPPA, NATA, NSC
- Federal OSHA, State OSHA, TSA

## VPP Workshop

- When and When?
- Delta Air Lines “Star” Status Maintenance Facility
- June 4, 2003

## VPP Workshop

- Why VPP?
- What is VPP?
- National VPP/Alliance Overview
- How VPP?
- Application/Evaluation Process Overview
- Delta VPP Team Process Overview
- Mentoring Process Overview
- Benefits of VPP
- VPPPA

## VPP Workshop

- Why?
- Relate VPP to Aviation Industry
- Share Employee Driven Process
- Establish Network for Outreach

## OSHA/Airline Industry Alliance

- The Experience
- Holly Geiger Zimmerman
- 	Alaska Airlines

## Industry Apprehension

**Some airlines may have feared:**
- Alliance will result in more frequent inspections;
- Federal & State OSHA inspectors would use Alliance information and work products inconsistently in the enforcement actions; or
- One size does not fit all: each airline sees their business characteristics as unique

## Traditional OSHA-Industry Perceptions

- Industry personnel may have perceived OSHA as:
- -non-collaborative
- -rule focused, not solution-oriented
- During inspections/investigations, boundaries maintained, information flow is restricted
- Inspections may only scratch the surface:
- -visual observations
- -written program review
- OSHA personnel not always familiar with industry-specific challenges that influence compliance capabilities

## Planned Approach

- To ensure individual airline **Planeside Loading **support and continued participation, the Alliance parameters were set:
- Specific goals
- One-year timeline for completion of work products

## Airline Participation

- All signatories on the Alliance sent representation to the meetings;
- Meetings were conducted efficiently and at convenient times/locations;
- Open sharing of best practices between airlines to familiarize OSHA with existing efforts;
- Participants were open-minded to recommendations;
- Resulted in immediate changes to and development of resources

## OSHA Participation 

- OSHA representatives dedicated many hours to Alliance implementation;
- OSHA representatives were considerate of inherent industry challenges;
- OSHA actively participated at all meetings including hosting airline members at SLC Technical Training Center and planning and presenting at the VPP Seminar;
- Recommendations for changes were realistic (economically/technologically feasible) and received well by airline representatives

## OSHA/Airline Industry Alliance

- eTool
- Ashley West
- 	Delta Air Lines

## eTool Updates

- Terminology updated to fit the Airline Industry
- -Original eTool was more based on the manufacturing environment
- -Terminology was mutually agreed upon by Alliance members
- eTool format follows the process flow of airport
- -Now divided into three sections (Check-In,           Make-Up Room, Ramp) instead of four (Check-in, Bag Cart, Loading Conveyor, Bag Compartment)
- -Dimensions of aircraft bins and equipment are now included

## eTool Updates

- Within the process flow, hazards are listed by level of automation and type of equipment utilized
- -Original eTool listed hazards inconsistently from the front-line employees’ perspective
- -Hazards are now listed by type of handling device (manual, semi-automated, automated), type of conveyor system (flat plate carousel, sloped carousel, double pier belts), and type of cart/container

## eTool Updates

- Possible solutions are now listed according to feasibility of implementation
- -Original eTool possible solutions required consideration of limitations placed on airlines by:
- TSA
- Airport authorities
- FAA
- Equipment (ground support and aircraft type)
- Operation
- -Possible solutions (administrative, work practice and engineering) are now listed based on operational and economical feasibility

## Progress

- Ramp Section published July 2003
- Ticket Counter and Make-Up Room Sections to be published September 2003
- eTool will be reviewed and updated annually per OSHA process and Alliance objective

## Benefits for Airlines

- Better understanding of the different processes within each company
- Better understanding of OSHA’s approach
- Documented solutions to support and validate projects within each company
- Sharing of ergonomics best practices among airlines

## OSHA/Airline Industry Alliance

- Baggage Handling Training Manual
- Penny Prince
- 	American Airlines

## Areas of Concern

- Injuries associated with baggage handling are the most prevalent injury for the aviation  industry
- Use of engineering controls is limited at this time due to technical and economic feasibility
- The aviation industry does not have consistent training for best methods in baggage handling

## Purpose

- Cost effective and consistent training materials
- Training that is most applicable to essential job functions
- Training that is in the most usable format

## Areas of Focus

- The largest # of injuries and employees
- -baggage handling on the ramp
- The type of injury with greatest concern
- -musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)
- Top priority for all participating airlines
- -planeside loading and unloading

## Training Content

- Injury Prevention
- Contributing Risk Factors for MSDs
- Safe Work Practices
- Principles of Body Mechanics
- Stretches and Exercise
- The Baggage Handling Process
- Proper Body Mechanics (task specific)

## Functions to be Analyzed

- Skycap
- Ticket Counter
- Gate Check-in
- Baggage Make-up (T-point)
- _Planeside Loading and Unloading_
- Aircraft Cargo Compartments
- Baggage Claim

## Extended Reaching(unloading cart without shelf)

- Brace oneself with an arm or leg
- Slide load or pull load close to body before lifting
- Stay in control of the load

## Twisting while Lifting(unloading cart with shelf)

- Angle cart to reduce degree of turn
- Keep load directly in front of body
- Step into the turn when turning body

## One-handed Lifting(loading cart with shelf)

- Use two-handed lift whenever possible
- Keep load at waist height
- Avoid lifting bags by handles

## OSHA/Airline Industry Alliance

- Future of the Alliance
- Barry Brown
- 	Southwest Airlines

## Continue  Work on Current Initiatives

- eTool
- continuous review & update
- add job functions
- Baggage Handling Training Manual
- further development of function specific training
- expand to include other aviation-related operations
- Interested Parties Process

## Initiatives Being Consideredfor 2004

- Airport Facilities Communication
- Public/Customer Education
- NATA/International Outreach
- OSHA Alliance Website Enhancement

## Acknowledgements

- John Andrus	Southwest
- Bob Curtis	OSHA
- Kristi Dearing	OSHA
- Brently Donaldson	OSHA
- Greg George	OSHA
- Ann Giles	AirTran
- Travis Hannan	OSHA
- Dee Hinckley	JetBlue
- Lee Anne Jillings	OSHA
- Cindy Keiser	Continental
- Richard Lindsay	American 	Airlines
- Ray McCleary	US Airways
- Kim McDaniel	Southwest
- Richard Petriatis	United

- Penny Prince	American Airlines
- Tim Racicot	Continental
- Lisa Ramber	OSHA
- Christopher San Giovanni	JetBlue
- Hillary Schneider	United
- Kevin Summerlin	Continental
- Jim Swartz	Delta Air 	Lines
- Debra Vujasin	US Airways
- Terri Weiland	Midwest 	Express
- Ashley West	Delta Air 	Lines
- Bill Wright	OSHA
- Holly Zimmerman	Alaska Airlines